SAN JUAN, P.R. — The major league baseball games this week between the Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians here had dual goals: to affirm the Puerto Rican government’s position that the island was open for business again after the devastation of Hurricane Maria seven months ago, and to showcase this American territory’s unique relationship with baseball.
And then lights across the island went out again.
The second and final game went on — the mayor of San Juan promised it would — but sitting in the stands on Wednesday, it was hard to miss the disparity: running on generators earlier in the day, Estadio Hiram Bithorn, the storied stadium where the games were played, was back on the power grid by game time, while across the highway, apartment buildings and businesses disappeared in the dark, save for a few lit windows.