RABID FANS OF ECHO’S Tristan “Yawi” Cabrera have been attacking ECHO country manager Mitch Liwanag and ECHO sixth man Jaypee Dela Cruz, accusing the former of favoring Jaypee over Yawi just because they are married. Libelous comments against Liwanag were posted on MLBB News News Events and Tournaments page on Facebook, accusing the country manager of arbitrariness and being biased.
But Liwanag had nothing to do with ECHO’s roster this season. In fact, it was the players who decided they wanted to play with Jaypee instead of Yawi.
“Mas may fit lang talaga si Jaypee sa amin.”
During the post-match press conference with ECHO on October 26, 2023 after their defeat in the hands of Blacklist International, ECHO revealed to members of the MPL-PH Press Corps that they picked Jaypee over Yawi.
“Hindi naman po sa mayroong nagagawa si Jaypee na hindi nagagawa si Yawi, kasi mayroon din namang nagagawa si Yawi na hindi nagagawa ni Jaypee. Mas may fit lang talaga si Jaypee sa amin,” ECHO Gold Laner Benedict “BennyQt” Gonzales told SPIN.ph.
Was Yawi penalized that’s why he’s not playing?
According to Yawi and Liwanag, the latter has not committed any violations that would warrant a suspension. According to MOONTON Games, there is currently no penalty or suspension imposed on Yawi. Standard protocol requires teams to inform the League in case a player is fined, penalized, or suspended. The case of Yawi being benched for the most part of MPL-PH Season 12 was a result of his teammates really preferring the gameplay, comms, and calmness of Jaypee over Yawi.
Compared with Jaypee, whose comms and shot calls are always calm and calculated, which eventually resulted in an 11-series win streak for ECHO, Yawi’s playstyle is more aggressive and riskier, often concentrating on pickoffs that the team often has to respond quickly to.
“Mas aggressive po yung comms namin kapag si Yawi [yung naglalaro],” Sanford told SPIN.ph. “Mahilig po siya sa mga pickoffs. Pero kapag si Jaypee, in-and-out lang po kami sa mga clash.”
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