I don't care for the man as a role model. I could take or leave the whole buzz that is going on around him. However, there is no "preferred" time to change your nationality. If he chose to do it now, and his reasons are selfish, so be it. Why try and hang on to him and say he is an American?
I mean, this case is an excellent example because of the irony. He is renouncing his American side over the Dominican side, which is something you don't see often. I am Dominican, but S?nchez's lack of diplomacy about the issue makes me laugh instead of making me proud. He wants to affirm his Dominican citizenship in a way that alienates his American citizenship? Fine by me. He could easily get away with both, but ultimately, it's his call. If he did it out of selfishness, it doesn't rob him of his right, in my opinion. If an American couple in DR had a child and the child grows up and finds he wants to be an American, so be it. I wouldn't feel any different about it than how I feel about Felix.
A good comparison would be between Alex Rodr?guez and Mary Jo Fern?ndez. Both were raised in the USA. Mary Jo says she doesn't feel like a Dominican at all (she was adopted by American parents). On the other hand, Alex says he is American, but at the same time feels close to his Dominican roots. It boils down to what each person wants.
Citing few exceptions (the issue is too old for me to look it up), the Dominican press and public have accepted Mary Jo's choice. Nobody refers to her with malice or anything else. F?lix should fall in the same place, sort of. If he ever wants to re-accept his American side, it's up to him as well. He may look like a childish fool, but it's his call.
CC