The "Baseball and Puerto Rico Part I: The Players" Story

Sample articles from "The San Juan Daily Star" newspaper.

It was an ordinary day.  Reading in "The San Juan Daily Star" about Carlos Correa becoming the youngest shortstop to ever homer in the playoffs.  Seems that just about every day of our ten day visit to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico the newspaper proclaimed the virtues of one of their native sons who are currently playing in, or who have played in the past, Major League Baseball and there has been plenty to write about considering that almost 250 native Puerto Ricans have played in the Major Leagues.  I reported in a few other stories I have posted about cab drivers and even food servers who enjoyed talking about professional baseball and the players who represent their Country.  

Houston Astros rookie Carlos Correa.

Well, the story about Carlos Correa tells about the Houston Astros rookie shortstop who blasted a mammoth homer in Game 4 of the Royals-Astros American League Division Series.  Correa is 21 years and 20 days old which means he is the youngest shortstop to ever hit a postseason home run in a playoff game.  The next player in line under him was 80 days older than Correa.  Pretty neat record for any player to own and the Country of Puerto Rico is proud of his feat.  

The first Puerto Rican baseball player, Hiram Bithorn.

Baseball was introduced to Puerto Rico in the 19th Century by immigrants and the first sanctioned baseball game on the island was played January 9, 1898 in Santurce when teams composed of Puerto Rican, American and Cuban players competed.  After this game National teams were formed and played on an international level.  Afro-Puerto Rican players also formed teams and participated in the Negro Leagues.  The very first Puerto Rico born player to play in the Major Leagues was Hiram Bithorn who pitched for the Chicago Cubs in 1942.  With the introduction of black players into the Major Leagues in 1947, that opened the door for more players born in Puerto Rico to play.  

The entrance to the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan.

One of my favorite Afro-Puerto Rican players who played for the San Francisco Giants, Orlando Cepeda, was selected for participation in the All-Star Game.   And who could ever forget Roberto Clemente who in 1973 was the first Latin American and Puerto Rican to be elected as a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame.  Originally players from Puerto Rico could sign with any team that was willing to give them a minor-league contract, but in 1989 Major League Baseball began to include them in the Major League Baseball Draft so that teams would have to give them a more lucrative contract.  

My aerial photograph I took upon landing in Puerto Rico.
The item in the center is the Hiram Bithorn Stadium.

Puerto Rico was also one of 16 teams to participate in the inaugural edition of the World Baseball Classic in 2006 that was created by Major League Baseball, Major League Baseball Players Asso. and the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League.  One of the stadiums located in Puerto Rico, the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan served as one of the venues for the early rounds.  As Carol and I, along with our travel friends Jerry and Just Sue, were approaching the airport in San Juan, high above the city, I was able to take a few photos of stadiums.  They are not the best photos, but 
I believe the one stadium is the Hiram Bithorn Stadium while the other is the Roberto Clemente Coliseum.  What a thrill to see these venues and the importance they hold to the citizens of Puerto Rico.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  PS - tomorrow I will give you a glimpse into one of the most heroic baseball players, Roberto Clemente.