The "Baseball and Puerto Rico Part II: Roberto Clemente" Story

Foreword:  My story today is rather lengthy, but I decided I could not do Roberto Clemente justice had I shortened it just to help someone read it faster.  His life was one of athletic achievement, but more so, one of humanitarianism.  If you ever had the chance to see him play or meet him as he helped others, you will understand why his story cannot be shortened.

The Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
This photo was taken as we were landing in San Juan.

It was an ordinary day.  Scouring through my photos from my recent trip to Puerto Rico when I came upon a photo of what looked to be a large stadium or coliseum that I had photographed from the air upon entry into the San Juan airport.  Did some research and found it to be the Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan that was named for him in 1973, a year after his tragic death.  

The Roberto Clemente Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

I should go back a few years to the mid-late 1960's and early 70's when Roberto played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League.  The Pirates were the cross-state rivals of my Philadelphia Phillies and I can remember visiting old Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia to see this young guy playing right field and making some of the most fantastic catches and throwing out some of the fastest Phillies base runners as well as hitting the ball into just about every gap in the stadium.  

#21 - Rightfielder Roberto Clemente.

He was one heck of a ball player and I hated it every time the Phils would play the Pirates, since I knew Clemente would find some way to help the Pirates beat my beloved Phillies.  Roberto Enrique Clemente was born in Barrio San Anton, Carolina, Puerto Rico on August 18, 1934.  He ended up playing 18 years for the Pirates before he was killed in a tragic plane crash.  He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973, becoming the first Latin American and Caribbean player to be so enshrined.  He was elected six months after his death rather than the stated five-year waiting period.  Roberto Clemente was an All-Star for twelve seasons and the Most Valuable Player in the National League in 1966.  

He led the National League in batting in 1961, 64, 65 and 67 and won a Gold Glove, awarded for the best at his fielding position, 12 consecutive seasons from 1961 to 1972.  He had a lifetime batting average of .317 and had his 3,000 Major League hit in 1972.  He also had the chance to play in two World Series and won the World Series Most Valuable Player Award in 1971 when the Pirates won the World Series.  Roberto was the youngest of seven children with four brothers and two sisters.  His father was a foreman in the sugar cane fields where Roberto worked alongside him.  

Roberto Clemente's photo from the U.S. Marine Corp.

Clemente joined Puerto Rico's amateur league when he was 16 and two years later was offered a contract with the Cangrejeros de Santurce team in the PR winter league.  In 1954 Clemente moved to Montreal to play for a Brooklyn Dodgers minor league team.  Clyde Sukeforth, a scout for the Pirates, noticed that Clemente was only a bench player and convinced Pittsburgh manager Branch Rickey to draft Clemente and the rest is history as they say.  His early Topps baseball cards referred to him as Bob Clemente which he did not like.  Clemente wore uniform #21 which was later retired by the Pirates.  During the winter season of 1958-59 he joined the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and spent his six-month active duty at Parris Island, South Carolina and at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina.  

The Roberto Clemente Award

During this time he added ten pounds and considerable strength which helped in his athletic career.  Roberto Clemente was married in 1964 to Vera Zabala at San Fernando Church in Carolina, PR and they had three children, all boys.  During the off season he spent much of his time in charity work.  When Managua, Nicaragua was affected by a massive earthquake on Saturday, December 23, 1972, Roberto immediately set to work arranging emergency relief flights.  He learned that the first three flights had been diverted by corrupt officials of the Somoza government and decided to accompany the fourth relief flight to make sure it arrived.  The airplane that he chartered for a New year's Eve flight had a history of mechanical problems and was overloaded by 4,200 pounds.  It crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Isla Verde, Puerto Rico immediately after takeoff.  An empty flight case belonging to Clemente was his only personal item recovered.  Roberto's body was never recovered.  Montreal Expos pitcher Tom Walker, a friend playing winter ball in Puerto Rico at the time, helped him load the plane, but was told my Roberto not to come along and have a good time on New Year's Eve.  Walker's son now plays second base for the Pirates.  Since 1971 the Roberto Clemente Award is presented to the player who performs well on the playing field and is personally involved in community work.  On May 14, 1973, President Richard Nixon presented posthumously the Presidential Citizens Medal to Roberto Clemente which says:

  "All who saw Roberto Clemente in action, whether on the diamond or on the front lines of charitable endeavor, are richer for the experience.  He stands with the handful of men whose brilliance has transformed the game of baseball into a showcase of skill and spirit, giving universal delight and inspiration.  More than that, his selfless dedication to helping those with two strikes against them in life has blessed thousands and set an example for millions.  As long as athletes and humanitarians are honored, Roberto Clemente's memory will live; as long as Citizens Medals are presented, each will mean a little more because the first one went to him." 

 

Click on this image to read it easier.

I sat on the beach along Isla Verde a few days during my vacation, looking out over the sea that was being calmed by a passing native man.  I only hope that I somehow might be blessed with the knowledge that I  have felt the spirit of Roberto Clemente as he died in that sea while helping humanity and fighting helplessness.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.