Foreword: Vinotinto Venezuela Béisbol, 1939–2024

 

Venezuelans have always believed our country is blessed with three great treasures: oil, beautiful women, and world-class baseball players.

While soccer has grown in popularity and basketball has brought us memorable victories, baseball is still baseball.

You don’t need a regulation-sized diamond to play. Any sandlot will do. That’s why, in every corner, every neighborhood, and every town—no matter how small—you’ll find kids playing ball with whatever they can: rubber balls, rags, tape, even cardboard. And if there’s no ball at all, bottle caps—our beloved chapitas—do the trick.

I grew up in Ocumare del Tuy, a town in the state of Miranda. I played basketball and volleyball and proudly represented my state in national competitions. But it was baseball that gave me a career, a purpose, and the ability to provide for my family.

Like most Venezuelan kids, I started with street baseball—scrappy games against children from neighboring barrios, using rubber balls and broomsticks that, in our eyes, were top-of-the-line Louisville Sluggers.

Everything changed when I met Ernesto Aparicio—my beloved viejo Aparicio. With him, baseball became more than a pastime; it became a path toward a profession and a better future.

He helped me take my first real steps in the game. As a teenager, I began to develop skills that caught the attention of Luis Rosas, a Puerto Rican scout for the San Diego Padres. He saw my potential and offered me a professional contract. Around the same time in Venezuela, Pedro Padrón Panza, owner of the Tiburones de La Guaira, signed me to play for his team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.

Signing with the Padres brought great joy to my family, but the deal with the Tiburones was the realization of a childhood dream.

You see, the Pampero rum distillery—original owner of a team called the Licoreros—was located in my hometown. That team eventually became the Tiburones, and from that moment on, we were die-hard fans. Their players were our heroes.

Back then, we followed the games on the radio. The broadcasters, with their vivid storytelling, made us feel like we were right there on the field. We’d reenact the plays in the streets, proudly taking on the names of our idols:

“I’m Luis Aparicio … I’m Remigio Hermoso … I’m José Herrera … I’m Pipo Correa … ”

Luis Aparicio—shortstop for the Tiburones—is still the only Venezuelan inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. But many others who wore the Tiburones uniform also made their mark in Major League Baseball. Our winter league hosted not only Venezuelan stars but legends from across the Caribbean and the Americas: Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Curaçao.

Players like Pete Rose, Steve Sax, Luis Tiant, Porfirio Altamirano, Odell Jones, Darryl Strawberry, Davey Johnson, Derrel Thomas, and many more—some whose names I may have forgotten but whose impact lives on—played in our league and became fan favorites.

They competed alongside the best Venezuelan talent, many of whom are featured in the stories ahead.

It’s a true honor to introduce this book, which celebrates the lives and legacies of the Venezuelan players who have left their mark on Major League Baseball.

When I was invited to write this foreword for SABR, I immediately thought of the pioneers who paved the way, long before I ever dreamed of becoming a pro ballplayer. Then I thought of the hundreds who followed, proudly carrying our flag into the big leagues.

From Alejandro “Patón” Carrasquel, the first Venezuelan to play in MLB with the Washington Senators … to his nephew Chico Carrasquel, the first Latin American All-Star … to Luis Aparicio, Rookie of the Year … to Andrés Galarraga, batting champion—an achievement later matched by Magglio Ordóñez, Miguel Cabrera, and José Altuve.

We’ve witnessed no-hitters from Johan Santana, Félix Hernández, Carlos Zambrano, and Aníbal Sánchez. We celebrated King Félix’s perfect game, Miguel Cabrera’s Triple Crown, and countless other milestones that fill our country with pride.

All of them are role models for future generations. When I made my MLB debut with the Chicago White Sox in 1985, Venezuelan players in the majors could be counted on one hand. Today, at every level, you’ll find hundreds of our countrymen across the rosters of all 30 MLB organizations.

Each one is chasing the same dream we once chased.

Each one is sacrificing—leaving home, adapting to a new culture and language, competing against the world’s best—to create a better future for their families.

In 1981, at just 17 years old, I stepped onto the field at Estadio Universitario to play my first professional game, wearing the uniform of the team I idolized as a child. That moment began a journey filled with highs and lows, lessons learned, failures overcome, and goals reached through relentless effort and unwavering belief.

My story will likely sound familiar as you turn the pages of this book.

Each chapter is a testament to resilience. Each life inspires the kids who wake up every day, hop on a bus or walk dusty roads to get to a field, field grounders, swing the bat, and warm up their arms—all with the same dream in their hearts.

I hope you enjoy every word and feel proud of the legacy these players continue to build.

Because when you truly believe and give everything you have … no dream is impossible.

— Ozzie Guillén
July 2025