Major League Baseball in Puerto Rico

This article appears in SABR’s “Puerto Rico and Baseball: 60 Biographies” (2017), edited by Bill Nowlin and Edwin Fernández.

Major-League Spring Training in Puerto Rico

The 1936 Cincinnati Reds

“The Cincinnati Reds put on the first major league baseball game in Puerto Rican history yesterday” was lead of an AP wire story on February 26, 1936.1 Spring training had not yet settled into the patterns we have today, though the core principles behind such training and site selection already existed: getting the team in shape for the major-league season, economic incentives, and sun. The Reds were the first team to stage spring training outside the continental United States, though a few teams had played exhibition games in Havana, Cuba.2

The 1936 Cincinnati team was not very good. They went 74-80 that year, slightly better than the year before and the year after. However, their developing stars, including Ernie Lombardi and Paul Derringer, and veteran Babe Herman would lead them to pennants in 1939 and 1940. This initial major-league visit to Puerto Rico was not important because of the team itself but was incredibly significant within the framework of racial prejudices of the period.

From the time blacks were frozen out of major-league baseball at the turn of the century, shades of brown in a player became a never-ending conflict. The Reds had been pioneers in the testing of the color line when they signed Cubans Armando Marsans and Rafael Almeida in 1911. Cuban Adolfo Luque, though initially signed by the Boston Braves, built his career in Cincinnati, for which he pitched from 1918 through 1929. Deemed sufficiently white, Luque was the biggest “brown” star until Jackie Robinson broke the color line. In other words, Cincinnati was already the leader in testing the color line prior to arriving in Puerto Rico in 1936.

Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis realized that with black baseball teams defeating some of the all-white big-league teams, it was becoming a challenge to maintain not only the white supremacy of the times but the argument that the major leagues played superior baseball compared with all other leagues. Landis unofficially ordered that major-league teams to no longer play Negro League or other Negro teams. While “all-star” games were permitted, no more than three members of any single major-league team could play on such a squad. Furthermore, while winter-league baseball had been established, white players were not to play against teams of American blacks as opposed to non-American blacks. In 1936 the Reds directly challenged all of these guidelines.

The famous Pan American Clipper planes are today considered a cultural icon. When Larry MacPhail, the Reds’ general manager, and owner Powel Crosley decided to send the team to Puerto Rico, the flights were still in the early stages for Pan Am. The 24 Reds and those traveling with them drank black Pan American coffee spiked with brandy from coach High Pockets Kelly. Thus fortified, the Reds became the first big-league team to fly. Eventually 35 veterans and rookies arrived in Puerto Rico.3

While there were some driving adventures and struggles with the Spanish language, the newspaper coverage focused much on the “fun and sun” of Puerto Rico. It was reported that Puerto Rico sunshine was “not as oppressive as in the southern part of the United States” and “more penetrating,” resulting in fewer “muscle pains which usually accompany the first few days of training.” At the Condado Hotel “the players lunch each day and sometimes in the evening in the beautiful open air pavilion, fronting the sea, at the rear of the Hotel.”4

In addition to intrasquad games, the Reds played against the Brooklyn Eagles of the Negro League (merged with Effa Manley’s Newark Eagles when the season began), Almendares from Cuba, Azteca from Mexico, and the Ponce team from Puerto Rico. In San Juan they played some Puerto Rican “all-star” teams.5

The doubleheader with the Brooklyn Eagles was a direct challenge to major-league guidelines, and demonstrated the dangers Landis hoped to prevent. A Puerto Rico native, 19-year-old Hiram Bithorn, established the foundation of his legacy by taking a 4-1 lead into the eighth inning. The Eagles prevailed, 5-4, after the Reds rallied. Black American stars Ray Dandridge and Buck Leonard were the big draw. The fans could hardly wait to see them play, so were pleased when they, along with Bithorn, were considered the stars who delivered the victory over the Reds.6

From the perspective of Organized Baseball leaders who wanted to maintain white superiority, the fact that the Reds won the second game didn’t help much. Headlines like “Reds Divide Games with Colored Team” make the point.7 Especially since legendary black Cuban pitcher Martin Dihigo of Almendares had completely throttled the Reds, 5-1, the day before the Negro League games.8

MacPhail told the media that the Reds were pleased and would return the following year. They did not. The official reason is that they were not offered the cash incentives then common from all spring-training sites. MacPhail himself was on tenuous ground with owner Crosley, and was pushed out after the 1937 season. However, it doesn’t take a conspiracy theorist to see the long arm of the commissioner’s office at work. In fact, no major-league team returned to Puerto Rico until the 1947 New York Yankees.

The 1947 New York Yankees

Many things had changed by 1947. Landis had died in the fall of 1944. US Senator Happy Chandler of Kentucky had become commissioner. Brooklyn Dodgers president and general manager Branch Rickey, who had recommended MacPhail to Reds owner Powel Crosley with the warning about MacPhail’s alcohol problems, signed Jackie Robinson to a baseball contract on October 23, 1945. Chandler backed up the color line breakthrough at all stages. Robinson played in 1946 with the Montreal Royals, since Rickey assumed that playing in Montreal would somewhat reduce Robinson’s exposure to overt racism. In 1947 he broke the color line in the majors.9

In 1945 the Yankees hired MacPhail as club president. With the color line broken by the Brooklyn competition to the Yankees, it is not surprising that MacPhail now led the Yankees to Puerto Rico.

The 1947 Yankees won their first Puerto Rican game, on February 22 against the San Juan Senators, 16-3. They followed the next day with a victory over Caguas (6-5) and concluded with a victory over a team of Puerto Rican all-stars (8-6). In between they lost to the Ponce Leones (12-8) and a team of all-stars (7-6). The final scheduled game was rained out.10

The victory by the Leones de Ponce baseball team over the famed Yankees is still touted on the island. A newspaper story of the 1947 victory was posted on the Ponce Leones’ official Twitter page in 2017. It boasts that the Ponce Leones were the only Puerto Rican team to beat a major-league team (as opposed to an all-star squad). The story highlighted the pitching of the Ponce team and the home run by Fernando Pedroso, the “home run king of Puerto Rico.”11 The New York Herald-Tribune reported that Pedroso’s home run “sent the crowd into a paroxysm of joy” when it broke open the game in the sixth inning. “The entire Ponce team gathered at the plate to welcome Pedroso. Pedroso then made a running collection tour of the boxes. The fans thrust money into his hands. He collected $70.”12

More entertaining, and also prescient for the conclusion of the 1947 season, was the sponsor that lured major-league baseball back to the island: Don Q rum. Don Juan Serralles began distilling rum in 1865 in Ponce. Destileria Serralles established the Don Q brand in 1932.13 It sponsored the Leones de Ponce team. Puerto Rico still produces 70 percent of the rum consumed in the United States (mostly Bacardi), though Don Q remains the number one brand in Puerto Rico with approximately 60 percent of the market there.

The 36 top salesmen from Destileria Serralles met the Yankees upon arrival. “To get the fun off to a good start, the distillery had arranged to have a case of rum delivered to each player’s room on arrival in mid-afternoon. A few hours later, at dinner time, the VP in charge turned his salesmen loose with the command, ‘Go to it, lads. … The Yankees were beginning to think MacPhail had hit upon a great idea for spring training.”14

The 1948 Brooklyn Dodgers

After spending spring training in Cuba in 1947, Branch Rickey received a financial offer from the Dominican Republic to train there in 1948. He was, however, pursuing a more permanent site in Florida. By December of 1947 Bud Holman of Vero Beach had persuaded the Dodgers to build Dodgertown so that Jackie Robinson and future dark-skinned players would not be sent to separate facilities from other team members for housing and dining. In the spring of 1948 Dodgertown was not yet completed, so Brooklyn trained in the Caribbean, flying to Puerto Rico for a night game on March 12, 1948. The Dodgers defeated a Puerto Rican all-star team. Jackie Robinson contributed a key double in the rally that won the game.15

Puerto Rico has always been known for its vociferous baseball fans. Jackie Robinson gave new hope to Puerto Rican youngsters that they, too, now had a chance to play in the majors, not just the Negro Leagues. One little boy who said that Robinson’s visit inspired his drive to play baseball was San Francisco first baseman Orlando Cepeda. His father, Perucho “The Bull” Cepeda, was considered the island’s Babe Ruth but he had never been able to play in the majors. Orlando did, and became one of baseball’s biggest stars. Cepeda was the second Puerto Rican to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

1960: The Chicago White Sox vs. the Philadelphia Phillies

After winning in 1959 their first pennant in 40 years, the Chicago White Sox visited Puerto Rico to play the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game spring-training series April 1-3, 1960. The Phillies had finished eighth in the National League in 1959, and did it again in 1960.

There were 4,500 fans at Sixto Escobar Stadium for the opening game. The White Sox team included some of the legendary Latinos in baseball. Manager Al Lopez was Cuban, his family having migrated to Ybor City in Tampa in 1906. Orestes “Minnie” Miñoso broke a second racial barrier in 1951, becoming the first black Latino to play in the major leagues. All-Star shortstop and future Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio (Montiel) was not only from Venezuela but his father, Luis Aparicio (Ortega), and the latter’s brother were pioneers of baseball in that country.16

As an inducement to take further advantage of the short fences at Sixto Escobar – the Chicago Tribune called them “about as distant as in Little League fields” – Brother Jive, a 5-year-old horse running at the San Juan track, was promised to the player who hit the most home runs in the series. The Go-Go White Sox were not known for sluggers, but Al Smith was fired up. In the first contest, he slugged three home runs (he hit only 12 in the 1960 season). Backup catcher Dick Brown also hit one out and, with two out in the ninth inning, nearly hit one out at the deepest point, 400 feet to center. But he didn’t, and the Phillies prevailed, 12-11. Joe Koppe, Bobby Smith, and Jim Coker homered for the Phillies.17

The Phillies put on their “lustiest hitting show of the exhibition series the next day,” pummeling Bob Shaw and Frank Baumann for 13 hits. The hero for the Puerto Ricans was Arroyo. Island native Ruben Gomez thrilled the fans by pitching six innings of one-run baseball and was the winning pitcher in an 8-3 triumph. There were no home runs but still the most famous fan present, Clementine Churchill (Winston’s wife), observed that “it’s just like rounders, only terribly exciting.”18

The White Sox finally triumphed in the concluding game on Sunday, April 3, with a 4-2 win. Al Smith hit his fourth home run of the series, to win Brother Jive as the leading slugger of the series. Smith left Brother Jive to race at the El Comandante track in San Juan.19 White Sox slugger Ted Kluszewski hit a two-run shot, and the Phillies’ two runs scored on homers by Bobby Del Greco and Ed Bouchee.20

1960: The Baltimore Orioles versus the Miami Marlins

An 18-member contingent of the Baltimore Orioles traveled to Puerto Rico to play their Triple-A affiliate from the International League, the Miami Marlins, in Puerto Rico. The two-game series began in Ponce on Saturday, April 2, and concluded on Sunday, April 3, in Caguas. The Marlins won both games, 6-2 and 5-4. The White Sox and Phillies played on the same days but in San Juan.21

The Baltimore team was considered a “B” club, though many of the other better-known current and future key Orioles joined the contingent. Jack Fisher and Steve Barber were the losing Orioles pitchers. In the first game, catcher Gus Triandos scored one of the Orioles’ two runs. In the second game, the key Orioles blow was a grand slam by aging slugger Walt Dropo. He drove in second baseman Jerry Adair, and outfielders Albie Pearson and Jackie Brandt. Adair went 4-for-5 in the second game. Orioles shortstop Ron Hansen did not distinguish himself other than striking out to end an Orioles rally in the fifth inning.

The comments by a Baltimore Sun reporter who traveled with the team echoed the comments that plagued major-league ball in Puerto Rico since Cincinnati’s first visit in 1936: Attendance was low, the flights long, which made travel costs high, the ballfields were hard, the umpiring shaky, and the narrow mountain roads were terrifying.22

The most important thing, by far, about these games to the future of major-league baseball in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean was not the Orioles, but the Marlins.

The 1961 San Juan Marlins: The Only Puerto Rican Team in Organized Baseball

William B. MacDonald Jr. was a sports promoter and investor. In the early 1960s he was the primary owner of the Marlins, the Tropical Park race track in Miami, and, in 1964, promoter of one of the greatest boxing matches of all time, between champion Sonny Liston and 22-year-old Cassius Clay.23

MacDonald invested some of his horse-racing earnings in Puerto Rico; he was the largest home-mortgage broker in San Juan (the Housing Investment Corporation of San Juan) when the Marlins visited in 1960. Rocky Marciano, who had retired from heavyweight boxing in 1956 as the undefeated champion, accompanied the Marlins to Puerto Rico. He had a $1-a-year contract with Miami as a batting-practice catcher.24

Baseball was a money-losing proposition for MacDonald during his ownership of the Marlins. Things were not going well in Miami, so the Marlins moved to San Juan for the 1961 season. For two months Puerto Rico had a team at the highest level of minor-league baseball. The San Juan Marlins were affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals, since the Orioles had abandoned Miami for Rochester, New York.

Two things sent the San Juan Marlins to a rapid death: costs and poor attendance, a lethal one-two punch. Round-trip coach fare was $92.50 per player, which meant that each opposing team would have roughly a $2,000 transportation cost for a full team contingent.25 For its visit, Buffalo claimed its “take” was $830, including a $200 guarantee for the rained-out game.26 Visiting clubs took a significant loss to play baseball in Puerto Rico.

The first game was played on April 17, 1961, against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The San Juan Marlins featured three Puerto Ricans, players Julio Gotay and Ed Olivares, and player-coach Reynaldo Oliver. Excitement was high. However, even for the first game, only two-thirds of the seats were sold.27

The attendance for the series against the Maple Leafs established the clear pattern. There were 6,627 fans at the opener, followed by 1,897 at game two, 763 at the third game and 500 for the concluding matchup.28 On May 3 the International League voted to pull the plug on Puerto Rico.29

Owner MacDonald objected and stalled a bit, claiming that the franchise hadn’t been given enough time to develop attendance.30 His appeal was rejected. The San Juan Marlins moved to West Virginia. They debuted in Charleston on May 18, becoming the only landlocked Marlins not on someone’s trophy wall. In 1962 the Charleston Marlins moved to Atlanta, becoming the Crackers.31

While many reasons were given for the disastrously low attendance after the first game, one loomed so large that it dwarfed all others. The Havana Sugar Kings had been the first Latin American team and the only one other than the 1961 San Juan Marlins to play in Organized Baseball. The Sugar Kings were members of the International League from 1954 until they departed in 1960.

Fidel Castro overthrew the Cuban government of Fulgencio Batista in 1959. As Castro consolidated his government in early 1960 – as the White Sox, Phillies, and Orioles visited Puerto Rico – it became more apparent that his views were hostile to private enterprise and the United States. The Eisenhower administration was unalterably opposed to Castro, further increasing tensions. The Sugar Kings played their last game in Havana on July 14, 1960, and migrated to Jersey City as part of the wave of departures fleeing Castro. In October 1960 Castro nationalized the major industries, and the United States responded with a trade embargo.32

From 1959 and continuing for many years, Cuban refugees streamed to the Miami area and to Puerto Rico, affecting the politics and economy of both areas. The San Juan Marlins’ brief time on the island came at a pivotal point in Caribbean political history. It helped set the future development of Organized Baseball in Latin America.

The San Juan Marlins and Toronto Maple Leafs played four games on April 17-20. Excitement had been generated on the island that Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker might attend, but he was preoccupied. Diefenbaker had endorsed the US desire to invade Cuba in spite of the fact that Ottawa never broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba. In fact, declassified State Department documents reveal that the US government secretly encouraged Canada to maintain such relations and not support the embargo. On April 19 the day of the third game, Diefenbaker told Canada’s House of Commons that events in Cuba were “manifestations of a dictatorship which is abhorrent to free men everywhere.”33

After early air strikes, the invasion of Cuba hit the beaches at the Bay of Pigs on the very day of the San Juan Marlins opener against Toronto. Fighting continued on the days of the second and third games. Attendance, unsurprisingly, catastrophically plummeted.34 On April 20, the day of the series finale, Castro claimed that the invading Revolutionary Front was in near-collapse. From Puerto Rico, the Cuban Revolutionary Front claimed it was launching a counterattack.35 Rather than trash the poor attendance, perhaps it should have been noted that 500 obviously diehard fans attended the baseball game.

Not only were the crowds suppressed the next few games but rumors immediately began that the International League was considering abandoning Puerto Rico. Within two weeks they had met and voted officially to leave. The San Juan Marlins were out within a month. Dealing with hard fields and rain was one thing; dealing with the political instability was another. There would be future visits by major-league teams to Puerto Rico, but other than the partial home seasons of the 2003 and 2004 Montreal Expos, the San Juan Marlins were the last Caribbean team. No Organized Baseball team (major- or minor-league affiliate) has been based in Puerto Rico, or anywhere else in Latin America, since the San Juan Marlins departed.

The 1967 Pittsburgh Pirates vs the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees

In 1967 the Pittsburgh Pirates, featuring their Puerto Rican star Roberto Clemente, played three spring-training games on the island. These were the first games in which two major-league teams played each other in Puerto Rico. Clemente hosted the Pirates team for dinner at his restaurant the first day. Two games were against the Baltimore Orioles, with a third against the New York Yankees on April 2. Clemente’s back was ailing, but he still played in two of the three games. He had four hits in five at-bats. Both teams were upset with the poor quality of the field at Ponce, where the second game between the Pirates and the Orioles was played, and stars Clemente (back) and the Orioles’ Frank Robinson (knee) did not risk playing.36

The Roberto Clemente Sports City Benefit Series 1974-1991

Major-league baseball, like much of the rest of the United States, was not particularly focused on Puerto Rico prior to the 1960s. Events began to raise awareness in both the US government and in Organized Baseball regarding Puerto Rico. These included Castro’s rise to power, which switched Cuba from an American ally to a communist ally of the USSR, as well as soaring Puerto Rican migration to the US mainland.

The civil-rights movement of the 1960s had brought the rights of African-Americans to the forefront of American politics, but Latino politics were still submerged. There was little understanding of how Puerto Rico was different from the other Spanish-speaking countries that were home to major-league players, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Mexico in particular. But there is a huge difference: Puerto Ricans are US citizens.

Citizenship entitles residents of Puerto Rico to free movement within the United States. When Cincinnati played the first major-league game in Puerto Rico in 1936, the population on the island was around 1.8 million and the number of Puerto Ricans on the mainland was less than 70,000. By 1947 and 1948, when the Yankees and Brooklyn played in Puerto Rico, the island population had grown to just over 2 million but the number of Puerto Ricans on the mainland had jumped 223 percent, to over 200,000.

When Roberto Clemente died in a tragic plane crash on the last day of 1972, the population of Puerto Rico had grown but on the mainland the Puerto Rican population had soared to nearly 1.5 million, nearly seven times what it was in 1950. Since 2010 the island population has been decreasing and the mainland population has soared. There were in 2017 an estimated 3.4 million Puerto Ricans on the island itself and 5.4 million on the mainland.

The combination of these elements – a desire to promote baseball, to make money, to advance US political goals in the Caribbean, to offset potential losses of Cuban players to the major leagues, rising civil-rights awareness in the United States, the increasing importance of Puerto Rican politics in New York and on the East Coast – all pushed Major League Baseball toward reactivating some financial interaction with Puerto Rico.

Roberto Clemente’s death provided a dramatic opportunity for the major leagues. An under-appreciated baseball star, respected by all for his charitable efforts, had perished in an airplane crash during a mission to help others. Puerto Rican writer and politician Elliott Castro observed, “[T]hat night on which Roberto Clemente left us physically, his immortality began.”37

Clemente had a dream to promote sports among youth in Puerto Rico by building a comprehensive facility to play and teach baseball. After his death, his wife, Vera, pursued Roberto’s goal. In 1974 Roberto Clemente Sports City (Ciudad Deportiva Roberto Clemente) was formed. The foundation was given 304 acres in Carolina by the Puerto Rican government for its sports facilities and structures. Vera Clemente was named chairwoman and son Luis was president and CEO. Sharon Robinson, Jackie Robinson’s daughter, was also on the board of directors.38

New York Congressman Herman Badillo, the first Puerto Rican elected to the US Congress (1971) and the first Puerto Rican to run for mayor of New York City (1969), was not untypical of the migration pattern. He had been born in Caguas, Puerto Rico. His political base in the Bronx, where he had been the first Puerto Rican elected borough president, was the heartland of those Puerto Ricans who are sometimes called “Nuyoricans.” The term describes Puerto Ricans on the mainland for whom English is generally the first language. Music, movie, and television star Jennifer Lopez is a prominent example; her production company is called Nuyorican Productions. The NBC TV series Shades of Blue is, in 2017, her company’s most recent production.39

In early 1973 Congressman Badillo drafted legislation to authorize a $2.5 million federal grant for Clemente Sports City.40 It didn’t pass. It was obviously intended to at least show his constituents that he argued for Puerto Rican interests.

On December 11, 1973, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team on which Clemente had achieved stardom, announced that they would play five major-league teams over the next five years in San Juan. Eastern Air Lines co-sponsored the series and provided the transportation. The Puerto Rico Hotel Association said it would provide the rooms and meals for the clubs. The revenue would go to Roberto Clemente Sports City.41 The Pirates’ first opponent for a two-game series in 1974 would be the Montreal Expos. Montreal, where both Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente had played with the International League Montreal Royals, was also continuing its interaction with Puerto Rico.

When the Roberto Clemente Series began in 1974, there was not a realization that it would be as important to the financial survival of the Sports City, or that games would continue through 1991. Each year of the series, two major-league teams would travel to Puerto Rico to play two spring-training games sometime between March 14 and March 24. In other words, not their first or last games of the spring-training season.

The Pirates’ opponents were clearly carefully selected. The most obvious factor was that they came from cities with major Puerto Rican populations. In 1975 it was the New York Yankees and in 1976 the Mets. New York had the largest Puerto Rican diaspora. In 1977 the Philadelphia Phillies and in 1978 the Boston Red Sox were scheduled to oppose the Pirates. Philadelphia followed New York in the number of Puerto Ricans who lived there, and the Boston area was close behind. Florida’s Puerto Rican boom was still in the future, as were the Marlins and Rays.

The second factor, one that became more and more of an emphasis over time, was the highlighting of Puerto Rican and Hispanic baseball stars who played in the games. It was important to the aspirational goals of the games: Inspire kids that they too could become professional baseball players. The bigger the pool of young ballplayers, the more likely stars would emerge.

The first Pittsburgh two-game series, against the Montreal Expos, established what was to become a fairly consistent attendance and revenue pattern: total attendance for the two games of about 25,000, generating $60,000 to $70,000 for the sports city each year.42 The attendance of 20,000 in San Juan between the Pirates and the Yankees on March 17, 1975, was the largest of all. The first 1979 game against the New York Mets drew 15,742 fans to Hiram Bithorn Field. A pattern evolved in which the second game was played in Bayamon at Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium. It was home to the Vaqueros de Bayamon in the Professional Baseball League of Puerto Rico until 2003. It was slightly smaller than Hiram Bithorn Stadium, with a maximum baseball capacity of 12,500.

The Pirates were a powerful team during the first five-year Puerto Rican series, winning the NL East title in 1974 and 1975. They finished second in 1976, 1977, and 1978. Pirates sluggers Willie Stargell, Dave Parker, Richie Zisk, and Al Oliver all provided some batting fireworks in the Puerto Rican games. Pitcher Dock Ellis won in a game in 1974 and lost a 2-1 pitching duel with the Yankees’ Catfish Hunter in 1975.43 The 1977 Pirates games with their cross-state rival Philadelphia Phillies featured some interesting pitching as well. In the first game, Pirates reliever Rich Gossage bested Met Tug McGraw, when Tug was tagged for three runs in the 10th inning.44 Phillies ace Steve Carlton and Randy Lerch countered the next day with a three-hit shutout.45

Not all the games went smoothly for the Pittsburgh stars. In 1978 Pirates ace pitcher John Candelaria imploded, walking six batters, hitting two, and giving up a three-run blast to Boston Red Sox catcher Carlton Fisk.46

In 1979 the defense collapsed. In the Pirates’ first game against the New York Mets, Mets first baseman Bruce Boisclair made two errors on one play, including a wild throw which hit the first-base umpire in the head. The umpire had to leave the game.47 The second game was worse; the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote: “For seven innings it was strictly routine. Then, in the eighth, it became a half-hour comedy.” The Pirates blew their lead by allowing the Mets to score seven times in the eighth inning because of “defensive nonsense.” The Mets won, 8-3.48

In the initial five years of Pittsburgh contests (1976 was skipped because of the major-league spring-training lockout), nearly $400,000 was raised for Clemente Sports City.

A five-year extension of the spring-training series began in 1980, with two different teams facing off each year. The average attendance declined somewhat but remained strong enough to keep annual revenue for the Clemente project roughly the same.

In 1980 the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals split the two games. Leon Durham was the Cardinals’ hitting star in their 11-0 victory, driving in three runs with a single, double, and home run.49 Lou Whittaker and Jason Thompson each had three hits in the 3-2 Tigers victory but Tigers pitcher Dave Rozema stole the 1980 media coverage. His trouble began in Miami when he was asked to judge a “wet T-shirt contest” at a local bar. He admitted that he was “not in the best condition when he returned to the Tigers’ hotel.” He overslept, missed the team flight, arrived on a later flight and then pitched poorly in the 11-0 shellacking. Manager Sparky Anderson was not happy, stating: “The fathering is over.” Rozema did survive, pitching for the Tigers through 1985.50

A clear pattern that developed was the opportunity to showcase Puerto Rican and Hispanic stars. In 1981 the Kansas City Royals’ Willie Aikens received the warmest welcome because he had played for the Santurce Crabbers in the Puerto Rico Winter League the previous season.51

Perhaps the most bizarre of all stories during this period came from Don Zimmer, who was coaching for the Texas Rangers in 1981. He told a reporter that the last time he had been in Puerto Rico (as manager of the Boston Red Sox on March 22, 1978) he had walked out of the Condado Hotel “just in time to see the famous trapeze artist Karl Wallenda fall to his death.”52 Wallenda was crossing between the two towers of the 10-story Condado Plaza Hotel in San Juan on a 121-foot-long high wire, when a combination of high winds and improper anchoring led to his fatal fall.53

The following year, 1982, Baltimore Orioles coach Elrod Hendricks was cheered because he was “practically an institution here, having played for Santurce for 17 years through 1977.” In fact, 16 of the 26 Orioles present had been active in the Puerto Rico Winter League. Manager Earl Weaver had managed the Crabbers twice, winning the pennant in 1967-68. Cal Ripken was among the five Orioles who had played the previous winter, leading the league in RBIs and hitting .314. His manager at Caguas was Orioles coach Ray Miller.[54

In 1983 Puerto Rican native Tony Bernazard drove in two runs to help the Chicago White Sox to a win over the Minnesota Twins before 10,000 in the second game, at Bayamon.55

The Cincinnati Enquirer reported in 1984: “(Manager) Rapp has allowed his players to enjoy the local nightlife, casinos and otherwise. And he has arranged his lineups so that the Reds’ Latin players – Cedeno, Tony Perez, Dave Conception, Alex Trevino and Mario Soto – have shared the bulk of the playing time here before their Spanish-speaking amigos.”56

After skipping two years, the Cuidad Deportiva Series resumed in 1987, with the following schedule of teams: Toronto vs. Pittsburgh in 1987, Montreal vs. Detroit in 1988, Texas vs. the White Sox in 1989, Philadelphia vs. Atlanta in 1990, Minnesota vs. Pittsburgh in 1991, and Kansas City vs. Toronto in 1992.57 The waves of Puerto Rican citizens migrating from the Island to the States were also primarily in the East. Conveniently, and logically, the Eastern teams held spring training in Florida, not Arizona, which was far more convenient for the annual two-game series.

During this period the Nuyoricans (as Puerto Ricans living on the mainland had generally come to be called) were drawing near to and soon passing the number of Puerto Ricans in Puerto Rico. This would affect the island’s supply of baseball players at some point. Other interests of young people were also causing some changes in the passion for baseball, though the slightly smaller crowds were still incredibly enthusiastic.

Major-league teams began investing in baseball academies in the Dominican Republic in the late 1970s and the 1980s. Roberto Clemente Sports City, which was more like a park than an academy, was the only similar development in Puerto Rico. The annual two-game series was a help in keeping baseball in youthful dreams, and along with the Winter League kept some of baseball’s stars visible on the island.

The Clemente Series got off to a bad restart in 1987. The first game, in San Juan, was canceled because workers were unable to clear the rainwater from the ballpark. It was rescheduled as a doubleheader the next day at Bayamon, but that was rained out as well.

Furthermore, Roberto Clemente Sports City, the beneficiary of the Series, was also not progressing as hoped in spite of all the cash infusions. Sports Illustrated reported that in spite of the government-donated land, the major-league games, and annual telethons that raised millions, all that was built were some baseball diamonds, a locker room, and a statue of Clemente. Close to $600,000 had been spent trying to turn the swamplands into usable land. Staff and other costs ate up the other cash raised by the nonprofit foundation.58

The 1988 games again featured the loyal Montreal Expos as well as the first visit of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The teams split the games but it didn’t start well for Montreal. A half-hour into their flight, the captain of the plane announced that due to a mechanical problem they’d have to return to Miami. The stewardess said there was nothing to worry about. Tim Raines immediately inflated his life-jacket vest, which the stewardess did not think was funny. She told him that he’d have to get off the plane in Miami. Which, of course, led to other players immediately inflating their vests too. They eventually made it to the ballpark, an hour and a half after the game was supposed to have begun. To keep the fans happy, the Dodgers staged an impromptu home-run hitting contest, which was won by Pedro Guerrero.59

The 1989 series between the Texas Rangers and the Chicago White Sox both exemplified the purpose of the exhibition contests and foreshadowed their collapse.

Ruben Sierra was the perfect example of the goal of the entire Series. He grew up in a rough neighborhood as a member of the lowest class in all Latin American countries: He was of Indian and African heritage. One story about how his racial struggles had continued as an adult, when opponents learned of his vulnerability, noted: “They taunted him. Called him names. ‘Hey, you. Indio,’ would come the taunts, mocking Sierra’s distinct features that favored the Taino Indians of the island commonwealth. From the bench or from the stands, their words wounded deep. ‘Hey, Sierra. You Indio. You coconut eater.’”60

Without Roberto Clemente Sports City, there would have been no baseball star named Ruben Sierra. After spotting his talent and because of concerns for his safety as a boy, the Puerto Rico recreation commission staff drove him to the baseball fields. Former major-league infielder and Clemente City instructor Chico Ruiz said bluntly, “We protected him.”61

When the Rangers arrived in Puerto Rico in 1989, Sierra was a returning hero. Not only was he a star in the United States, he played in the winter leagues and organized baseball clinics for underprivileged youth at Sports City.62 The local media proudly referred to him as “El Indio” and he was also introduced at the games as “El Indio.”63 Sierra, young Texas minor leaguer Juan Gonzalez, and White Sox outfielder Ivan Calderon clearly enjoyed being back home. During batting practice, Latin music blared over the loudspeakers as Sierra sang along. He told a reporter that it was “better than that country music stuff in Texas, isn’t it?”64

But Chicago manager Jeff Torborg bluntly exemplified what was about to happen to the Clemente Series. He complained about the impact on the players of the three-stop plane ride back on an offday. Montreal’s airplane problems the previous year had been widely read as well. Torborg asserted that players from other years had gotten ill from bad water or food. The fields had been generating complaints. Torborg said: “I don’t want Harold Baines or Greg Walker, with their legs, playing on rocky ground.” He refused to send his starters, except native Calderon, who requested to play.65

Texas defeated Chicago, 4-2 and 8-0. They were the last two spring-training games played in Puerto Rico. The 1990 series was called off because of another major-league spring-training lockout. In 1991 Minnesota played Pittsburgh in a two-game series, but in Bradenton and Fort Myers, not San Juan and Bayamon. Roberto Clemente Sports City received the revenue.66 I can find no record of the scheduled 1992 games being played.

A related major event occurred in 1990. Puerto Rico was included in the annual amateur draft. Critics argue that this change, which added Puerto Rican prospects to the draft along with prospects from other American territories and Canada, was the primary cause of the decline in baseball popularity in Puerto Rico.

The core arguments, as outlined in a New York Times article in 2012, are:

1. Puerto Rican players are at a disadvantage competing against American talent because high-school baseball is nonexistent on the island and because the population density means that not enough space exists to add baseball diamonds at each school.
2. Major-league teams have invested hundreds of millions in academies in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. The economic motive to teams is the opportunity to sign young free agents as early as age 16, who are not subject to the draft.
3. Major-league scouts in the nondraft countries, especially in the Dominican Republic, have more incentive to seek out potential ballplayers, whereas the incentive in Puerto Rico is minimized, especially in more rural areas. The economic structure has also resulted in few scouts on the island.

Sandy Alderson, then general manager of the Mets with experience in handling issues in Latin America, responded: “From a socioeconomic standpoint, things have changed quite a bit in Puerto Rico. There are lots of other ways to spend your time. In the Dominican Republic, on the other hand, unfortunately, poor kids who are playing ball and who are from the lowest economic strata in that country, baseball is a way to escape, so there’s a greater concentration of players and effort. I think they’re just very different dynamics than Puerto Rico.”67

Writing on the subject, which generally has followed the Times article’s line of blaming the draft, generally fails to mention three obvious things: 1) Puerto Rico is experiencing a dramatic population decline as the Puerto Rican population on the mainland United States is dramatically increasing; 2) as US citizens Puerto Ricans move freely between the mainland and the island, unlike those from other countries, which greatly complicates any equivalencies; and 3) the population comparison in millions is Puerto Rico 3.6 million, Dominican Republic 10.4 million, Cuba 11.3 million, Venezuela 30.4 million, Colombia 47.1 million, and Mexico 122.3 million.

Opening Day 2001: Texas Rangers vs. Toronto Blue Jays

Commissioner Bud Selig pushed for Opening Day games outside the United States. The effort was inaugurated in 1999 in Monterrey, Mexico. Tokyo followed in 2000. San Juan – a fraction of the size of the other Opening Day cities – was chosen for 2001 to host the Texas Rangers against the Toronto Blue Jays. Tokyo, population 13 million-plus, was chosen again in 2004, 2008, and 2012. Sydney, Australia, hosted an opening series in 2014. San Juan remains by far the smallest city selected.

San Juan spent more than $600,000 to improve the Hiram Bithorn Stadium playing field, seats and clubhouses.68 Though that was a major investment, media could not resist mentioning that the Texas Rangers’ newly minted “richest man in baseball,” Alex Rodriguez, averaged $129,630 per game from his salary alone.69

Texas and Toronto featured many of the best current Latino players. Puerto Ricans Ivan Rodriguez starred for the Rangers and Carlos Delgado and Jose Cruz Jr. for the Blue Jays. Texas also featured Dominicans Rodriguez and Ruben Mateo, Cuban Rafael Palmeiro, and Venezuelan Andres Galarraga. Toronto also featured Dominicans Raul Mondesi, Tony Batista, and Pedro Borbon, Venezuelan Kelvim Escobar, and Mexican Esteban Loaiza.

The festivities actually began with an exhibition game on Saturday night. There were so many events before the game that it was delayed more than a half-hour. The media reported that Delgado had so much fun preparing for the opener that he couldn’t stop smiling. Rodriguez had been so busy that his “eyes are red and his voice is hoarse.” In the Saturday night exhibition game, eight home runs were hit in the first four innings, all by Latin players. A grand slam by Luis Lopez tied the game at 8-8, and Rodriguez’s second homer made it 10-8.70

The official game, on Sunday, was not as exciting. All five Latinos on the Rangers and all four Blue Jays position players played the entire game. Loaiza started and pitched a one-run game with nine strikeouts to earn the 8-1 victory. Borbon and Escobar also pitched in relief. Alex Rodriguez went 2-for-4 and scored the Rangers’ only run. His single in the first inning was the first hit of the 2001 season. Palmeiro drove him in with his only hit. Ivan Rodriguez went 0-for-4. For the Blue Jays, Puerto Ricans Delgado and Cruz both went 1-for-4 with Delgado scoring and Cruz driving in one run. Non-Latino Shannon Stewart was the hitting star. He singled, doubled, homered, scored twice, and knocked in two runs.

The Opening Day game might not have had the slugging fireworks of the exhibition but the pregame celebration was even more exciting. The sellout crowd – eventually totaling 19,981 people – began gathering at 5 AM. By noon, at least 5,000 fans had already arrived including many holding umbrellas to block out the hot sun. In addition to pizza and nachos, there were “pinchos” (kebabs) that come on wooden sticks with a choice of beef, chicken, sausage, fried shrimp separated by plantains. Or you could order “alcapurrias,” which are fried pockets made of either mashed plantain or yucca with various meats inside.71

CBS.com described some of the historic game’s pageantry: “A 12-piece band played folk songs as women twirled in red dresses with men wearing white straw hats like the kind worn by golfer Chi Chi Rodriguez. Then came the vejigantes, seven somewhat grotesque-looking characters popular in street carnivals and religious celebrations. The singing and dancing gave way to the introductions of players from both teams. The loudest cheers went to three locals: Texas’s Ivan Rodriguez and Ricky Ledee and Toronto’s Carlos Delgado. Ivan Rodriguez and Ledee waved Puerto Rico flags and Rodriguez and Delgado met for a hug. Rodriguez later went to a box seat near the Blue Jays’ dugout and kissed his mother, Eva Torres. Three national anthems were sung – Oh, Canada, The Star-Spangled Banner, played by Jose Feliciano, and Puerto Rico’s La Borinquena. Delgado and Rodriguez caught the first pitches from Vera Clemente and Orlando Cepeda. ‘This is something marvelous, very positive for baseball in all of Latin America,’ Cepeda said.”72

Jose Cruz Jr. had left the island when he was 14 years old, but Puerto Ricans still claimed him. The Orlando Sentinel reported that “more than 100 of his relatives made the hourlong trek from the southern town of Arroyo. Many snapped pictures of him holding all the little cousins in the clan.” 73

It was a great day for Puerto Rico and major-league baseball. Alex Rodriguez said he was “overwhelmed by the love of the game in Puerto Rico. It’s almost like a religion.”74 The next major-league visits to the island were more complicated.

The Montreal/San Juan Expos of 2003 and 2004

They say the best way to identify Canadians in a room mixed with Americans is to state that there is really no difference between the two countries. Anyone who objects is a Canadian. Possibly the second-best way is to say “Montreal Expos” and see who reacts, or at least winces.

The Expos are the only team in American professional baseball history, likely in any sport for that matter, to be named after a World’s Fair. And if major-league baseball ever returned to Montreal, it would certainly be the most likely nickname again.

Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau led an ambitious and successful effort to put Montreal near the front of the most innovative and famous cities in the world. The Montreal Metro system, which opened in 1966, was viewed as a modernistic transportation achievement. It remains the third busiest in North America, behind New York City and Mexico City. It was a key component of Montreal’s successful bid to host the 1967 World’s Fair, or as it was officially known, the 1967 International and Universal Exposition, or Expo 67. Debate exists as to what constitutes the most successful of the twentieth-century fairs, but by whatever standard one chooses, Expo 67 would be near the top, possibly ranking higher than those held in New York City.

The iconic architecture associated with the Exposition typified what trend makers have expected to be world’s future: Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome and Habitat 67, the stacked boxes that were projected to be the solution for apartment living.75 The fair and its symbols captured attention in the United States for Montreal. The political audacity of Mayor Drapeau and the support of Quebec business leaders led to Montreal becoming the first international city to join previously exclusive United States major leagues.76

The book Up, Up & Away: The Kid, The Hawk, Rock, Vladi, Pedro, Le Grand Orange, Youppi!, The Crazy Business of Baseball, & the Ill-fated but Unforgettable Montreal Expos, by Jonah Keri, tells the story of the Expos in major-league baseball from their beginning in 1969 to their bitter end in 2004.

Fuller’s geodesic dome from the Exposition had its acrylic cover burned off in a 1976 fire, leaving the frame which can still be visited today. While Olympic Stadium survives, the major iconic remnants of the Expos are jerseys and hats featuring their logo. And the Expos just didn’t just flame out. Author Keri captures the ending of the Expos well: “The last days of the Expos were sad, surreal, and even occasionally exciting. What began to as a plan to put a failing franchise out of its misery as quickly as possible turned into a long drama-filled slog, the likes of which baseball had never seen and likely will never see again.”77

In November 2001 the major-league owners voted to contract. The Minnesota Twins and Montreal Expos were to be shut down for the economic health of the other owners. It obviously didn’t happen. The Twins remain. The Expos are now the Washington Nationals. MLB buckled under the pressure of Minnesota lawsuits and from politicians in Washington. While the issue was being argued, Montreal scheduled 22 home games in Puerto Rico. What follows are highlights of the Los Expos de Montreal.

2003 Los Expos Home Games in Puerto Rico

The Expos were playing in Puerto Rico as wards of MLB. Battles over a need for a new stadium, lack of media sponsorship, poor player personnel decisions, and management infighting (among the many issues) led to MLB team ownership musical chairs. Florida Marlins owner John Henry purchased the Boston Red Sox. Montreal owner Jeffrey Loria then purchased the Marlins. MLB itself, desiring to eliminate the Expos, purchased the team from Loria.

Enthusiasm for the Expos in Montreal was already waning after years of success but when it became apparent that the team was doomed, it obviously hit bottom. MLB decided to salvage what it could financially, and test the economic possibilities of baseball in Puerto Rico, while it battled judges and politicians.

All things considered, the 22-home-game Puerto Rican 2003 season began and went reasonably well. The Expos team included Puerto Rican players Javier Vazquez, Jose Vidro, Wil Cordero, and Edwards Guzman. Vladimir Guerrero from the Dominican Republic was a National League All-Star in 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002. Livan Hernandez of Cuba, Orlando Cabrera of Colombia, and Endy Chavez of Venezuela were among the other Latinos on the squad. Puerto Rican Ruben “Jerry” Morales Torres, who played major-league ball for 14 years, was the first-base and outfield coach for the Expos. The 2003 Expos were a very marketable team, especially in Latin America.

Enthusiasm was high before the season began. The Philadelphia Inquirer noted that “starting tonight, the Montreal Expos will have something every other working stiff in North America would love to have. A second home in the Caribbean.” The newspapers promoted “The Expos are coming. The Expos are coming.” MLB was testing the viability of a Latin-based franchise but the media reported some skepticism among Latino players: “Several Latin American major leaguers consulted recently said they’d love to see a team in Latin America, but they weren’t sure it could be supported financially,” wrote the Philadelphia Inquirer. “In Puerto Rico, for example, personal income is about one-third the US national average.”78

The first game, on April 11 against the New York Mets, drew 17,906 fans. The Expos wore caps that featured small patches with Puerto Rican flags and logos that read “Series de los Expos.” The fans gave Puerto Rican hero Roberto Alomar of the Mets the biggest pregame ovation. the game went well for the Expos. They defeated the Mets, 10-0. Tomo Ohka of the Mets allowed one hit in eight innings while Met David Cone gave up seven earned runs in four innings.79 A home run by Puerto Rican Vidro of the Expos was particularly significant, since his mother had never before seen him play a major-league game.80

The April 12 game at Hiram Bithorn Stadium sold out. The Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press noted: “For the second time in two nights, they brought the spirit of a Caribbean soccer match, cheering in Spanish and English, and proving they know and love baseball.” The Expos defeated the Mets again, this time 5-4 with Livan Hernandez dominating for six innings, allowing only one earned run. Expos Michael Barrett homered, Vidro doubled, and Vladimir Guerrero had two hits.81 Roberto Alomar scored his 1,417th run, passing Roberto Clemente for the most among Puerto Rican players.82

The next day Montreal defeated the Mets again with a thrilling comeback victory. Mets starter Al Leiter threw six innings of shutout ball and Zach Day of the Expos gave up one run in six innings in spite of it being 136 degrees on the artificial turf. In the bottom of the ninth, Orlando Cabrera homered to tie the game. Then, on the first pitch from Mets reliever Mike Stanton in the bottom of the 10th inning, Puerto Rican native Vidro hit a walkoff home run for the 2-1 win.83

The series windup was another tight game. Montreal started local hero Javier Vazquez from Ponce, who was able to pitch a major-league game in front of his grandmother for the first time. The Expos sweep was set up by a Puerto Rican player on the Mets, Rey Sanchez, who misplayed a one-out groundball by Guerrero for an error in the eighth. Fernando Tatis hit a two-run single for the 5-3 win. Guerrero also homered and stole a base.84 During the fifth inning, two fans ran onto the field with a banner proclaiming “No a la Guerra” (no to the war), which delayed the game for about three minutes. The police banned them from games in Puerto Rico for a month.85

The Atlanta Braves arrived next in San Juan for a three-game series beginning April 15. The Braves won the first game the same way the Expos had defeated the Mets in game three. The Braves were trailing 1-0 going into the ninth inning. The game was scoreless until Orlando Cabrera homered in the seventh. In the top of the ninth Gary Sheffield homered to tie the game. In the 10th the Braves’ Marcus Giles hit one out for the 2-1victory. “Hitting it out” at Hiram Bithorn was easier to do in 2003 than elsewhere. Both home runs just cleared the right-field wall, each about one foot above the glove of a leaping Vladimir Guerrero.86

The Braves also won the second game. Horacio Ramirez shut out Montreal until the eighth. Andruw Jones doubled, singled twice, and drove in two of the three Atlanta runs. Sheffield homered for the second straight day to account for the third run. Expo left fielder Ron Calloway’s two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth made the final score 3-2.87

The third game of the Braves series, on April 17, was won by Ponce native Javy Lopez. After a 53-minute rain delay, the home-run derby began on the third pitch of the game from Expo Hernandez when Rafael Furcal hit the ball out. Marcus Giles and Andruw Jones also homered for the Braves, who led 8-6 until a two-run shot by Endy Chavez tied the game in the bottom of the eighth. Lopez had given at least 40 free tickets to friends and family for each game, 60 for the finale. He had driven in two runs earlier with a home run in the third inning but his heroics in the 10th provided an extraordinary memory for him, his family, and the fans. As the rain began to fall harder, Lopez hit a grand slam that brought prolonged chants and cheers led by his father and a second rare curtain call for a visiting player. Lopez stated the obvious: “What better way to leave the country?”88

The Cincinnati Reds, the first big-league team to have played in Puerto Rico, in 1936, were the next opponents for the Montreal/San Juan Expos. The April 18 game was rained out. The rain delay, and rain during the game on the previous day, became a relatively persistent problem during the two years of games. Returning to the island was not really an option. In this case, since it was the first game of the series, a doubleheader was scheduled for the 19th.

Once again there was a plethora of runs scored. The Expos swept the doubleheader. Brian Schneider homered twice in the first game, including a walk-off blast in the 10th inning. Vazquez struck out 11 Reds in the second game, going ahead 9-0 and coasting to a 9-5 win. The bigger news was that Vladimir Guerrero, mired in a 4-for-24 batting slump, had come to the stadium with a frizzy Afro but left with shaved sides and a trim on top. It worked. He homered and drove in five runs in the second game.89

It continued to rain home runs at the stadium on April 20. The Reds hit six of them. Aaron Boone hit two, and in the ninth inning, pinch-hitter Adam Dunn and shortstop Felipe Lopez connected back-to-back to give the Reds a 7-5 victory. In spite of the loss, the first 10-game homestand by Los Expos went reasonably well. They had a 6-4 record. Even though crowds had declined somewhat, the average attendance of 14,282 exceeded the 10,031 for Montreal home games the previous season.90

In June the Expos returned for their second homestand of 2003. Fans were still settling into their seats for the first game on June 3 against the Anaheim Angels, when the slugging fireworks began. Angels Troy Glaus, Tim Salmon, and Jeff DaVanon hit four-baggers in the top of the first inning. It was 5-0 before the first out was recorded. The Angels pounded out 22 hits, four by another visiting Puerto Rican native, Bengie Molina. Middle Molina baseball brother Jose Molina also had one of the hits. Outfielder Garret t Anderson went 4-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs. DeVanon also hit a second homer. Wilkerson went 3-for-4 with a home run for the Expos, but they were walloped, 15-4.91

The Angels home-run barrage continued the next day. Anderson hit three home runs, two-run shots in the third and fifth, and a solo shot in the eighth. After the game he commented that the stadium was “small. Too small probably.” DaVanon hit two more, giving him four home runs in two days. Glaus hit another and Brad Fullmer hit one as well. The Angels won, 11-2.92

The Expos won the concluding game of the series in dramatic fashion. Garret Anderson of the Angels hit another home run, his fifth of the series. Fullmer also hit another, but DaVanon was shut down though he did walk twice and score two runs. Jose Vidro went 3-for-5 for the Expos, scoring twice, driving in a run, and stealing a base. But the home-team hero was Ron Calloway, who was subbing for an injured Guerrero. Anaheim had scored two runs in the eighth and another in the ninth to knot the game, 5-5. Neither team scored over the next four innings. Anaheim scored twice in the top of the 14th but the Expos scored three in the bottom of the inning, with Calloway’s walk-off two-run single giving the Expos an 8-7 win.93

On June 6 the Texas Rangers arrived, featuring Puerto Rican star Juan Gonzalez. He helped draw the second largest crowd of the season. Baseballs continued to fly over the outfield walls, three by Texas and two by Montreal. Even a 13-4 Expos lead was not safe, as the Rangers made it 13-10 by scoring six runs in the final three innings. In the first 14 games, there had been 57 home runs and an average of 12.2 runs scored.94

The next day the Expos prevailed 5-4, powered by two home runs by Brad Wilkerson. The AP story on the game began: “If the Montreal Expos return to San Juan next season, they might want to consider renaming their park Home Run Bithorn Stadium.” The sportswriter also commented that it made Coors Field seem like a “pitcher’s park.”95

The Expos swept the three-game series in a somewhat more traditional way on June 8. Brad Wilkerson’s second double broke a 2-2 tie in the eighth inning, for a 3-2 win. Home runs by Juan Gonzalez and Carl Everett provided the Rangers’ only runs.96

The final two series in Puerto Rico were played in September, and were games that really mattered. The Florida Marlins arrived for a three-game series to be played September 5-7. They were in a pennant race in the National League East. (Though they finished second in the regular season, the Marlins ultimately won the 2003 World Series.)

The first game was delayed by more than an hour because of a power failure, but Todd Zeile exploded for two home runs, driving in four runs in a 6-2 Expos win. (He became the first major leaguer to homer for 11 teams.97) The second game was significantly different. The Marlins crushed Montreal/San Juan, 14-4. While three home runs helped, it was a team effort assisted by Expos starter Tomo Ohka, who faced 19 batters in the first two innings. Derrek Lee and rookie Miguel Cabrera each batted in three runs.98

The finale was hotly contested. The temperature on the artificial turf reached 153 degrees. Dontrelle Willis said it was “scorching” so he drank a lot of water before, during, and after the game. He pitched a three-hitter into the eighth, when he gave up a home run to Zeile. The Marlins prevailed, 3-1.99

The concluding series in Puerto Rico in 2003 featured the Chicago Cubs. These weren’t your normal Cubs, irrelevant in September. These Cubs made the playoffs and defeated the Atlanta Braves in the Division Series, but lost to the Marlins four games to three in the National League Championship Series. All three Puerto Rico games were hard-fought contests.

The crowds were large, averaging over 15,000. There was a carnival atmosphere celebrating the Cubs’ arrival at Hiram Bithorn Stadium. Bithorn had been a Cub. The Chicago Tribune expressed the mood in Chicago: “Who cares that concessionaires were selling piña coladas, not Old Style? The Cubs were in the playoff race.” Sammy Sosa was the featured attraction. Roberto Clemente had inspired him when he was a young Dominican. The Cubs won the first game 4-3, with Carlos Zambrano getting the win. Cubs pitcher Matt Clement commented that “Wrigley Field plays smaller when the wind is blowing out.”100

The excitement turned to typical Chicago panic when the Expos won the second game, 8-4. “The Cubs collapsed in a grandiose fashion under a full moon,” the Tribune wrote after the Expos scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth after a pop fly by Jose Macias dropped in for a two-run double. Home runs by Cubs Moises Alou, Aramis Ramirez, and Kenny Lofton had all been wasted.101

Mark Prior, the Cubs’ young star pitcher, who had a 1.00 ERA in his previous seven starts, could not deliver the rubber game. Instead, Japanese pitcher Tomo Ohka, who had been winless in seven starts, delivered the win for Los Expos. Ohka took a 3-0 two-hitter into the ninth. The Cubs scored twice but Joey Eischen saved the game. Sosa did not get the ball within 50 feet of the fences on the fly during the series. Sosa said afterward that he was trying too hard, trying to hit the ball all the way to the rain forest.102 It was the end of the 2003 Expos island adventure.

2004 Los Expos Home Games in Puerto Rico

While 2003 was a decent year for the Montreal/San Juan Expos – all things considered – that was not true in 2004. The Expos crashed. Star Vladimir Guerrero moved to Southern California, signing a free-agent contract with the Angels. The Expos, in a desperate situation, traded Puerto Rican native and star pitcher Javier Vazquez to the New York Yankees for Nick Johnson, Juan Rivera, and Randy Choate. The trade didn’t work out well. And the Expos were without their two marquee players for 2004.

The good news was that in the offseason 6,000 more seats were added to Hiram Bithorn Stadium as part of an $8 million renovation. A key was moving the outfield walls back to the same dimensions as Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Expos manager Frank Robinson was pleased, commenting: “Every ball that’s popped up in the air, I will no longer have to hold my breath.”103

The New York Mets were again the first opponents for the Expos on the island. Still smarting from the Expos’ four-game sweep in 2003, the Mets opened with a 3-2 win on April 9. Jose Vidro’s two-run double had tied the game in the bottom of the eighth, but Todd Zeile doubled home the winning run in the 11th. Zeile had announced that 2004 would be his final season. He chose to sign with the Mets after his half-season in 2003 with the Expos.104

The next day Expos starting pitcher John Patterson and two relievers pitched a 1-0 shutout. In the seventh inning, Brad Wilkerson doubled and Peter Bergeron singled him home.105 The series concluded on April 11 with Mets pitcher Tom Glavine scattering five hits over seven innings, winning 4-1. The key blow was a two-run homer by rookie Eric Valent, his first.106

The number of home runs had been reduced in the Mets series. In the second series, against the Marlins, Montreal continued to keep the ball in the park but the Marlins did not. Miguel Cabrera, playing his first full season, wasn’t bothered with the fences being moved back 20 feet. He hit two home runs in the first game. Pitcher Brad Penny needed only one of them, striking out 10 in eight innings as the Marlins shut out the Expos, 5-0.107

The next day, April 14, was worse for the Expos than the 13th. Cabrera hit another home run. Pitcher Dontrelle Willis went 3-for-3 with three RBIs, making him 6-for-6 for the season with two home runs. Willis and three relievers also shut out the Expos again, this time 9-0.108

The final game went only slightly better for the Expos. They didn’t score but lost by only three runs. The Marlins’ Hee-Seop Choi hit a two-run homer, his second straight day with a home run. Carl Pavano pitched seven scoreless innings to anchor the third shutout in a row. The Expos were glad to leave the island.109

For 2004, MLB had determined that all the games in Puerto Rico would be played before the All-Star break, so in May the Expos were back. Attendance was sagging at Hiram Bithorn Stadium. That happens to bad teams without major stars. And the next opponent, the Milwaukee Brewers, were also not good and had no significant stars, Latino or otherwise. Even the home runs, always a baseball attraction (e.g. Ruth, Mantle/Maris, ‘roid rockets), had dramatically declined.

The Expos won the first game, on May 18, by a 3-2 score, all the runs scoring on singles.110 In the second match, after a 59-minute rain delay and a persistent stop-and-start rainstorm, Milwaukee prevailed, 6-3. The small crowd had dwindled to a few hundred when the game ended five minutes before midnight.111

The final game of the Milwaukee series began after a 49-minute rain delay. After just 12 pitches, another storm halted play for an additional 48 minutes. Brewers manager Ned Yost had decided not to risk wasting the turn of a starting pitcher so he strung together a committee of relief pitchers. Thanks to a home run by Scott Podsednik in the ninth inning, Milwaukee won, 3-2. Not surprisingly, the series hit new low marks for attendance; game three drew the biggest crowd, 8,941. 112

The next team in town at least brought along some attractions. The San Francisco Giants featured Barry Bonds and manager Felipe Alou, who as skipper of the Expos had been the majors’ first manager from the Dominican Republic. Crowds improved significantly, averaging over 15,000. Bonds’ back was hurting but since he was the biggest attraction, he said before the game, “I’m going to put a couple of back braces on and see what happens.” San Francisco was trailing in the seventh, 3-0, when Bonds proved his worth by getting a leadoff walk, after which the Giants batted around and scored six runs for a 6-5 victory.113

The next day, May 22, it was 2-2 going into the 11th inning. Bonds drove in the go-ahead run with a fielder’s choice. A.J. Pierzynski hit a grand slam that cinched the 7-2 win. The Associated Press writer summed it up succinctly: “Despite Pierzynski’s big night, it was Bonds the people came to see.”114 The final game, slated for May 23, was rained out. It had to be made up in San Francisco as part of a doubleheader in August, and 42,296 attended the game.

The final homestand of Los Expos de Montreal began on July 2 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Blue Jays slugger Carlos Delgado was born and lived in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, but he arrived hurt and could not play. A series without any big stars again drew less than 9,000 per game. Livan Hernandez pitched a four-hit shutout to give the Expos a 2-0 win in the opening game. Native Puerto Rican Vidro scored both runs.115

The tables were turned the next day, with Blue Jays starter Roy Halladay pitching seven scoreless innings in a 2-0 Toronto win. The game was delayed 36 minutes by rain.116 At least the third game, on July 4, was more exciting. Expos pitcher Shawn Hill earned his first major-league victory, 6-4. Trailing 6-1 in the ninth, Toronto scored three runs off reliever Chad Cordero, but Joe Horgan struck out Reed Johnson of the Blue Jays with the bases loaded to seal the win.117

Atlanta came to San Juan to play games on July 5-7. The Expos were no match for the Braves, who led 6-0 after the first inning in game one. Andruw Jones hit a three-run homer and Chipper Jones drove in four runs as part of an 11-4 win.118 The next day Atlanta won the opposite way, with starter Russ Ortiz pitching seven shutout innings of three-hit ball in a 1-0 victory.119

After the Braves bashed six homers in the last game, two more by Andruw Jones, Bobby Cox summed up the series well when he declared: “We should be the ones in San Juan.”120

The final series of the two-year Los Expos, a four-gamer against the Pirates June 8-11, drew the smallest crowds yet, with two games’ attendance not reaching 8,000 and the others under 9,000. At least the Expos closed out on a winning note.

The game on July 8 was a nailbiter. With the Expos trailing 1-0 in the seventh, Endy Chavez tripled and Tony Batista singled him home to tie the game. Brian Schneider homered to center in the bottom of the eighth for the game-winning run. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote that the Expos had the worst record in baseball, were last in batting average and last in runs scored but excelled at catching the ball. At least three Pirates line drives had been speared for outs, which likely saved the game.121

On July 9 the Expos’ fielding skills didn’t matter. They were shut out for the 13th time. Pirates rookie Sean Burnett scattered 10 hits. Jason Bay went 4-for-5, hit two home runs, scored four runs, and knocked in four. It was an 11-0 embarrassment.122

The Expos salvaged the series with two close wins decided by pitching. On July 10 spot starter Rocky Biddle and three relievers combined for a 4-0 win.123 The final game, a 2-1 affair, would have fit in better a hundred years before. The closest thing to a batting hero was Terrmel Sledge. He scored the first Expos run on a force out at second base in the fifth. In the sixth, Sledge hit into another force out at second that drove in the second run. Then he was thrown out trying to steal.124

Expos general manager Omar Minaya summed up the 2004 season in Puerto Rico well. “The fans here are like the fans everywhere. If the team is winning, they will come. Last year it was also more attractive because of the visiting teams. This year the visitors were different.”125 The Expos had lost their biggest stars in the offseason. The biggest attractions of 2004 – Barry Bonds and Carlos Delgado – arrived hurt. Montreal was 67-95, futility nearly matched by its opponents with losing records (Milwaukee, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati). The opposing teams with winning records – the Marlins and the Braves – crushed the Expos. Add the rain, and it is no wonder that attendance dropped off dramatically. The experiment of major-league baseball on the island was at best a mixed result.

San Juan Series 2010: New York Mets at the Florida Marlins

MLB made its goals clear when it announced the three-game set to be played June 28-30, 2010, between the Mets and Marlins in San Juan: “The growth of baseball around the globe has been tremendous and we hope that by providing Major League competition to the passionate fans in Puerto Rico and around the world, we will encourage interest and participation well into the future.”126

New York and Florida had become the Puerto Rican centers in the United States. Both teams had played the Expos during their San Juan interlude. Miami’s approach was not subtle. “Being the Gateway to the Americas, we want to try to capture that market,” said Claude Delorme, the Marlins’ executive vice president of ballpark development. “There are a lot of people who were born in Puerto Rico and they live in Miami. The more they can adopt the Marlins, it just allows us to grow our fan base, and the business, over time.”127

Upstaging the Mets, who had four Puerto Rican players, Alex Cora, Angel Pagan, Pedro Feliciano, and Jesus Feliciano, the Marlins had selected Edwin Rodriguez as interim manager less than a week before the Puerto Rican series began. Thus Rodriguez, who grew up five minutes from Hiram Bithorn Stadium, became the majors’ first Puerto Rican manager.128 One Florida newspaper reported: “Rodriguez enjoyed a hero’s welcome when the team arrived in San Juan. He walked off the plane Sunday night to cheers from 150 people, some chanting his name and singing to celebrate his visit as MLB’s first Puerto Rican manager.”129

Owner Loria, true to his extraordinary skills for drama, told interim manager Rodriguez 30 minutes before the start of the second game that he was officially the new Marlins manager, no longer just an interim one.130

While the 18,073 people in the San Juan crowd were thrilled to have a hometown hero as the first Puerto Rican manager, the hearts of most were with the Mets, as was evidenced by the chant of “Let’s go Mets!” when pinch-hitter Alex Cora stepped to the plate in the sixth with the Mets trailing.131 The Marlins won, 10-3. Rickey Nolasco went seven innings for the win. Chris Coghlan went 2-for-3 with a home run and three runs scored; Cody Ross went 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored, and two batted in; and Giancarlo Stanton, whose maternal great-grandmother was Puerto Rican, hit a three-run blast.132

The crowd at the second game was slightly larger (18,373) and the game was more exciting. The Marlins prevailed again, 7-6. Hanley Ramirez hit a grand slam, Dan Uggla hit a two-run homer and the game-winning single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but Jorge Cantu dramatically stole the limelight with a head-first slide at home plate to win the game.133

The June 30 finale drew the largest crowd, 19,232. The Marlins continued to pound away at Mets pitching with a total of 17 hits. Cantu, Stanton, Ramirez, Coghlan, Uggla, Ross, and Gaby Sanchez all had two hits. Ronny Paulino had three. The Mets, however, made better use of their 10 hits, prevailing 6-5 to salvage one win in the series. The pitching was nothing to note.134

The 2010 San Juan Series had brought back the excitement of the 2001 opener.

2016 Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Miami Marlins Series: Victim of the Zika Virus

Pittsburgh and Miami were scheduled to play a two-game series in San Juan as part of a leaguewide celebration on Roberto Clemente Day on May 31, 2016. A problem arose. This CBS report summarizes it well: “The union had asked Commissioner Rob Manfred to relocate the games after several players expressed fears about getting and possibly transmitting the Zika virus. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said Zika can cause a birth defect called microcephaly, where infants are born with unusually small heads. The virus is most often spread by mosquito bites, but it also can be spread through sexual intercourse.”135

The outbreak of the virus had begun in Brazil in 2014 and it reached Puerto Rico in December 2015. By August, several months after the game was to have been played, the US government declared a public-health emergency in Puerto Rico as a result of the Zika epidemic. The US surgeon general said he expected 25 percent of the 3.5 million people on the island to be infected with Zika by year’s end. As it turned out, far fewer people were infected, but the concern by MLB and the players association was not unfounded.136

Nevertheless, negative reaction to the cancellation of the series was swift. Luis Clemente, Roberto’s son, said that the islanders “were very disillusioned over the decision.” He continued: “I was born being part of the Pirates, and we’ve always had a solid relationship. But as a Puerto Rican who lives in Puerto Rico, I can tell you that there’s great disgust over what has transpired and I can understand it.” 137

Others weren’t as nice. The mayor of San Juan said that “fear is not the American way” and that “this has been totally blown out of proportion.” Angel Matos, head of the tourism commission for Puerto Rico’s House of Representatives, was even more cutting in his remarks: “The reality is that this cancellation is unfair, disproportionate, and makes our country look bad. It’s an act of touristic terrorism.”138

Other MLB Efforts to Encourage Baseball in Puerto Rico

In 2005 there were 34 Puerto Ricans on Opening Day rosters. In 2014 there were only 11.139 Major League Baseball has responded in multiple ways to rebuild baseball’s popularity in Puerto Rico. MLB has provided some funding to training academies.

The Puerto Rican Baseball Academy and High School was founded in 2001 by former major-league player Edwin Correa. Students split the day between conventional classes and baseball. The Houston Astros’ Carlos Correa (no relation to Edwin) is the school’s showpiece graduate. Pushed by his father, he was a baseball fanatic by age 5. When he was 8 he asked his parents (neither of whom spoke English) to enroll him in a bilingual Baptist school because he wanted to speak for himself, not through the translators as he often saw Latino players do on television. He was given a scholarship to the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy, where the combination of his skills and character (he was also valedictorian) resulted in Correa making history as the first Puerto Rican to be selected number one in the amateur draft.140

MLB contributes $275,000 a year plus another $25,000 in scholarships from Major League Baseball, which the Players Association matches. The school estimated that the donations account for 4 percent of its budget.141

The Carlos Beltran Academy opened in 2011 and graduated its first class in 2013. The land (20 acres) was donated by the local government. Beltran, a longtime major leaguer, donated over $4 million. MLB contributes $50,000 annually.

The Next Level Academy, founded in 2007, is structured differently. A 2017 Washington Post story explained: “Students take online classes in English in a makeshift classroom at the stadium before lunch and baseball practice. Homework isn’t assigned, said Pedro Leon, a former player agent who founded the academy, to allow students to get enough sleep.” Kennys Vargas of the Minnesota Twins is its first graduate to play in the major leagues.142

Two other young Puerto Rican stars followed yet another path. Francisco Lindor of the Cleveland Indians and Javier Baez of the Chicago Cubs both played in the 2016 World Series. Lindor was born in Puerto Rico and moved to Clermont, Florida, near Orlando, at age 12 to attend the Montverde Academy, where he earned USA Today high school All-USA status. Baez moved from the island to Jacksonville, Florida, when he was 13. He honed his skills at the Arlington Country Day School there.

Heloit Ramos is an example of yet another trend that is likely to increase. Ramos gained attention at the 2016 Under Armour All-American Game at Wrigley Field. In November of 2016 he was ranked 24th overall and first in Puerto Rico among high-school players by Baseball America. This earned him a scholarship offer to Florida International University in Miami, whose top-ranked recruiting class included eight Puerto Ricans. It is coached by Puerto Rico native Mervyl Melendez. A challenge to the university approach, as stated by the pitching coach at La Salle University, is that “if I recruit 50 Puerto Rican kids a year, 48 are discounted by going through their credits and SAT scores. I’m really just trying to find the ones that I can make eligible.”143

There are no easy solutions, and increasing the numbers obviously will require more investment by Major League Baseball. In August 2016 MLB and the players union pledged to invest $2.5 million apiece over the next five years “toward the support and creation of baseball development programs” and to hold games and events on the island. Edwin Rodriguez, president of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and manager of Puerto Rico’s team in the World Baseball Classic, suggested that a good pool of revenue could be the $140 million collected from clubs that exceed the limit on international spending. Such spending is not allowed in Puerto Rico because its players are included in the draft.144

It also should be noted that the Dominican baseball academy system is hardly universally praised. “Inside Major League Baseball’s Dominican Sweatshop System” (Mother Jones) and “Inside the secret world of Dominican baseball” (Salon.com) are among critiques that push for MLB and local owners enterprises to improve conditions there.145

In August 2016 Major League Baseball and the Players Association committed to spend $5 million over the course of the next collective-bargaining agreement toward the creation and support of baseball development programs in Puerto Rico.146 On March 16, 2017, MLB announced that Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar, a native of Ponce, had been hired as an “ambassador at events and development initiatives” to promote baseball interest and skills among youth on the island.147

These are tumultuous times in Puerto Rico, but the presence of young stars on the Puerto Rican team in the 2017 World Baseball Classic provide hope that with the help of the baseball Establishment, the tradition of baseball love in Puerto Rico can be fully revived.

MARK SOUDER is from Fort Wayne, Indiana, which he represented in the United States Congress for 16 years. Now mostly retired, in addition to doing political commentary in Indiana media, he has been working on a multi-year project on the history of baseball & politics. His writings for SABR have included articles in the 2015 Chicago edition of The National Pastime and in the 2016 book Boston’s First Nine. He also presented on early baseball and politics in Washington and New York at the 2015 and 2016 Nineteenth Century Baseball Conferences (FRED) in Cooperstown. His interest in the interaction between baseball & politics was stimulated by his participation as a lead questioner in Congressional Steroid Hearings. His version of a perfect day was celebrating his 50th birthday in the Chicago White Sox co-owner’s suite and having his name appear on the scoreboard, all while raising money for his campaign and watching baseball.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author utilized Baseball-Reference.com to check game dates, box scores, and individual player data.

Notes

1 “Reds Play Initial Major League Ball Game in Puerto Rico,” Binghamton Press and Sun-Bulletin, February 26, 1936: 16.

2 Gene Karst, “Spring Training Pioneers: Flying the ‘Southern Clipper’ With the Cincinnati Reds,” The National Pastime; Vol. 6, No. 1, Winter 1987.

3 Ibid.

4 Johnny Inkslinger, “Spilling the Dope,” Escanaba (Michigan) Daily Press; March 3, 1936: 13.

5 From the foreword by Eduardo Valero in Thomas E. Van Hyning, Puerto Rico’s Winter League: A History of Major League Baseball’s Launching Pad (Jefferson North Carolina: McFarland & Co, 2004).

6 Van Hyning, 87.

7 “Reds Divide Games With Colored Team,” Salt Lake Tribune, March 2, 1936: 7.

8 Rory Costello, “Sixto Escobar Stadium (San Juan, PR),” sabr.org/bioproj/park/sixto-escobar-stadium-san-juan.

9 Ralph Berger, “Larry MacPhail,” sabr.org/bioproj/person/1b708d47.

10 Walter LeConte and Bill Nowlin, “Yankees Spring Training in 1947,” in Lyle Spatz, ed., Bridging Two Dynasties: The 1947 New York Yankees (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2013), 11.

11 twitter.com/leonesprbl?lang=en.

12 Jim Vitti, Brooklyn Dodgers in Cuba (Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2011), 71.

13 donq.com/about/heritage/.

14 Fred Down, “38 Years Later, Yankee Training Camp of 1947 Is Remembered,” Los Angeles Times; February 24, 1985.

15 historicdodgertown.com/history/historic-timeline/years-1940s.

16 Leonte Landino, “Luis Aparicio,” sabr.org/bioproj/person/87c077f1.

17 “Sox Lose, 12-11,” Chicago Tribune, April 2, 1960: 63, 65.

18 “Phillies Pound White Sox for 8-3 Triumph” Terre Haute (Indiana) Tribune-Star; April 3, 1960: 51.

19 “Smith Leaves Brother Jive,” Minneapolis Star; April 4, 1960: 3.

20 Eugene (Oregon) Guard; April 4, 1960: 17.

21 Ed Brandt, “Miami Beats ‘B’ Club, Zauchin and Hinton Star in 6-2 Victory,” Baltimore Sun; April 3, 1960:146; Ed Brandt, “Miami Beats Bird ‘B’ Club, Dropo Clouts Grand Slam, but Orioles Lose, 5-4,” Baltimore Sun; April 4, 1960: 16.

22 Ed Brandt, “18 Birds Had Many Laughs, but Mountain Drive Topped Trip to Puerto Rico,” Baltimore Sun, April 6, 1960: 21.

23 Gilbert Rogin, “The Many Faces of Mr. Mac,” Sports Illustrated, February 17, 1964.

24 Indianapolis Star; April 3, 1960: 65.

25 “IL Approves Shifting Miami Franchise to Puerto Rico,” Petersburg (Virginia) Progress-Index, November 29, 1960: 14.

26 George Beahon, “In This Corner,” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 27, 1961: 36.

27 “San Juan Rooters Work Up Steam for Monday Game,” Hartford Courant; April 16, 1961: 57.

28 “Marlins Beat Toronto, 4-2,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix), April 18, 1961: 36; “Leafs Top Marlins; Smith Fans 13, Allows Only 5 Hits,” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 19, 1961: 25; “Toronto Wins By 7 to 1,” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 20, 1961: 41; “Leafs Rip Marlins for 3rd Straight,” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 21, 1961: 25.

29 “Triple A Loop Junks Puerto Rico,” Hartford Courant, May 4, 1961: 38.

30 “Marlin Owners Wants to Stay in Puerto Rico,” Freeport (Illinois) Journal, May 8, 1961: 8.

31 funwhileitlasted.net/2015/02/28/1961-san-juan-marlins-charleston-marlins/.

32 pbs.org/wgbh/amex/castro/timeline/.

33 “Capitalism Underpins Canada’s Relationship With Cuba,” yvesengler.com/2016/11/27/capitalism-underpins-canadas-relationship-with-cuba/, November 27, 2016.

34 cia.gov/news-information/featured-story-archive/2016-featured-story-archive/the-bay-of-pigs-invasion.html.

35 “New Landing by Rebels, Spokesman for Cuban Revolutionary Front in Puerto Rico Makes Announcement in Face of Pro-Castro Claims That Revolt Is Near Collapse,” Kansas City Times, April 20, 1961: 1.

36 Pittsburgh Press, April 1, 1967; Connellsville (Pennsylvania), Daily Courier, April 3, 1967: 7.

37 David Maraniss, Clemente: The Passion and Grace of Baseball’s Last Hero (New York: Simon & Schuster, paperback edition 2007), 339.

38 64.78.33.77/rcsc21/index_en.cfm (website of Roberto Clemente Sports City).

39 imdb.com/company/co0021149/.

40 “Sports City Bill,” Binghamton (New York) Press and Sun-Bulletin, April 1, 1973: 66.

41 “Bucs to Play for Clemente,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, December 12, 1973.

42 Pittsburgh Press, March 20, 1974: 77.

43 Hartford Courant, March 18, 1975: 45.

44 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 22, 1977: 11.

45 Muncie (Indiana) Star-Press, March 23, 1977: 11.

46 Pittsburgh Press, March 22, 1978: 27.

47 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 20, 1979: 13.

48 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 21, 1979: 13.

49 Battle Creek (Michigan) Enquirer, March 25, 1980: 18.

50 Detroit Free Press, March 26, 1980: 53.

51 Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press, March 24, 1981: 24.

52 Ibid.

53 famously-dead.com/sports/karl-wallenda.html.

54 Baltimore Sun, March 23, 1982: 21.

55 Orlando Sentinel, March 23, 1983: 18.

56 Cincinnati Enquirer, March 21, 1984: 17.

57 upi.com/Archives/1985/03/07/The-Roberto-Clemente-Series-a-two-game-exhibition-between-two/8586479019600/.

58 Jim Kaplan, “It’s a Dream Come True: Roberto Clemente’s Sports Center Is Taking Shape,” Sports Illustrated, October 5, 1988.

59 Palm Beach Post, March 16, 1988: 144.

60 Barry Horn, “Sierra Carries Scars From Final Texas Season,” The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City), October 18, 1992.

61 “Sierra: Big Welcome in Puerto Rico,” Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press, March 21, 1989: 42.

62 Horn.

63 Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press, March 22, 1989: 47.

64 “Sierra: Big Welcome.”

65 Chicago Tribune, March 17, 1989: 40.

66 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 19, 1991: 28.

67 nytimes.com/2012/01/17/sports/baseball/puerto-rico-traces-decline-in-prospects-to-inclusion-in-the-baseball-draft.html.

68 “Puerto Ricans Proud to Host Game,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix), March 30, 2001: 6.

69 Great Falls (Montana) Tribune, April 2, 2001: 19.

70 “Puerto Rico Welcomes Rangers, Blue Jays,” Arizona Daily Sun (Flagstaff), March 31, 2001.

71 “Puerto Rico Embraces MLB Opener,” CBSNews.com staff /AP, April 1, 2001.

72 Ibid.

73 Orlando Sentinel, April 2, 2001: 5.

74 “Puerto Rico Welcomes Rangers, Blue Jays.”

75 theguardian.com/cities/2015/may/13/habitat-67-montreal-expo-moshe-safdie-history-cities-50-buildings-day-35.

76 Jonah Keri, Up, Up & Away: The Kid, The Hawk, Rock, Vladi, Pedro, Le Grand Orange, Youppi!, The Crazy Business of Baseball, & the Ill-fated but Unforgettable Montreal Expos (Toronto: Vintage Canada, 2015), 1-15.

77 Keri, 365.

78 Jim Salisbury, “Row Your Bat: Expos Head for the Islands,” Philadelphia Inquirer; April 11, 2003: D10.

79 Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press, April 12, 2003: 33.

80 Danville (Kentucky) Advocate-Messenger, April 13, 2003: 14.

81 “Los Expos Thrill Crowd,” Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press. April 13, 2003: 13.

82 Palm Springs Desert Sun, April 13, 2003.

83 Tyrone (Pennsylvania) Daily Herald, April 14, 2003: 4.

84 “Tatis Powers Expos Past Hapless Mets,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida), April 15, 2003: 34.

85 Palm Beach Post, April 15, 2003: 71.

86 Pensacola News Journal, April 16, 2003: 27.

87 “Braves Get More Stellar Pitching,” Pensacola News-Journal, April 17, 2003: 31.

88 Ben Walker, “Lopez Comes Through for Braves,” Pensacola News Journal, April 18, 2003: 34.

89 “Expos Sweep Double-Header,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida). April 20, 2003: 31.

90 “6 Homers Help Reds,” Orlando Sentinel, April 21, 2003: D5.

91 “Angels Bombard Expos With 1st Inning Homers,” Orlando Sentinel, June 4, 2003: D4.

92 “Anderson’s 3 Homers Lead Angels’ Assault on Expos,” Orlando Sentinel, June 5, 2003: D4.

93 Palm Beach Post, June 6, 2003: 30-31.

94 “San Juan Slugfest,” Hartford Courant, June 7, 2003: 132.

95 Josh Dubow (Associated Press), “Puerto Rican Park Yielding Longballs Galore,” Woodstock (Illinois) Northwest Herald, June 8, 2003: 25.

96 “Montreal Sweeps Rangers,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida), June 9, 2003: 43.

97 “Expos Turn Out Lights on Marlins,” Orlando Sentinel; September 6, 2003: D5.

98 “Marlins Maul Expos 14-4,” Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press. September 7, 2003: 11.

99 “Willis Tames Expos,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida), September 8, 2003: 27.

100 Paul Sullivan, “Feeling at Home, Cubs Streak On,” Chicago Tribune; September 10, 2003: Section 4, 1.

101 “A Grand Collapse: Cubs Blow 4-Run Lead to Fall Out of First Place in the Central,” Chicago Tribune; September 11, 2003: 33-13.

102 Chicago Tribune, September 12, 2003: 4-6.

103 “Expos Play in San Juan for First Half Only,” Palm Beach Post, April 13, 2004: 37.

104 “Mets Slip Past Expos,” Poughkeepsie Journal, April 10, 2004: 4C.

105 Peter Abraham, “Good News, Bad News in Mets’ loss,” White Plains (New York) Journal-News, April 11, 2004: 27.

106 Peter Abraham, “Mets lose Floyd, but Win Game,” White Plains (New York) Journal News, April 12, 2004: 21.

107 “Marlins Make Themselves At Home,” Palm Beach Post. April 14, 2004: C1.

108 “Versatile Willis Boosts Marlins,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida), April 15, 2004: 73.

109 Juan C. Rodriguez, “Marlins Blank Expos, Sweep 3-Game Series,” Orlando Sentinel, April 16, 2004: D4.

110 Fort Myers (Florida) News-Press, May 19, 2004: 32.

111 “Hall’s Three-Run Triple Lifts Brewers Past Montreal in rain,” Oshkosh (Wisconsin) Northwestern, May 20, 2004: 21.

112 Eddie Pells (Associated Press), “Podsednik HR Gives Brewers Win Over Expos,” Marshfield (Wisconsin) News-Herald, May 21, 2004: 19.

113 “Bonds Plays, Giants Win,” Santa Cruz (California) Sentinel, May 22, 2004, 39.

114 Eddie Pells (Associated Press), “Pierzynski’s Grand Slam Finishes Expos,” Santa Cruz (California) Sentinel, May 23, 2004: C1, C5.

115 Orlando Sentinel, July 3, 2004: D4.

116 Orlando Sentinel, July 4, 2004: C12.

117 Orlando Sentinel, July 5, 2004: D4.

118 Orlando Sentinel, July 6, 2004: C.

119 “Ortiz’s Victory Pushes Braves Over .500 mark,” Orlando Sentinel, July 7, 2004: D4.

120 Ricardo Zuniga, “Jones Leads Braves Bash,” Montgomery (Alabama) Advertiser, July 8, 2004: 12.

121 “Benson Shines in Pirates Loss,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. July 9, 2004: 19.

122 “Bay Breeze,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 10, 2004: 17.

123 “Pirates Go Down Quietly,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 11, 2004: 37.

124 “Punchless Pirates Fall to Expos,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July12, 2004: 27.

125 “Expos Struggle in Puerto Rico,” Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida), July 12, 2004: 28.

126 mlb.mlb.com/pa/releases/releases.jsp?content=031810.

127 m.mlb.com/news/article/8827982//. It was also a prelude to the opening of their modernistic retractable roof ballpark in 2012. Fans and critics love and hate ballpark (personally, though like most I prefer the ballparks that are modern brick recreations of a century before, I found the Marlins stadium to be a refreshing, artistic difference) was the creation of art dealer and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria. Loria dumped the Montreal Expos in the process of purchasing the Marlins. He is not the most popular man in either Montreal or Miami.

128 m.mlb.com/news/article/11709294//.

129 Palm Beach Post; June 29, 2010: C001, C004, C005.

130 Palm Beach Post; June 30, 2010; C001.

131 m.mlb.com/news/article/11709294//.

132 Palm Beach Post; June 29, 2010: C001, C004, C005.

133 Palm Beach Post; June 30, 2010: C001.

134 Chicago Tribune; July 1, 2010: sports section, 6.

135 pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2016/05/06/baseball-scraps-puerto-rico-series-between-pirates-marlins-amid-zika-concerns/.

136 nbcnews.com/storyline/zika-virus-outbreak/u-s-declares-health-emergency-puerto-rico-due-zika-virus-n630131.

137 Luis Fabregas, “Clemente’s Son Decries Cancellation of Pirates Series in Puerto Rico,” May 6, 2016; triblive.com/sports/pirates/10431831-74/clemente-puerto-pirates.

138 Arthur Weinstein, “Puerto Rican Official Calls MLB Cancellations ‘Touristic Terrorism,” Sporting News; May 7, 2016.

139 Ben Reiter, “Made Man: At 21, Astros Shortstop Carlos Correa Is Already a Star,” Sports Illustrated, September 28, 2015.

140 Ibid.

141 Jorge Castillo, “Puerto Rico Yearns For Another Golden Era in Major League Baseball,” Washington Post, March 3, 2017.

142 Ibid.

143 Ibid.

144 Ibid. Academy president Edwin Rodriguez (Morales) played three MLB seasons for the Yankees and the Padres, and was the manager of the Florida Marlins. Academy founder Edwin (Josue) Correa played three MLB seasons for the White Sox and the Rangers.

145 Ian Gordon, “Inside Major League Baseball’s Dominican Sweatshop System,” Mother Jones, March/April 2013; Andrew O’Hehir, “Inside the Secret World Of Dominican Baseball,” Salon.com, July 10, 2012, salon.com/2012/07/10/inside_the_secret_world_of_dominican_baseball/.

146 Anthony Castrovince, “MLB, MLBPA Strengthening Ties With Puerto Rico,” MLB.com, August 24, 2016.

147 espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/18922699/hall-famer-roberto-alomar-hired-mlb-youth-development-puerto-rico.