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A to Z of Latino Americans Latino Athletes Ian C. Friedman For my brothers Al, Jeff, and Keith Friedman whose excitement upon hearing Al Kaline get his 3,000th hit sparked a lifetime love of sports in me ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ Latino Athletes Copyright © 2007 by Ian C. Friedman All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the pub- lisher. For information contact: Facts On File, Inc. An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Friedman, Ian C. Latino athletes / Ian C. Friedman. p. cm.—(A to Z of Latino Americans) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8160-6384-0 (alk. paper) 1. Hispanic American athletes—Biography—Dictionaries. I. Title. II. Series. GV697.A1F696 2007 796.092'368073—dc22 [B] 2006016901 Facts On File books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Facts On File on the World Wide Web at http://www.factsonfile.com Text design by Annie O’Donnell Cover design by Salvatore Luongo Printed in the United States of America VB CGI 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper. Contents ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ List of Entries iv Acknowledgments vi Author’s Note vii Introduction viii A-to-Z Entries 1 Bibliography 253 Entries by Sport 255 Entries by Year of Birth 257 Entries by Ethnicity or Country of Origin 259 Index 261 List of Entries ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ Alomar, Roberto Clemente, Roberto Gómez, Wilfredo Alou, Felipe Concepción, Davey Gonzales, Pancho Aparicio, Luis Cordero, Angel, Jr. González, Juan Archuleta, Adam Cuevas, Pipino González, Kid Gavilan Arenas, Gilbert De La Hoya, Oscar Gonzalez, Tony Argüello, Alexis Dihigo, Martín Gramática, Martín Arroyo, Carlos Dimas, Trent Guerin, Bill Ballesteros, Seve Di Stefano, Alfredo Guerrero, Vladimir Barbosa, Leandro Domínguez, Maribel Guevara, Ana Benitez, Wilfred Durán, Roberto Guillén, Ozzie Blackman, Rolando Escobar, Sixto Hernandez, Keith Bonilla, Bobby Fears, Tom Hernández, Willie Brown, Panama Al Fernández, Gigi Kuerten, Gustavo Bruschi, Tedy Fernandez, Lisa Laguna, Ismael Bueno, Maria Fernández, Mary Joe Leônidas Cabrera, Miguel Fernández, Tony Lima, Vanderlei de Camacho, Héctor Fittipaldi, Christian Lobo, Rebecca Campos, Jorge Fittipaldi, Emerson Lopez, Al Canseco, Jose Flores, Tom Lopez, Nancy Canto, Miguel Franco, Julio Lopez, Steven Capilla, Joaquín Furtado, Juli Luque, Dolf Carew, Rod Galarraga, Andrés Maradona, Diego Carlos, John Galíndez, Víctor Marichal, Juan Casals, Rosie Galindo, Rudy Marta Casillas, Tony García, Francisco Martínez, Dennis Castilla, Vinny Garcia, Jeff Martinez, Edgar Castroneves, Hélio Garciaparra, Nomar Martínez, Pedro Cepeda, Orlando Garrincha Méndez, José Cervantes, Antonio Gasol, Pau Mendoza, Saúl Chacon, Bobby Ginobili, Manu Miñoso, Minnie Chávez, Julio César Gomez, Lefty Miranda, Patricia Chilavert, José Luis Gomez, Scott Montoya, Alvaro iv List of Entries v Montoya, Juan Pablo Pincay, Laffit, Jr. Sanchez, Felix Monzón, Carlos Pineda-Boutte, Leticia Sánchez, Salvador Morales, Pablo Piquet, Nelson Santana, Johan Mulanovich, Sofía Plunkett, Jim Sardinas, Kid Chocolate Muñoz, Anthony Poll, Claudia Schmidt, Oscar Nadal, Rafael Pujols, Albert Segura, Pancho Nájera, Eduardo Ramírez, Manny Senna, Ayrton Nalbandian, David Ramos, Sugar Sócrates Nápoles, José Rentería, Edgar Sosa, Sammy Negron, Esmeralda Reyna, Claudio Stevenson, Teófilo Nenê Ríos, Marcelo Taurasi, Diana Nocioni, Andrés Rivelino, Roberto Tejada, Miguel Ochoa, Lorena Rivera, Marco Tiant, Luis Oliva, Tony Rivera, Mariano Torres, Dara Olivares, Rubén Rivera, Ron Torres, José Olmedo, Alex Rodriguez, Alex Torres, Regla Ortiz, Carlos Rodríguez, Chi Chi Trevino, Lee Osuna, Rafael Rodríguez, Iván Trinidad, Félix, Jr. Palmeiro, Rafael Rodriguez, Jennifer Valenzuela, Fernando Palomino, Carlos Ronaldinho Vilas, Guillermo Parra, Derek Ronaldo Villa, Brenda Pascual, Camilo Rosales-St. John, Mia Villanueva, Charlie Pedroza, Eusebio Ruiz, John Vizquel, Omar Pelé Sabatini, Gabriela Williams, Bernie Pérez, Tony Salas, Marcelo Zárate, Carlos Perez, Yuliana Salazar, Alberto Zico Pérez del Solar, Gaby Saldívar, Vicente acknowledgments ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ hank you to my editor at Facts On File, Nicole man, Keith Friedman, Arturo Vargas, Nancy Var- TBowen, for offering me this fascinating and gas, Neil Johnson, Rebecca Tull, Jeff Bell, Leticia enjoyable project and for providing guidance and Pineda-Boutte, Manny Fernandez, Josh Sekine, support throughout the course of my work on it. Michael Pehanich, Cindy Slater, Liz Parsons, Thanks also to editorial assistants Laura Shauger Michael Gorman, Don Bowden, Marcia Schiff, and Liza Trinkle of Facts On File for their invalu- Pat Kelly, Barbara Moore, and Frank O’Brien. able assistance. My deepest gratitude is given to my I also greatly appreciate the help of many oth- family—my wife Darlene, sons Evan and Mason, ers whose research, consultation, and time helped and daughter Lily—for their kindess, love, and me write this book: Marcia Friedman, Leon Fried- unending inspiration. vi Author’s Note ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ here are 176 athletes profiled in this book. Col- but these men and women are featured on the fol- Tlectively, they trace their Latino heritage to 17 lowing pages because they have excelled on the different nations; they represent 26 separate sports; fields, tracks, streets, rings, rinks, courts, pools, and they were born in 11 distinct decades. Many of waters, courses and mats of competition. They are their surnames are Spanish, though some have last not only the best Latino Americans in the history names of English, Italian, German, or other origin. of their sports. They are also among the greatest of The rich diversity of these athletes reflects that any national or ethnic background who have ever of Latino Americans in other fields of endeavor, participated in athletics. vii Introduction ĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎĎ he lives of Latino-American athletes provide ers as undisciplined and inarticulate with the same Tmore than simply compelling accounts of skilled, elegant precision that led him to become accomplishment. They also tell stories steeped in regarded as one of the greatest hitting tacticians themes of national/ethnic identity definition, athletic in the history of baseball. It is seen in the skillful evolution, and transcendent greatness that reflect artistry of Manu Ginobili, whose leading roles on and guide the history and culture of Latin America. Argentina’s Olympics gold medal–winning squad It is certainly not unique to Latin Americans and two National Basketball Association (NBA) to be intensely proud of those from their nations championship teams have profoundly redefined who excel in any field. But the admiration in their the game of basketball as a truly global sport. respective lands of, for example, Brazilian soccer Latinos have also been at the forefront of the players, Mexican boxers, and Dominican baseball battle for greater opportunities for women and girls players matches or exceeds the extent to which any in sports. Among the pioneers in this area are Lisa nation defines itself and has been defined by sports. Fernandez, the American of Cuban and Puerto Among the nations justifiably proud of its athletes Rican descent who dominated the world of softball is a uniquely conflicted one—Cuba, which has in the 1990s, and Mexican sprinter Ana Guevara, seen some of its greatest competitors flee the island the 2004 Olympic silver medalist who has inspired during the almost five-decades-long dictatorship of male and female fans throughout her country in a Fidel Castro. way few would have thought possible just a genera- Ethnic Latino identity has been significantly tion earlier. shaped by athletes, such as Mexican Americans Pan- Greatness in competition is at the foundation cho Gonzales in tennis and Nancy Lopez and of legendary Latino athletes, bridging Cuban Negro Lee Trevino in golf, who successfully challenged League baseball player Jose Mendez to the bur- the rules—both written and unwritten—that had geoning brilliance of Dominican slugger Albert precluded so many from sports that often restricted Pujols and Brazil’s first soccer icon, Leonidas, participation based on class, race, or ethnicity. to its most current one, Ronaldinho. But tran- The Latino-American contribution to the scendent greatness has also been a crucial theme in evolution of sports and its subsequent impact on the history of Latino athletes. Such meaning that society is seen in the efforts and examples of many extends beyond the fields of competition is best athletes. It is found in the life of Rod Carew, who personified by Brazilian soccer player Pelé and was born in a “coloreds only” section of a train Puerto Rican baseball star Roberto Clemente. traveling in the Panama Canal Zone and later bat- Pelé, long the most popular player in the most ted common perceptions of Latino baseball play- popular game in the world, once brought about a viii Introduction ix cease-fire in an African civil war simply because he Understanding the legacy of these athletes was traveling