Return of King Felix? Hernandez looks to regain his throne with the Braves
By Robert Dominguez It was only two innings, and it’s only February. But King Felix took a big first step towards proving he can still be a monarch of the mound every fifth day. It’s hard to believe that after 15 Major League seasons, 169 wins, 2,500 strikeouts, six All-Star appearances and a Cy Young Award, Felix Hernandez is still only 33 years old — and battling for a rear-echelon rotation spot for a team not named the Seattle Mariners. But after four injury-plagued seasons that saw the Venezuela native go 26-35, including last year’s dismal 1-8, 6.40 ERA and
With 656 and counting, Albert Pujols is blasting his way up the all-time HR list
By Robert Dominguez Being a baseball immortal ain’t what it used to be. When Anaheim Angels DH Albert Pujols joined the 600-homer club in “grand” style — a bases-loaded slam on June 3, 2017 against the Minnesota Twins at home — the then-37-year-old Santo Domingo native became the fourth-youngest player in history to hit 600, the ninth overall, and only the third Latino to reach that milestone. While Pujols, a lock for the Hall of Fame after a 19-year career and counting, was recognized across baseball for his rare achievement, it somehow didn’t have the same kind of buzz it
Adrian Beltre’s climb up the all-time hits list hits a snag
By Robert Dominguez A hurting hammy put a sudden halt to Adrian Beltre’s historic march to Cooperstown. The Dominican native, who last year became the 31st player to collect 3,000 hits, on April 5 became baseball’s all-time hits leader among Latin American-born players when he smacked a second-inning double in a game against the Oakland Athletics. The two-bagger was Beltre’s 3,054 career hit, moving the Texas Rangers third baseman past Panamanian great Rod Carew. It also put Beltre into some further exalted company: The only other foreign-born Major Leaguer with more lifetime hits is Mariners outfielder/DH and Japanese icon Ichiro
Cooperstown bound: Vladimir Guerrero is a Hall of Fame lock
By Robert Dominguez Looks like Vladimir Guerrero is about to hit it over the fence in his second time up. The free-swinging Dominican slugger, who was at the crest of the wave of Latino baseball stars who swept over the game in the 1990s, is poised to become one of only a handful of players from Latin America and the Caribbean to make it into the Hall of Fame. Among a Murderer's Row of worthy candidates this year, Guerrero's chances of attaining baseball immortality on Jan. 24, when election results are announced, is looking strong. With just days to go,
Vladimir Guerrero gets his wings as member of Angels Hall of Fame
Vladimir Guerrero with Angels star Albert Pujols. (Photo by Omar Silva) By Robert Dominguez Vladimir Guerrero may have just missed getting into baseball’s Hall of Fame this year, but at least the former Angel managed to get his wings. The Dominican Republic native was inducted into the Anaheim Angels’ Hall of Fame in an on-field ceremony Aug. 26 — an honor that showed how important he is to Angels history considering Guerrero only played six seasons of his 16-year career with the team. But the hulking hitting star was a formidable presence in the middle of the Angels lineup, as
2017 All-Star game showcases how far Latino players have come in MLB
Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Indians Source: KA Sports Photos – Under Creative Commons license By Robert Dominguez For a sense of how the face of baseball has been evolving in recent years, look no further than the players selected to the 2017 All-Star Game in Miami on July 11. Compared to past decades, both the American and National League rosters have a healthy representation of Latino all-stars, a sign of how players from such baseball-crazy countries as the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba and Puerto Rico continue to make an impact on the so-called America’s past time. This year,
The New York baseball world has been turned upside down
By Robert Dominguez The New York baseball world has been turned upside down. Where once it was the Yankees that was the veteran, perennial playoff-contending team filled with aging stars and bloated contracts — just last year, as a matter of fact — the new-look Bombers enter the 2017 season Sunday hoping a bunch of baby-faced rookies and inexperienced position players and pitchers can bring a winning tradition back to the Bronx. Meanwhile, the Mets — barely a year removed from a World Series they gave away to the Kansas City Royals — is now New York's elite team even
Dereck Rodriguez making Hall of Famer dad Ivan proud
Photo by Minnesota Twins By Robert Dominguez He's got a World Series ring and a permanent place in Cooperstown, but someday soon Ivan Rodriguez may add another baseball rarity to his résumé: Getting to see his progeny play in the Major Leagues. Rodriguez, whose 21-year career as one of baseball's best-ever backstops recently made him a first-ballot Hall of Famer, is also the proud papa of Dereck Rodriguez, a 24-year-old prospect with the Minnesota Twins currently playing in the Caribbean Series for the Puerto Rican team. As a pitcher. The elder Rodriguez apparently doesn't mind what position Dereck plays as
