He was a feared middle-of-the-order hitter and Gold Glove-caliber third baseman, yet Adrian Beltre was more of a lunch pail kind of guy, never the type of flashy star player who got much attention other than a deep appreciation for his skills.   Not until late in his 21-year career, that is, when fans realized the unassuming Santo Domingo native was suddenly on the cusp of the magic 3,000-hit mark. On this day in béisbol, July 30, 2017, Beltre reached the milestone with a fourth-inning double as his Rangers lost to the Orioles at home, becoming the first Dominican-born player

The Hall of Fame had a stacked lineup of inductees on this day in baseball, July 29, 2018. Six baseball greats were welcomed into Cooperstown, one of the largest classes ever. More than 50,000 fans saw outfielder Vladimir Guerrero, DH/1B Jim Thome, reliever Trevor Hoffman, and infielder Chipper Jones get honored after being elected by the BBWAA. Jones, with 97.2% of the vote, and Guerrero with 92.9% were the leading vote getters. Also entering baseball’s hallowed hall were shortstop Alan Trammell and pitcher Jack Morris, who were selected by the Veterans Committee. Guerrero, born in the Dominican Republic, was the latest Latino legend to make the

On this day in baseball, July 28, 1991, Dennis Martinez of the Montreal Expos hurls the 13th perfect game in MLB history against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. The 2-0 gem by Martinez, a native of Granada, Nicaragua nicknamed El Presidente, made him the first Latino pitcher and first pitcher born outside the U.S. to toss a perfecto. Martinez, 37, stymied the Dodgers on 96 pitches in a game rife with trivia tidbits. It was the second perfect game caught by Expos backstop Ron Hassey, who was behind the plate for the Indians in May 1981 when Len

With his team down three runs in the bottom of the ninth of an 8-5 game, the bases were loaded and the Pirates were desperately in need of a clutch hit. Roberto Clemente came through. And topped it off with a flourish. The dynamic young right-fielder hit a walk-off grand slam to beat the Cubs on this day in baseball, July 25, 1956. As if that wasn’t enough heroics for one day, Clemente sealed the win with a huge dose of drama — the winning slam was an inside-the-park homer. Clemente, in his second year in the Majors, went to

With 511 career home runs, Miguel Cabrera will likely be the last player to pass the magic 500 milestone for a few more years yet. On this day in béisbol, July 12, 2012 Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera took a huge step toward joining the exclusive 500 home run club, blasting a pair of solo homers — numbers 299 and 300 — to key a 6-4 win over the Chicago White Sox at home. It was a typical performance that season for the Venezuela-born Cabrera, who would end the season as the first Triple Crown winner since Carl Yastrzemski 

They saved the best for last. On this day in béisbol, July 21, 2019, six players were immortalized in a lengthy induction ceremony at baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. — including Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, the first player to be elected unanimously. The greatest closer in history, the product of a poverty-stricken childhood in Panama, gave his heartfelt induction speech last after fellow inductees Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, Lee Smith, Harold Baines and the late Roy Halladay were honored. Also on this day: With one mighty swing, Alex Rodriguez checked off two career milestones in 2006 — his

Albert Pujols was just 24 but already a superstar when on this day in béisbol, July 20, 2004 the St. Louis slugger carried the team on his broad back in a thrilling comeback victory over the rival Cubs at Wrigley Field. Playing first and batting third, the future Hall of Famer hit three home runs off three different pitchers and added a run-scoring double in the first inning to kickstart a 5-for-5 day.  With the Cards down 7-1 after only two innings, Pujols hit solo homers in the third and seventh innings to help get St. Louis back in the

Long before Big Papi Ortiz became a beloved Red Sox icon, “El Tiante” — Luis Tiant, the cigar-chomping, cocksure yet cuddly Cuban pitcher known for his funky windup and winning ways — was the first Latino player to capture Beantown hearts. On this day in béisbol, July 18, 1964, Tiant made his MLB debut — but it was for the Cleveland Indians, who had signed the stocky righty after he impressed scouts while playing in the Mexican and Cuban leagues. The  23-year-old had earned his call-up thanks to a 15-1 record at AAA, but Indians fans weren’t expecting too much