In a perfect baseball world, Rafael Palmeiro, the Havana-born slugger with a sweet lefty stroke, would have guaranteed his place among the game’s immortals on this day in béisbol, May 11, 2003. That’s when the 38-year-old Texas Rangers first baseman became just the 19th player in MLB history — and the first born in Cuba — to become a charter member of the 500 Home Run Club.  But reaching a milestone that at one time punched you an instant ticket to Cooperstown turned out to be a tainted achievement for Palmeiro.  As one of the bigger names caught up in

By Robert Dominguez He was king of the hill for over a decade. But Felix Hernandez’s long reign as one of the AL’s top pitchers ended just about the time he entered his thirties, as injuries to the golden right arm that made him a perennial Cy Young candidate took its toll. From 2005 through 2015, when the Seattle Mariners ace was in his glorious prime, he posted a 143-101 record with an impressive 3.11 ERA in the power-packed, DH-rule American League — all before his 30th birthday.  To put it simply: Hall of Fame-bound numbers. On this day in