Osvaldo Virgilwho was the first Dominican baseball player to reach the Major Leaguesdied in his native Montecristi. He was 92 years old.
The League of Baseball Professional Dominican Republic (Lidom) expressed in a message on his social networks his regret for the departure of someone who was also a player on that circuit.
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“With his feat of being the first native of our land to play in the baseball of the Major Leaguespaved the way for many others and brought the quality of our ball everywhere. From here we send our deepest condolences to their families,” Lidom published.
On September 23, 1956, Virgil appeared with the Giants of New York in a match that marked the before and after of the baseball Dominican. Since then, more than 900 Duartian players have passed through the Big Top.
“We have Hall of Famers, Most Valuable Players, Cy Young winners, Rookies of the Year, Managers of the Year, managers and referees, but none of them have what I, number one.“he used to repeat as a joke Virgil.
Without fanfare, without announcements, without great expectations, almost silently. This is how the debut of Osvaldo Virgil in the Major Leagues on Sunday, September 23, 1956 at the Polo Grounds stadium in New York.
“It was very hot and we were playing the last game of a three-game series against Philadelphia. They put me on third base and I went 0 for 4, but I felt like I had hit 4 for 4,” Virgil told ESPN in 2006 when the first 50 years of its debut were completed.
“I had been promoted from the minor leagues two or three days before and I was aware that I would be the first from my small country to reach the best baseball world, but I never suspected that over time that would become routine,” Virgil said.
“I have always felt grateful and happy for having been chosen by God to open the doors of my compatriots in the Major Leaguestaking into account that hundreds of others better than me did not receive that opportunity,” he added.
Playing all positions, except pitcher, Virgil He hit .231 with 14 home runs and 73 RBIs in nine seasons with New York, detroitKansas City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and San Francisco.
In 1958 he was the first black to play with the Tigers of detroitthe last team to break the racial barrier.
In his debut with the Tigers He hit 5-5.
He began a new career as a coach for the Giants in 1969, he was Dick Williams’ long-time assistant third baseman in San Diego and later spent time with Williams in Montreal and Seattle.
But it was not his athleticism or ability as a strategist that made the surname Virgil in part of the history of Dominican Republic. Virgil He was the pioneer of a country that has become the most imposing foreign force in the best league of baseball of the world.
What originally seemed like a fact of no major consequence became the root of an extraordinary phenomenon that positively transformed the national pastime of Americans.
Since the debut of Virgil 68 years ago, another 937 dominicans They have played in the major leagues. The list includes the third baseman Alex Rodriguezoutfielder Moisés Alou and third baseman Manny Machadochildren of parents dominicans who were born in the United States.
Rodrigueza twice Most Valuable Playerwas selected by the Major Leagues as the shortstop of the Leyendas Latinas team of all time, in a special vote that was held in 2005.
A total of 164 Quisqueyans have participated in the current season, in which all teams in the American and National leagues have had at least one in action.
baseball players dominicans They appear every season among the favorites to win the main offensive and pitching awards and on the lists of the highest paid.
Virgil He was 14 years old when his family moved to New York in 1947. He was signed for a $300 bonus by the Giants in 1953 and never earned more than $18,000 in a season during his career.
