Juan Izaguirre
| Juan Izaguirre | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Catcher / infielder | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born: 1929 Havana, Cuba | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Died: April 11, 2017 (aged 87–88) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Juan Izaguirre (1929 – April 11, 2017) was a Cuban baseball player. He is best known for playing with the Cuba national baseball team at the 1950 Amateur World Series in Caracas, where he was named the tournament's most valuable player.[1]
Izaguirre played in the Cuban Amateur League from 1947 to 1951 with the Corredores de Aduana ("Customs") club. He was one of the first non-white players to compete the league (though René Solís is considered the first).[2] With the Cuba national baseball team, Izaguirre competed at the 1950 Amateur World Series, where he lead the tournament in runs scored (16), home runs (4) and runs batted in (21).[3] He also played at the 1951 Pan American Games, where he lead the tournament in hits (13).[4]
He went professional with the Havana Cubans of the Florida International League in 1951, batting .241 over 82 games. The next year, he played in the Gulf Coast League, and wnet on to play three seasons with the Crowley Millers in the Evangeline League (1953–1955). In 1956 and 1957, he played in the Southwestern League.[5] Izaguirre also played with Tigres de Marianao in the Cuban Winter League, appearing with them at the 1958 Caribbean Series, which Marianao won.[6][7]
Izaguirre later served as a coach for Industriales in the Cuban National Series, mentoring pitchers like René Arocha and Lázaro Valle.[8][9] In his old age, he appeared at various old timers exhibition events in Miami.[10][11][12]
References
[edit]- ^ Bjarkman, Peter (2007). A History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006. McFarland. p. 199. ISBN 978-0786428298.
- ^ "Justa de béisbol hebrea amateur en Cuba y grandes peloteros judíos en la MLB". Deportes Cine y Otros. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "XI Serie Mundial de Béisbol Amateur, Managua, Nicaragua (1950)". Deportes Cine y Otros. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "Torneo de béisbol de los I Juegos Panamericanos (1951)". Deportes Cine y Otros. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "Juan Izaguirre". Baseball Reference (minors).
- ^ "Cuba y sus equipos campeones en la Serie del Caribe". Mi Columna Deportiva.
- ^ "Forgotten Heroes: Orestes "Minnie" Minoso" (PDF). Center for Negro League Baseball Research. 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "René Arocha y su hermosa historia entrenando niños". Play Off Magazine. 11 March 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "Lázaro Valle: "respeto y admiro a quien haya decidido triunfar en el béisbol rentado"". Play Off Magazine. 26 March 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "Homenaje para Mike Cuéllar y Pedro Luis Rodríguez". El Nuevo Herald. 30 July 2011. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "El Juego de las Estrellas Cubanas reunió a grandes figuras del béisbol". No. 1 December 2016. CiberCuba. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ "El Duque y Arrojo vuelven al box". El Nuevo Herald. 4 September 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)
- 1929 births
- 2017 deaths
- Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States
- Marianao players
- Havana Cubans players
- Big Spring Broncs players
- Texas City Texans players
- Crowley Millers players
- Midland Indians players
- Pampa Oilers players
- Medalists at the 1951 Pan American Games
- Baseball players at the 1951 Pan American Games