Latino players have had a great impact on baseball. The first Latino player in the Major Leagues was Luis Castro, who played for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1902. Castro was born in Medellín, Colombia.

Since then, many Latino players have played Major League Baseball. There are currently approximately 150 Latino players in the Major Leagues. And many of them are stars and possibly future Hall of Famers.

Albert Pujols, for example, was born in the Dominican Republic. Adrian Gonzales of the San Diego Padres is from Mexico. Iván Rodríguez and Jorge Posada were born in Puerto Rico. David Ortiz and Hanley Ramirez are also from the Dominican Republic. Just to name a few.

There are six Latino-born former Major League Baseball players who have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Puerto Rican Roberto Clemente was the first Latino elected to the Hall of Fame in 1973. Roberto was a four-time batting champion and a 12-time Golden Glove winner. After dying in a plane crash, Clemente was unanimously elected to the Hall of Fame. Fame. The five-year waiting period that a player has to wait to enter the Hall was canceled for Roberto. Since this rule was added, he is the only player not to apply it.

Roberto Clemente was also the first Latino player to win a World Series as a starter with the Pirates in 1960. He is also the first Latino to win a League Most Valuable Player Award that he won in 1966, and to win a Series MVP. World in 1971.

Dominican pitcher Juan Marichal was the second Latino to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1983. Juan was an eleven-time All Star and won the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award in 1965. His lifetime earned run average was of 2.89. He won 243 games and struck out 2,303.

Cuban-born Tony Pérez was admitted in 2000. He was best known for his years with Cincinnati’s Big Red Machine. Perez hit. 279 with 379 home runs and 1,652 RBIs.

Rod Carew is from Panama and was elected in 1991. Rod won seven batting titles, finished with one run, 328 average and 3,053 hits. In 1972, Carew did something that no player had done before and hasn’t done since. He won the batting title without hitting a single home run. He was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1967 and the MVP in 1977.

Born in Puerto Rico, Orlando Cepeda was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999. Cepeda was the National League Rookie of the Year in 1958 and won the Most Valuable Player Award in 1967. He has a career batting average of 297, 379. home runs and 1,365 RBIs.

Luis Aparicio was born in Venezuela and was elected to the Hall in 1984. Luis was the 1956 American League Rookie of the Year and won nine Gold Gloves. He finished with 2,677 hits and led the American League in stolen bases nine consecutive seasons.

There are three other Latino players in the Hall of Fame. Martín DiHigo, Cristóbal Torriente and José Méndez, all from Cuba, were stars of the Negro league but never played in the Major Leagues.

With all the great Latino players in the game today, it won’t be long before there are more than seven established players in Cooperstown.