Venezuela’s Pablo Sandoval has emerged as the standard bearer for an unprecedented collection of Hispanic players in baseball’s World Series with his rare three home run outburst in game one.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was among those taking notice of Sandoval’s achievement, tweeting congratulations during Wednesday night’s game after the San Francisco Giants slugger joined Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson and Albert Pujols as the only players to hit three homers in one contest in Major League Baseball’s Fall Classic.
“He put a tweet on the three home runs,” Sandoval said Thursday, shortly before the Giants were to try extend their series lead over the Detroit Tigers in game two.
“When I was hitting the fourth at-bat, he was like ‘I’m just going to say congratulations to Pablo, but I’m just going to see the four homers right now.’
“So that waas funny.”
Sandoval’s last at-bat in fact yielded a single, giving him a 4-for-4 night at the plate in the Giants’ 8-3 victory.
That helped erase any lingering bad memories from the Giants’ 2010 World Series title run, in which his poor form saw him barely get a chance to play.
He said he’d received 300 text messages, many from friends and family back home in Venezuela — also the home country of Tigers’ slugger Miguel Cabrera.
Cabrera is also expected to make some noise in this best-of-seven series, having become baseball’s first Triple Crown winner in 45 years — leading the American League in home runs (44), batting average (.330) and runs batted in (139).
Sandoval said Cabrera’s exploits, and now his own, had ratcheted up attention in Venezuela.
“It’s a big deal,” he said. “The president sent me a tweet yesterday — I still can’t believe it!”
In all there are nine Venezuelans on the two teams’ World Series rosters. There are also nine from the Dominican Republic and two from Puerto Rico.
Giants manager Bruce Bochy, who has first-hand experience of baseball in Venezuela, said he wasn’t surprised to see so many players from the country making a mark in the major leagues.
“I spent three years playing winter baseball down there, and they love the game,” Bochy said. “They have just a great passion for baseball. As far as I know, I’m pretty sure it is their national sport there.
“There’s some great players that have come out of Venezuela. So I’m not surprised to see that many players here in the World Series that are just great players and have played the game all their life.
“They play the game in their country probably similar to how we played it here 50, 60 years ago,” Bochy added. “They all played as kids growing up.
:You drive around the country and you see them playing sandlot baseball. That’s why I think we’re seeing so many players, not just from Venezuela but from Latin America, because of how much they play as kids.”
Stellar Sandoval latest Venezuelan to make mark
