Roberto Clemente Story
Tampa Bay Rays
I've written and posted over 10,000 succinct and engaging social media captions on the channels of MLB teams. In September of 2022, I was asked to expand the narrative by researching and writing about the Tampa Bay Rays making MLB history on Roberto Clemente Day.
On September 15th, the Tampa Bay Rays joined the rest of MLB and the Hispanic community in celebrating the start of Hispanic Heritage month with the 21st annual Roberto Clemente Day. The day was highlighted with tribute videos, food donations, and players wearing Clemente’s jersey number, 21. (More on that last part in a bit.) If you already know Clemente’s backstory, you likely have a good grasp on why baseball starts Hispanic Heritage Month the way it does. On the other hand, you may be only vaguely aware of the name Roberto Clemente or are hearing his name for the first time, in which case, the next couple of paragraphs are for you.
15 All-Star appearances, 12 Gold Glove awards, 4 National League batting titles, 2 World Series wins, a World Series Most Valuable Player award, a National League Most Valuable Player award: the list of Roberto Clemente’s baseball achievements reads like a Hall of Fame resume. Spoiler alert: it was. In 1973, he became the first Latin-American player to be enshrined in Cooperstown. Now, the Baseball Hall of Fame is a pretty exclusive club (only 340 players of the 20,000-plus to have played in the Majors have joined), but its exclusivity pales in comparison to another club Clemente is in. That would be the “Player whose name is attached to MLB’s most prestigious award” club, and that club has only 1 member.​​​​​​​​​​
​The Roberto Clemente Award is bestowed annually to the player who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field. Also, you’ll remember the first day of Hispanic Heritage month is called Roberto Clemente Day. To receive accolades like these, a person needs to have more than the resume of a Hall of Fame athlete. They need to have one for being a Hall of Fame person as well, and Clemente had that covered, too. He received a Presidential Medal of Freedom, has more statue and monument dedications in the world than any other athlete, impacted the lives of countless children through clinics and his “Sports City,” and tragically lost his life in a plane crash in 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.
Flash forward to the Tampa Bay Rays, and you’ll see Hispanic players throughout the lineup. That sounds like a figure of speech, but it is also true for the Rays in a very literal sense. On this Roberto Clemente Day, Tampa Bay featured the first fully Latino lineup in the history of MLB. The fact that it happened on Roberto Clemente Day with each member of the lineup wearing Clemente’s number 21 was a happy coincidence. Rays Manager Kevin Cash said after the game that, “It just worked out that they were all of the Latin background. That’s pretty cool, though. I’m shocked that that has never been done in baseball.”
In another coincidence, Clemente was part of the first lineup ever to feature exclusively black and Latino players in 1971, and the significance was not lost on several of the players that were part of this new accomplishment 51 years later. The day’s leadoff hitter Yandy Díaz said via team interpreter Manny Navarro, “We’re very happy, especially on a day like (Thursday). I think the Latinos are really putting a stamp on the game of baseball.” Another member of the lineup Manuel Margot agreed via Navarro saying, “I think every Latin player should be very proud of what (Clemente) did — not only on the field but off the field. He was a role model to everyone, and he was just a very good person.” Harold Ramírez may have summed up the feelings of the Rays Latin-American players best saying, “It’s a very important day for us, because he’s special for every Latin guy. He’s like Jackie Robinson for us.”
There’s an adage in baseball that every game has the potential to show you something you have never seen before. On a Thursday in Toronto, the Tampa Bay Rays did just that.