Minnie Minoso was a Cuban Negro league and Major League Baseball (MLB) player. He began his baseball career in 1946 and became an All-Star third baseman with the New York Cubans and was signed by the Cleveland Indians after the 1948 season as baseball's color line slowly fell. Miñoso went on to become an All-Star left fielder with the Indians and Chicago White Sox.
Background
Orestes Saturnino Arrieta Armas was born in the town of El Perico, part of Cuba's Camagüey Province, on November 29,1925. His father, Carlos Arrieta, was a worker in a sugarcane plantation. His mother, Cecilia Armas, had been married before and had four older children of her own. Although Minoso was born to a poor family who had to work extremely hard to make ends meet and who lacked basic amenities, he has acknowledged a very happy childhood. His two older brothers were accomplished baseball players and his childhood activities were defined by the sport.
Education
Minoso was active in baseball since childhood and organized baseball teams with the local boys of La Lonja, the farm where he had been born. Because his mother and his father separated when he was eight, Minoso moved to Havana with his mother. After she died when he was 10, he returned to La Lonja and continued playing baseball with the local teams organized by the farm workers. By the age of 14, Minoso was shuttling between the houses of friends and relatives. Because baseball was the only consistent element in his life, he decided to become a professional baseball player. In order to obtain Iris father's permission to leave the farm and to return to Havana, Minoso asked a friend to write a letter inviting him to join a semi-professional baseball team in the capital. Impressed by the fake invitation, the family not only granted him permission but also gave him money to go.
Career
On his arrival in Havana in 1941, Minoso went to live with his older sisters and took a job in a cigar factory so he could play with their team. At the time, most big businesses on the island had their own baseball teams. Since professional clubs in Havana were restricted to white Cubans, Minoso had no choice but to look for jobs playing semi-professionally with teams established and sponsored by these businesses. He played semi-professionally with the Partagás Cigar Factory team and later moved to play third base with the Ambrosia Candy Factory team. Although only 16 years old, Minoso was a very strong player and accumulated impressive statistics.
During the 1943 and 1944 baseball seasons Minoso moved out of Havana and joined the Cuban Miners, based in the Oriente Province. Although the Miners were semi-professional, they were considered one of the best teams in Cuba. Minoso excelled on the team and his skills landed him a place on the Marianao Tigers, a professional team, in 1944. During his first year with the Tigers he hit a .301 average and was selected Rookie of the Year.
His performance with this club attracted the attention of coach Jose Fernández, who recommended Minoso to Alex Pompez, owner of the New York Cubans, a Negro League team. At the time, teams from the Negro League recruited heavily in Cuba. Minoso, whose lifelong dream had been to play professional baseball in the United States, signed a contract to play with the Cubans for $150.00 per month. This figure was eventually raised to $300.00.
Minoso reported for training with the New York Cubans in New Orleans during the spring of 1945. Although he noticed the racial segregation of the South he was not strongly affected by it. After finishing training, he moved to New York, where he was well received by his fellow team members and enjoyed the city's atmosphere. He quickly developed a taste for fancy clothes and expensive cars. Minoso started to play with the Cubans during the 1945 season and stayed with the team until 1948. Although he was a well-rounded player, he didn't accumulate impressive statistics during his years with the Cubans. He has said, however, that the Cubans gave him an excellent opportunity to play with some of the best talent available in the Negro League and to learn the American playing style.
With the signing of Jackie Robinson to play with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, doors were opened for other talented black and Latino players who wanted to play professionally in the United States. After Minoso played in the Negro League's 1948 All-Star Game, he was recruited to play professionally with the Cleveland Indians. As is often the custom with new talent, the Indians sent him to play with their Class-A team located in Dayton, Ohio, to refine his playing skills. Meanwhile, he continued to play with the Marianao Tigers in Cuba during the winter months. He did well during his first season in Dayton and the following year was allowed to play seven games with the Indians before being traded to the San Diego Padres, then a member of the Pacific Coast League. Although disappointed with the trade, which had been motivated by poor performance, Minoso continued to play with San Diego during both the 1949 and 1950 seasons, accumulating good statistics and scores.
There is no doubt that the most important moment in Minoso's career came when he signed with the Chicago White Sox in 1951. This was his best opportunity to shine as a baseball player in the major leagues. If the White Sox had any doubts about signing Minoso, their doubts were dissipated when he batted a home run during the first inning of his first game with the team. During his first season at Comiskey Park, he won 14 straight games and was named American League Rookie of the Year. Minoso, known as the Cuban Comet, scored an impressive array of statistics, leading the league with 31 stolen bases. He had four seasons where he scored more than 20 home runs, led the league in triples three times, and participated in eight All-Star Games. During his first years in the major leagues, he was often the object of racist jokes and insults by fellow players and fans of the sport. A player with an extremely positive mindset, Minoso ignored racism to concentrate on the game.
Minnie Minoso played with the White Sox from 1951 to 1957. In 1957 he was traded back to the Cleveland Indians but returned to the White Sox in 1959. His participation on the team was instrumental in the Sox's winning their first championship in 40 years during the 1959 season.
During the 1960s Minoso played with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Senators before being released from the majors in 1964 by the White Sox. In the mid-1960s and 1970s Minoso continued Iris baseball career in Mexico, where he coached and played with several teams in the Mexican leagues. He coached for the Sox during the 1970s and was allowed to play with the team in both 1976 and 1980 so he could claim to be the longest-playing sportsman in the major leagues.