All-Time Puerto Rican Fantasy Lineup
Photo courtesy of Jon Dawson.
At this very moment, the Crackerjacks are in sunny Puerto Rico watching me tie the knot.
In honor of my heritage and upcoming wedding in Puerto Rico, I have decided to a fun little piece about the all time greatest fantasy lineup made entirely of Puerto Rican players
Of course this lineup would have dominated any and every league if it could be comprised of only catchers and outfielders and excluding pitching, however that would be too easy.
Taking all positions into account, here’s my all-time lineup.
Catcher: Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez
This was somewhat of a no-brainer, but lets be honest there is no shortage of great competition at catcher with guys like: Sandy Alomar Jr., Benito Santiago and any of the Molina brothers waiting in the wings. But none of them match Ivan Rodriguez, who gets a pretty clear nod here.
First Base: Orlando Cepeda
Many old timers might scoff at this choice and say that Vic Power should have gotten the nod. Frankly I have only ever heard my father and frandfather mention Orlando Cepeda as an All-Time great Puerto Rican, so the Baby Bull gets my vote.
Second Base: Roberto Alomar
It doesn’t get much easier than this, Roberto Alomar may well be on the Mt. Rushmore of all-time second basemen.
Third Base: Mike Lowell
A tough as nails, great hitting third baseman is not only what makes a great fantasy team, but a great real one, as well. Mike Lowell is a fine addition to the hot corner
Shortstop: Sandy Alomar Sr.*
Sandy Alomar Sr. played primarily 2B, and did have his struggles with throwing over his career. Still, his range makes him serviceable at SS for our purposes. Besides we have Jose Vidro as our UTL guy extraordinaire, just in case Sandy begins to struggle.
Left Field: Bernie Williams
One of my favorite players of all-time, despite being a Yankee. When Bernie Williams helped lead the Yankees to a World Series victory and asked his family for their blessing like all Puerto Ricans do “Bendición” I felt a sense of pride in my heritage I had never felt before.
Center Field: Carlos Beltran
Carlos Beltran had ALL of the tools to make a run at a spot for greatest Puerto Rican ball player of all time, held without argument by Roberto Clemente, Unfortunately knee problems have slowed his dynamic game down, but he is without a doubt a top talent for this team’s purposes and is still VERY relevant to our fantasy teams today!
Right Field: Roberto Clemente
There is nothing I can type that would do Roberto Clemente Walker justice as I was not able to see him play live. To see highlights is just not enough, listen to ANY Puerto Rican speak of the great Roberto Clemente and you will see the tears well up in their eyes as they speak of this man.
Designated Hitter: Juan Gonzalez
Juan Gone epitomizes the tongue-and-cheek expression you here today, “don’t mess with Texas…”. The dude could flat out mash, and he made sure everyone knew it! Juan Gonzalez is a perfect DH.
Utility: Jose Vidro
A total clubhouse guy and a guy that you could pretty much play at any position. Oh, and Jose Vidro could hit the ball. That makes him a top quality utility man.
BENCH: Vic Power, Giancarlo Stanton
This bench could have been 20 deep with guys like Ruben Sierra and Carlos Delgado, just to name a few.
But with VIc Power and Giancarlo Stanton looming as pinch hitters, no opposing manager would feel comfortable with a small, late game lead. These these two serious mashers will have to do.
- SP- Juan Pizarro
- SP- Willie Hernandez
- SP- Javier Vazquez
- SP- Jonathan Sanchez
- CL- Roberto Hernandez
Granted, a pitching staff of Juan Pizarro, Willie Hernandez, Javier Vazquez, Jonathan Sanchez, and Roberto Hernandez wouldn’t exactly strike fear in anyone’s hearts, but if you can stream in pitchers to win a fantasy league, I would do that with these guys and bank of my hitting to clean sweep.
Well there you have it, right now I am getting married on a beach in my Father’s home country of Puerto Rico, and I am thankful of all my friends and family who are there in mind body and spirit. And on behalf of my fianceé Lindsay, special Thanks to Clave and Dixon for both being part of our big day!