Red Sox manager pays tribute to late MLB Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda

The baseball world suffered a difficult loss this week as MLB Hall of Famer and former Red Sox designated hitter Orlando Cepeda died at age 86.

A native of Puerto Rico, Cepeda was also a towering presence in Alex Cora’s home territory. Prior to Saturday’s game the Red Sox manager recounted how Cepeda was among several dignitaries to attend a recent event hosted by his girlfriend’s brother this past offseason at the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and High School, and how the late Hall of Famer stole the show.

“They gave Orlando the mic and he kept talking and talking and talking, talking about his experiences playing in winter ball, his experiences playing in the big leagues, his experiences dealing with racism,” Cora said. “A lot of young kids there and I was very happy to be a part of it.”

Nicknamed the “Baby Bull,” Cepeda played 17 seasons in the big leagues and was an 11-time All-Star, winning 1967 National League MVP while helping lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a World Series title. The first baseman batted .297 with 2,351 hits and 379 home runs in his career, and late in his career he spent one season in Boston, becoming one of the Red Sox first ever designated hitters in 1973.

Well past his prime by that point, the 35-year-old still managed to play 142 games while batting .289 with 20 home runs and 86 RBI with the Red Sox.

“Offensively a monster,” Cora said. “To play in that era, coming from Puerto Rico and to survive, quote-unquote, he was very honest. I saw Reggie (Jackson’s) interview a couple of weeks ago and it was very similar when he talked in that event.”

Cora said he was aware Cepeda was in declining health and knew when he took part in the Baseball Academy event that it might be the last time all of Puerto Rico’s living Hall of Famers might get together. He added that he’d been in touch with Cepeda’s son, who’d passed along a message about two weeks ago that Cepeda was aware of the Red Sox recent hot streak and was pulling for them.

“We’re very proud of him obviously, thoughts and prayers to his family and it’s a tough one for the world of baseball,” Cora said.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/I61yLYl