Orlando
Cepeda, "The Baby Bull" (Son of legendary Puerto
Rican star Perucho "The Bull" Cepeda), was only
20-years-old when he arrived to the Major Leagues in 1958.
Cepeda in his first Major League game, this Latino powerhouse
homered to help beat Don Drysdale and the Dodgers. It was a
picture perfect beginning to a spectacular career that includes
nine .300 seasons and eight seasons of 25 or more homers.
As a rookie in 1958, he belted 25 homers, led
the National League with 38 doubles, knocked in 96 runs and
batted .312. Those numbers won Cepeda Rookie of the Year honors
for the San Francisco Giants and his manager for the first two
years, Bill Rigney called him "The best young right-handed
power hitter I've ever seen."
Despite being a fan favorite in San Francisco
which made him as popular as Willie Mays, Cepeda's conflicts
with management bounced him to the St. Louis Cardinals in
mid-1966. First baseman Orlando Cepeda was now
"Cha-Cha" in St. Louis because of his constant love
& desire to bring a stereo to the club house to share his
beloved salsa music. Respecting Cepeda's taste turned him into
the 1967 MVP by hitting .325 and driving in 111 RBIs. After
leading the Cardinals to a pennant in 1967, they went on to
become world champions by beating the Boston RedSox in a 7-game
series.
Cepeda appeared in three world series, was a
seven-time All-Star (1959-64, 67) and was the National League
MVP in 1967 with the St. Louis Cardinals. Cepeda was also known
to get that clutch hit or home run to knock in winning runs late
in the game. He homered against 187 different pitchers, with
Milwaukee Braves teammates Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette his
favorite targets (10 homers apiece). No wonder Burdette called
Cepeda "the toughest hitter I ever faced."
After his retirement in 1975, Cepeda was
recognized nationally for his humanitarian efforts as an
ambassador for baseball. The Ponce, Puerto Rican native served
as honorary spokesman for the Crohn's and Colitis foundation of
America, and participates in "Athletes against Aids."
Cepeda has helped raise more than $10,000 for baseball equipment
for the Roberto Clemente Latin American Athletic Club's Baseball
League in the mission district. But those good deeds were
over-shadowed when Cepeda was arrested at an airport on charges
of trying to pick up 160 pounds of marijuana. He was sentenced
to 5 years but only did 10 months at a state prison. This
obviously worked against him when bids for the Hall of Fame came
up.
In 1993, Cepeda was inducted into the Puerto
Rico Sports Hall of Fame, but just missed being voted into the
National Baseball Hall of Fame by a mere seven votes. The fifth
narrowest margin a player ever missed being inducted in baseball
history.
Of the 18 retired players who have hit more
than 300 homers and batted over .295 for their career, only
Cepeda wasn't in the Hall of Fame until March of 1999, when
Cepeda and three others were elected to the Hall of Fame by the
Veterans Committee.
Orlando Cepeda joins the late Roberto
Clemente as the only Puerto Ricans in the Hall of Fame.
During
the press conference/celebration in San Francisco, Cepeda, now
62, was handed roses, a glass of champagne and a jersey with
"Hall of Fame" written on it. The room was filled with
balloons and a Latin song blasting through the speakers entitled
"Viva Cepeda."
"It's hard to explain the feeling when
they told me I was selected to the Hall of Fame," Cepeda
said at 3com park in San Francisco. "I've been ready for
this for 17 years. I've been through good things, bad things,
but I was blessed to be born with the talent to play
baseball." said Cepeda. The newly elected Hall of Famer
also got another reward-the Giants will retire his No. 30
uniform, making him only the ninth player in franchise history
to be honored.
1958 SF Giants Starting Lineup
(From left to right: Jim Davenport, Danny O'Connell, Willie
Mays, Willie Kirkland, Orlando Cepeda, Hank Sauer, Daryl
Spenser, Valmy Thomas, Ruben Gomez).
Orlando Cepeda's
Career Statistics
| Year |
Team |
Pos. |
AB |
Hits |
HR |
RBI |
B.
Avg. |
SLG |
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1972
1973
1974
|
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
Oakland Athletics
Boston Red Sox
Kansas City Royals
TOTALS
|
1B
1B
OF
1B
1B
1B
1B
1B
OF
1B
1B
1B
1B
1B
1B
1B
1B
DH
DH
|
603
605
569
585
625
579
529
34
49
452
563
600
573
567
250
84
3
550
107
7927
|
188
192
169
182
191
183
161
6
14
137
183
149
147
173
69
25
0
51
3
2351
|
25
27
24
46
35
34
31
1
3
17
25
16
22
34
14
4
0
20
1
379
|
96
105
96
142
114
97
97
5
15
58
111
73
88
111
44
9
0
86
18
1365
|
.312
.317
.297
.311
.306
.316
.304
.176
.286
.303
.325
.248
.257
.305
.276
.298
.000
.289
.215
297
|
.512
.522
.497
.609
.518
.563
.539
.294
.510
.469
.524
.378
.428
.543
.492
.476
.000
.444
.290
.499
|
