Puerto Rico’s All-Native Caribbean Series Phase I «Dream Team,» 1949-1960

Puerto Rico (PR), Cuba, Panamá, and Venezuela participated in the first 12 Caribbean Series (CS) events, aka Phase I, 1949-1960. Cuba won seven: 1949, 1952, and 1956-1960; PR won four—1951 and 1953-1955; and Panamá won in 1950. Teams comprised Natives and Imports—mostly Stateside. PR Natives included Dominican-born players, U.S. Virgin Islanders (USVI), Stateside-born players of PR descent, e.g., Jim Rivera, in a six-game, round-robin tournament, except for February 1950, when Panamá topped PR in a Game 7 tie-breaker. The 1951-1953-1955 Santurce Crabbers were the first team to win three CS tournaments.

This article focuses on the author’s 20-player PR All-Native All-Star Team for 1949-1960 CS events, including two Dominicans—catcher Güigüí Lucas, whose real name was Luis St. Claire, and LHP Federico «Chichí» Olivo—plus New York City-born Jim Rivera. It excludes three talented PR players—Carlos Bernier, Nino Escalera, and Félix Mantilla—due to their subpar hitting in CS events. The «Dream Team» comprises 13 position players and seven hurlers. Criteria include a minimum of 22 plate appearances for hitters and 13 innings for pitchers.

«Magnificent Seven» Pitchers

Rubén Gómez

Rubén Gómez, Juan «Terín» Pizarro, José «Pantalones» Santiago, and Roberto Vargas are the starters. The bullpen is Luis «Tite» Arroyo, Julio Navarro, and Chichí Olivo. Gómez’s six wins in CS play are a record shared with Venezuela’s José «Carrao» Bracho (6-4) and Cuba’s Camilo Pascual (6-0) in Phase I, plus Cuban-born Raúl Valdés (6-4) in Phase II (1970-present). Gómez went 6-1 in Phase I and 0-1 in Phase II in the 1971 CS. Pizarro went 2-1 in Phase I plus 2-1 in Phase II. He fanned 17 Carta Vieja Yankees (Panamá) on February 8, 1958, to set the all-time, nine-inning CS SO mark. Pantalones Santiago’s 4-2 ledger in six CS events was highlighted by a 2-0 mark in February 1951, which helped Santurce secure the Crabbers’ first CS crown. He got his nickname, «blanking Cuba,» for Mayagüez in the 1957 CS. Alfonso Valdés, owner of Mayagüez, said: «You must have’ pantalones’ to beat Cuba.» Vargas’s five tournaments yielded a 3-1 record and a 2.03 ERA. He and Pizarro were lefties; Gómez and Santiago were RHP.

Tite Arroyo (3-0, 2.30 ERA) could start or relieve but was a valuable «closer.» He reinforced Caguas (1950 and 1954), SJ (1952), and Santurce (1959) before his stellar 1961 season for the NY Yankees (15-5, 29 SV, 2.19 ERA). Navarro—born on the offshore island of Vieques, PR—pitched 13 CS innings for 1959 Santurce and 1960 Caguas, before three relief appearances for Phase II 1975/1976 Bayamón Cowboys. Olivo pitched for two Caguas teams (1954/1956) before doing so (1971 CS) for the undefeated (6-0) Licey Tigers of the Dominican Republic (DR). Table I pitching statistics are for Phase I (1949-1960)—a 2.94 ERA and 1.23 WHIP.

Table I: 1949-1960 PR Dream Team CS Pitching Stats, Minimum 13 IP

Catchers

Güigüí Lucas, real name Luis St. Claire, was known as «El Americano» for his height (estimated at 6-1). He played winter ball in Venezuela, PR, Cuba, Panamá (1952 CS), the DR, plus summer baseball in Mexico and the DR. Luis Rodríguez Olmo, Caguas’s 1949-50 player-manager, noted: «Güigüí was jovial, but he could catch and had good baseball smarts. I did not hesitate to bring him to Caguas when I returned to the PRWL [after a 1946-1948 suspension for playing in Mexico].» DR historian Mario Emilio Guerrero Krantz recalled that Luis was «the first Dominican player to homer at Tetelo Vargas Stadium, in San Pedro de Macorís, and the first DR athlete to homer off Guayama’s Satchel Paige in a 1940 barnstorming game.» Mickey Owen, Caguas’s 1953-54 player-manager, noted that Güigüí «kept his wallet in his uniform back pocket since his money had been stolen before from clubhouses.» He reinforced champion Santurce (1951 CS) as their starting catcher and was Owen’s 1954 CS back-up with Caguas.

Valmy Thomas’s four CS were 1953, 1955, and 1959 with Santurce, plus 1958-Caguas, when he caught Pizarro’s 17-strikeout gem. He batted .381 (8-for-21) as the 1959 CS All-Star catcher. He got the edge over Güigüí with a .264 BA to the latter’s .182. Both were good defensively, with Lucas eight years older than Thomas, who caught the first SHO in SF Giants history, 8-0 win on April 15, 1958, versus the LA Dodgers, catching Rubén Gómez. Thomas helped Santurce win five PRWL titles between 1950-51 and 1962-63.

Infield (IF)

Orlando Cepeda (1B), Vic Power (2B), Woody Huyke (3B), and Félix Torres (SS) comprise the IF, with José A. Pagán (2B-3B-SS) in reserve. Power—a seven-time AL Gold Glove at 1B (1958-1964)—played at second in the 1959 CS, reinforcing Santurce in Caracas. Power was good at 3B and—early in his career—in the outfield (OF). Huyke, 1959-60 PRWL Rookie of the Year, went 7-for-20 in the 1960 CS, at 3B. He mostly caught after his rookie season and became a valuable PRWL and Pittsburgh Pirates minor-league coach, and convinced Tim Wakefield, a Pirates minor leaguer, to throw the knuckleball. Torres, primarily a 3B in the PRWL, and with the LA Angels, was inserted at SS by Power in the 1960 CS. Félix responded with three HR and five RBI in the six-game event won by Cuba’s Cienfuegos Elephants. Pagán played 3B for skipper Monchile Concepción in the 1959 CS, followed by 2B for the Caguas Criollos in 1960—Panamá, but was better known as the SF Giants SS in their seven-game 1962 World Series versus the NY Yankees. He got this Dream Team nod over Félix Mantilla, a Caguas IF.

The OF

Roberto Clemente, Luis Olmo, and Jim Rivera are a fine starting OF. Clemente starred for 1955 Santurce in Caracas (series-leading eight runs) and 1958 Caguas in San Juan’s Sixto Escobar Stadium—9-for-23 (.391 BA) and All-Star Team CF. Rivera (9-for-20, .450 BA) was MVP, 1954 CS, with champion Caguas (4-2 W-L), in CF. Olmo earned MVP laurels for 5-1 Santurce, 1951 CS, 10 hits-24 AB, .417 BA, 3 HR, 10 RBI. All three could play all OF positions, with Clemente and Olmo featuring basket catches, as did Willie Mays, their 1954-55 Santurce teammate. Clemente (SJ), Olmo (Arecibo, Caguas, SJ, Santurce), and Rivera (Caguas) managed in the PRWL.

Reserve OF includes Luis “Canena” Márquez, José “Ronquito” García, and Ramón Maldonado. Canena’s 1948 season with the Homestead Grays included winning the final Negro World Series against the Birmingham Black Barons, led by Willie Mays. He had excellent 1950s Pacific Coast League seasons and a fine 20-year PRWL career (1945-45 to 1963-64). García—first PRWL player born in the municipality of Adjuntas—became a talented General Manager (GM) with Caguas, SJ, Santurce, and Manatí. He managed the PR Amateur Baseball Team to a Bronze medal at the 1979 Pan American Games and, likewise, at the 1988 Olympics, when baseball was an Exhibition Sport. «As Caguas GM, I set up working agreements with Baltimore, Montreal, and Philadelphia, with Bob Boone, Gary Carter, Dennis Martínez, Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken Jr., Steve Rogers, Mike Schmidt, and others playing for the Criollos,» said Ronquito. «I was 1956-57 PRWL MVP even though Roberto [Clemente] had a higher BA (.396)—we won the playoffs, and I had a good 1957 CS in Havana (8-for-22, .364 BA).»

A final OF reserve is Ramón «Ray» Maldonado, a teenage NY Yankees prospect with Class C Boise, Pioneer League, in 1952 and 1953. His minor-league career ended with the 1956 Binghamton Triplets, the Yankees’ Eastern League Class A team. He went 8-for-23 (.348 BA) with two HR and four RBI for Caguas, 1956 CS, and 0-for-1 with Santurce, 1959 CS. Maldonado and Jim Rivera are this Dream Team’s only lefty hitters. Table II includes the starting line-up and reserves. They posted a collective .286 BA and .425 SLG.

Table II: 1949-1960 PR Dream Team Line-Up/Reserves, Minimum 22 Plate Appearances

Vic Power

Source: The Caribbean Series—Latin America’s Annual Baseball Tournament, 1949-2024, McFarland Publishers, by Tom Van Hyning. 

Post Script: 1953 Caribbean Series, Havana, Cuba, February 20-25, 1953

Rubén Gómez told the author [in 1992] that his February 22, 1953, game-winning hit versus Havana was his most special memory in 28 seasons wearing the Santurce uniform. «Nothing can top that one,» said Gómez. «It was the only time a [professional] team from PR won the CS in Cuba.» More details on 1949-1960 CS events can be found in the author’s 1949-2024 CS book (Amazon) at https://www.amazon.com/Caribbean-Americas-Baseball-Tournament-1949-2024/dp/1476693919.

Thanks to Ronquito García, Rubén Gómez, Luis R. Olmo, and Mickey Owen. Jorge Colón Delgado did the editing and photo placements.

Tom Van Hyning

Tom Van Hyning se crió en Santurce, Puerto Rico. Su familia se mudó a esta preciosa Isla cuando tenía dos años. Tom es el autor de tres libros: “Puerto Rico’s Winter League”, “The Santurce Crabbers” y “The Caribbean Series: Latin America’s Annual Baseball Tournament 1949-2024, que fue publicado en 2025. Laboró como Economista de Turismo en el estado de Mississippi y es miembro de SABR, Capítulo Cool Papa Bell en Mississippi. Sus artículos han sido publicados por SABR en la revista National Pastime y Baseball Research Journal. Igualmente escribe para las páginas web negroleaguerspuertorico.com y safabpp.com.