Héctor Espino González, Baseball Superstar and Icon from Mexico (Part I)

From 1960-to-1984, Héctor Espino was a hitting machine in Mexico, and briefly (1964) with the Jacksonville Suns. Those 25 “summer seasons” are highlighted in Part I. Further comparisons are made between Espino’s power-hitting, and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Joshua (Josh) Gibson, Babe Ruth, and Sadaharu Oh. Part I focuses on Espino’s Mexican League career but includes his Mexican Pacific League (winter ball) stats since Aaron, Bonds, and Gibson also played winter ball. Part II will emphasize Espino’s 24 winter seasons with Hermosillo Orange Growers and his seven Caribbean Series events. (Espino briefly played winter ball with the Yaquis de Obregón.)

On February 4, 2020, the author was at Hiram Bithorn Stadium, covering the 2020 Caribbean Series for beisbol101.com. He conversed with Mexico’s Sonora Region sportswriters Jesús Alberto Rubio (Al Bate) and Ignacio Romero Navarrete (Mexico Radio). They mentioned Espino’s youth, when he worked with his dad, unloading dump trucks, the main reason he “had such strong forearms.” Juan Antonio Jasso Rodríguez, a fan from Mexico, recalled a late-night arrival by Espino in Mexicali, for a series. He was hungry, but only served four “albondigas” (small meatballs). Espino responded with: “They even serve [me] four balls in a restaurant!”

Eric Nusbaum, in his excellent 2013 SBNATION blog “The Unknown Slugger,” mentioned a joke told by Mexican baseball fans on Espino’s arrival at the pearly gates of heaven with much less fanfare. St. Peter did not recognize Espino and asked God what he (St. Peter) should do? “Don’t be a coward,” God said. “Pitch to him.”

Espino was born in the municipality of Chihuahua, Mexico, on June 6, 1939. (The city was founded October 12, 1709, and is the state capital of the Mexican state of Chihuahua.) His nicknames were “El Niño,” “The Mexican Babe Ruth,” “El Supermán de Chihuahua,” among others. He was 5’10” with a playing weight of 192 pounds.

Since the summer Mexican League and Espino’s first league—Mexican Center League—are or were minor-league status, Espino hit the MOST CAREER home runs in minor-league history. Table I depicts the Top 10 HR hitters in minor-league history, comprising U.S., Canada, and Mexican League aka Liga Mexicana de Béisbol. https://www.milb.com/news/gcs-377 Espino had the fifth-best at-bats per home run (AB/HR) ratio—18.1. Joe Hauser (16.1), Andrés Mora (17.3), Jack Pierce (17.5), and Jack Graham (17.6) ranked one-through-four in this category. Hauser cracked 63 HR for 1930 Baltimore, International League; and 69 more, for Minneapolis, American Association, in 1933. Pierce—a native of Laurel, Mississippi—hit 294 of his 395 minor-league HR in the Mexican League, with the other 101 in the U.S. minors.

Table I: Top 10 Career Home Run  Hitters, Minor-Leagues, plus AB/HR

Player	Seasons	AB	HR	AB/HR
Héctor Espino	25	8,605	484	17.8
Nelson Barrera#	26	9,850	455	21.6
Andrés Mora	26	7,667	443	17.3
Alejandro Ortiz#	25	8,899	434	20.5
Buzz Arlett	19	8,001	432	18.5
Nick Cullop	23	8,571	417	20.6
Joe Hauser	16	6,426	399	16.1
Bobby Prescott	19	7,475	397	18.8
Jack Pierce	19	6,926	395	17.5
Jack Graham	15	6,746	384	17.6

#Barrera and Ortiz only played in the Mexican League. Sources: baseballreference.com; https://bolavip.com/otros/Los-25-bateadores-con-mas-jonrones-en-la-historia-de-la-Liga-Mexicana-de-Beisbol-LMB-20200814-0118.html; Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, Third Edition, Edited by Lloyd Johnson and Miles Wolff and Published by Baseball America, 2007.

Most (481) of Espino’s HR were hit in Mexico, with 453 in the Mexican League, per Table II, and 28 in the Mexican Center League, per Table III. All of Nelson Barreras’s 455 HR were hit in the Mexican League. Hence, he eclipsed Espino by two HR in this loop. Andrés Mora is the only player in Table II to have played in the majors, for Baltimore (1976-78) and Cleveland (1980). Mora hit 27 big-league HR, plus 24 more in the U.S. minors. His 17.2 AB/HR ratio in the Mexican League outpaced Roberto Saucedo (17.3) and Espino (18.1).

Table II: Top 10 Career Home Run  Hitters, Mexican League, plus AB/HR

Player	Seasons	AB	HR	AB/HR
Nelson Barrera	26	9,850	455	21.6
Héctor Espino#	23	8,205	453	18.1
Alejandro Ortiz	25	8,899	434	20.5
Andrés Mora	22	7,198	419	17.2
Eduardo Jiménez	21	5,840	351	16.6
Matías Carrillo	22	7,522	330	22.8
Roberto Saucedo	19	5,527	319	17.3
Ronnie Camacho	23	7,019	317	22.1
Raymundo Torres	20	6,350	311	20.4
Enrique Aguilar	24	7,475	305	18.8

#Espino’s first two seasons (1960 and 1961) were in the Mexican Center League, per Table III.

Source: https://bolavip.com/otros/Los-25-bateadores-con-mas-jonrones-en-la-historia-de-la-Liga-Mexicana-de-Beisbol-LMB-20200814-0118.html

Table III: Héctor Espino Stats, 1960-61 San Luis Potosí Tuneros, Mexican Center League #

Year	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	AB/HR
1960	63	229	58	83	20	2	20	60	.362	.458	.729	1.187	11.5
1961	17	71	17	33	4	2	8	30	.465	.531	.915	1.446	8.9
Total	80	300	75	116	24	4	28	90	.387	.477	.773	1.250	10.7

#Class D: 1960; Class C: 1961. Source: https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/p-d2ccf176

Espino’s 32 Games for 1964 Jacksonville Suns 

Mention should be made of Espino’s partial 1964 season with Jacksonville Suns, a St. Louis

Cardinals Triple A-team. Rubén Gómez, an RHP, was Espino’s Jacksonville teammate. “Héctor was a pure hitter—very professional,” said Gómez. “He preferred to play in Mexico, where he was a national hero. Without a doubt, he could have hit big-league pitching.” Arturo López, with the 1964 Richmond Vees, recalled Espino as a “power hitter who had one good game against us.” López noted, “players didn’t socialize on the field back then—we were doing our jobs.”

Joe Morgan (not the Hall of Fame second baseman), a Jacksonville teammate, said: “Naturally, they [Jacksonville fans] were disappointed he [Espino] didn’t hit more HR. Besides, the OF fence in Jacksonville was 25 feet high and it was the most difficult park in the league for power hitters.” Coincidentally, the author saw Rubén Gómez and this (white) Joe Morgan, in person, play for 1964-65 Santurce Crabbers, Puerto Rico Winter League champs, managed by Preston Gómez, skipper, 1964 Richmond Vees. (This Joe Morgan later managed the Boston Red Sox).

Eric Nusbaum called Espino “the greatest hitter never to play in the majors” in his essay at https://www.sbnation.com/longform/2013/5/21/4348250/hector-espino-mexico-baseball-home-run-king-profile Nusbaum proved that Espino was not a “victim of racism while playing for Jacksonville.” Espino’s wife (Carmen) told Nusbaum: “Bobby Maduro [Jacksonville team owner] was very helpful, very nice. He put us up in an apartment,” she recalled. Carmen added: “The people of Jacksonville [Florida] were very good to us. We didn’t have any problems there.”

Thus, racism was NOT an issue for Espino in Jacksonville. He kept to himself a lot. The St. Louis Cardinals “liked what they saw,” per Nusbaum, and “agreed to buy Espino’s contract in 1965 for $30,000—a lot of money then.” Espino was not pleased with Anuar Canavati, president, Sultanes de Monterrey. Espino “wanted a fair share of the sale price.” Canavati was unwilling to meet Espino’s request. Thus, Espino did not report to spring training with the 1965 Cardinals.

Table IV: Héctor Espino Hitting Stats, 1964 Jacksonville Suns#, Triple-A International League

Year	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	AB/HR
1964	32	100	15	30	6	0	3	15	.300	.388	.450	.838	33.3

#Triple-A farm team of St. Louis Cardinals, 1964 NL and World Series Champions.

Source: https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/p-d2ccf176

Espino’s 23 Seasons in the Mexican League, 1962-to-1984

The 1962 Monterrey Sultanes were managed by Cuban Clemente “Sungo” Carrera, who the author saw, in uniform, 50 years ago (April 1971), during a Guaynabo, Puerto Rico high school game, between American Military Academy, managed by Carrera, and visiting Robinson School, the author’s team. (Carrera played for Cuban Stars and New York Cubans, 1937-1941, and has MLB status.) Espino helped Monterrey (77-53) win the 1962 pennant by eight games over Veracruz. His 106 runs led the league; his 105 RBI tied teammate Alonzo Perry for first. Teammate Mike Cuellar led the loop with 124 strikeouts. “Espino was two years younger than me, but you could tell he was special,” recalled Cuellar. “Once you got to know him, he was a great guy.”  By 1964, Espino moved to 1B, from the OF. He won his first Mexican League batting crown (.371) and HR title (46), despite missing the final weeks, to play for Jacksonville. From 1966-68, he won three straight batting titles. Elrod Hendricks caught for Jalisco, 1964-67. He opined that “Espino was the league’s best hitter.” Hendricks was proud of his 41 league-leading HR in 1967, seven more than Espino’s 34. “Héctor could have played for any big-league club and done well,” asserted Hendricks.

Espino was a 5x batting champ, 4x HR king, and 2x RBI leader in the Mexican League. With Tampico, 1975, he had 11 straight hits. Three of 10 career walks (408 of 1,330) were intentional. In 1969, he walked 125 times, 53 intentional. Additional Espino highlights include facts from https://milb.bamcontent.com/documents/9/3/4/270469934/HISTORIA_DE_LA_LIGA_MEXICANA.pdf

• April 18, 1962—first HR in Mexican League off Román Ramos, Poza Rica (4^th inning)
• March 24, 1964—Three HR versus Mexico City, one to each field, Parque Seguro Social
• April 27, 1969—Connects 1,000^th league hit off Gregorio Polo; receives four intentional walks against Mexico City Tigers
• May 19, 1969—Hits two HR against Águila; for 7^th and 8^th HR in his last six games
• June 1, 1984—Connects 453^rd and final HR, off David Franco, Águila, in Monterrey.

Other Espino achievements are at:   https://lmb.fandom.com/es/wiki/H%C3%A9ctor_Espino

Table V: Héctor Espino Stats, 1962-1984, Multiple Teams, Double-A/Triple-A Mexican League!

Year	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	AB/HR
1962	126	444	106	159	20	12	23	105	.358	.457	.613	1.070	19.3
1963	99	393	79	136	20	6	24	80	.346	.405	.611	1.016	16.4
1964	126	448	118	166	22	3	46	117	.371	.477	.741	1.218	9.7
1965	67	215	38	72	10	4	17	48	.335	.458	.656	1.114	12.6
1966	120	393	84	145	16	4	31	75	.369	.491	.667	1.158	12.7
1967	123	419	106	159	29	3	34	89	.379	.495	.706	1.201	12.3
1968	109	351	59	128	18	1	27	79	.365	.482	.652	1.134	13.0
1969	147	461	101	140	22	2	37	97	.304	.456	.601	1.057	12.5
1970	136	432	86	138	17	2	18	47	.319	.431	.493	.924	24.0
1971	104	341	65	106	11	2	20	58	.311	.418	.531	.949	17.1
1972	129	433	101	154	23	1	37	101	.356	.479	.670	1.149	11.7
1973	116	422	82	159	20	2	22	107	.377	.454	.590	1.044	19.2
1974	109	374	66	117	20	0	17	61	.313	.428	.503	.931	22.0
1975	119	428	73	153	18	0	17	75	.357	.438	.519	.957	25.2
1976	96	337	49	100	7	0	20	65	.297	.385	.496	.881	16.9
1977	97	332	57	112	14	1	14	51	.337	.419	.512	.931	23.7
1978	119	441	64	141	20	0	12	82	.320	.383	.447	.830	36.8
1979	94	355	48	120	17	0	15	70	.338	.388	.513	.901	23.7
1980	97	340	50	120	18	1	11	51	.353	.451	.509	.960	30.9
1981	95	319	40	93	13	0	4	46	.292	.371	.370	.741	77.8
1982	70	233	16	63	11	1	4	41	.270	.324	.378	.702	58.3
1983	70	244	14	60	7	0	2	20	.246	.325	.299	.624	122.0
1984	20	50	3	11	0	0	1	8	.220	.293	.280	.573	50.0
Total	2,388	8,205	1,505	2,752	373	45	453	1,573	.335	.434	.557	.991	18.1

!Double-A, 1955-1966; and, Triple-A, 1967-present. Source: Enciclopedia del Béisbol Mexicano; Editor Pedro Treto Cisneros (Undécima Edición, 2011). 

Comparisons: Espino versus other Icons (Aaron, Bonds, Gibson, Oh and Ruth)

Table VI: Hank Aaron Stats, Minors (1952/1953), PRWL (1953-54), MLB (1954-1976)

League	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
NAL#	26	112	NA	41	NA	NA	5	33	.366	NA	22.4
Minors	224	919	115	324	55	18	31	125	.353	.553	29.6
PRWL!	NA	276	37	89	16	0	9	42	.322	.478	30.7
NL/AL	3,298	12,364	2,174	3,771	624	98	755	2,297	.305	.555	16.4
Total	3,548	13,671	2,326	4,225	695	116	800	2,497	.309	.552	17.1

#1952 Negro American League. This is not MLB status in 2021, but Aaron’s stats will count.

!1953-54 Caguas Criollos, Puerto Rico Winter League.

Sources: https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/p-d2ccf176; Howe Sports Data;  https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/aaronha01.shtml   https://beisbol101.com/hank-aaron-3/

Table VII: Barry Bonds Stats, Minors (1985/1986), VZA (1985-86), MLB (1986-2007)

League	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
Minors	115	402	79	122	23	6	20	74	.303	.540	20.1
VZA#	44	160	32	39	8	1	7	23	.244	.438	22.9
NL	2,986	9,847	2,227	2,935	601	77	762	1,996	.298	.607	12.9
Total	3,145	10,409	2,338	3,096	632	84	789	2,093	.297	.602	13.2

#Venezuelan Winter League: 1985-86 Magallanes Navigators.

Sources: https://www.pelotabinaria.com.ve/beisbol/mostrar.php?ID=bondbar001;  https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bondsba01.shtml

Table VIII: Héctor Espino Stats, Minors (1960-1984) and Mexican Pacific League (1960-1984)

League	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
Center	80	300	75	116	24	4	28	90	.362	.729	11.5
IL#	32	100	15	30	6	0	3	15	.300	.450	33.3
LMB^	2,388	8,205	1,505	2,752	373	45	453	1,573	.335	.557	18.1
LMP&	1,552	5,544	947	1,824	260	12	299	1,029	.329	.542	18.5
Total	4,052	14,149	2,542	4,722	663	65	783	2,707	.334	.552	18.1

#1964 Jacksonville Suns, International League;  ^ Liga Mexicana de Béisbol (Mexican League), the Summer League;  &Liga Mexicana del Pacífico (Mexican Pacific League)—Winter League.

Sources: https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/p-d2ccf176; Enciclopedia del Béisbol Mexicano; Editor Pedro Treto Cisneros (Undécima Edición, 2011); https://beisboldelosbarrios.com/index.php/hector-espino-gonzalez/

Table IX: Joshua Gibson Stats, MLB Status  (1930-40, 1942-46), Dominican Republic (1937), Cuba (1938-39), Mexico (1940/1941), PRWL (1939-40, 1941-42, 1945-46), Venezuela (1940)

League	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
MLB#	791	2,850	745	1,032	168	72	195	874	.362	.677	14.6
DOM##	NA	53	NA	24	4	5	2	NA	.453	.830	10.6
CUBA!	NA	163	50	58	7	3	11	39	.356	.638	14.8
VZA>	13	37	8	13	3	0	4	10	.351	.757	9.3
PRWL!!	NA	389	87	138	31	10	19	85	.355	.632	20.5
MX###	116	450	132	177	38	7	44	162	.393	.802	10.2
Total	920	3,942	1,022	1,442	251	97	275	1,170	.366	.688	14.3

#Negro Leagues, 1920-to-1948, achieved MLB status on December 16, 2020, per Rob Manfred.

##1937 Dominican Republic Summer League for Ciudad Trujillo Dragons; !1938-39 Cuban Winter League for Santa Clara Scorpions; >1940 Centauros club, Venezuela; !!1939-40, 1941-42, 1945-46 Santurce Crabbers; ###1940/1941 Veracruz Azules, Independent Mexican League.

Sources: http://beisbolinmortal.blogspot.com/2020/07/joshua-gibson-el-babe-ruth-de-las-ligas.html; Enciclopedia del Béisbol Mexicano; Editor Pedro Treto Cisneros (Undécima Edición, 2011); Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History, 1878-1961, by Jorge S. Figueredo, McFarland (2003); Black Baseball Out of Season, by William F. McNeil, McFarland (2007); https://beisbol101.com/joshua-gibson/ https://www.seamheads.com/NegroLgs/player.php?playerID=gibso01jos

Table X: Babe Ruth Stats, Minors (1914), MLB (1914-1935)

League	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
Minors	46	121	22	28	2	10	1	NA	.231	.438	121
AL/NL	2,503	8,399	2,174	2,873	506	136	714	2,214	.342	.690	11.8
Total	2,549	8,520	2,196	2,901	508	146	715	2,214	.340	.686	11.9

Source: https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ruthba01.shtml

Sadaharu Oh’s summary stats for the Yomiuri Giants, 1959-to-1980, are in Table XI, with the other five icons. Oh, who batted left-handed, “could hit lefties or righties equally well,” per Arturo López, who played against him in Japan, 1968-1973. López, normally an RF, played 1B in a game for the 1973 Yakult Swallows, when teammate Joe Pepitone was benched. “Oh hit a one-hop shot, that bounced off my chest,” recalled López. “He was very polite.” López opined Oh, and other Japanese players he played with/against, could have played well at the MLB level. Oh’s stats are at https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=oh—-000sad

Table XI: Player-by-Player Hitting Comparisons (Aaron, Bonds, Espino, Gibson, Oh and Ruth)

Player	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG	SLG	AB/HR
Aaron	3,548	13,671	2,326	4,225	695	116	800	2.497	.309	.552	17.1
Bonds	3,145	10,409	2,338	3,096	632	84	789	2,093	.297	.602	13.2
Espino	4,052	14,149	2,542	4,722	663	65	783	2,775	.334	.552	18.1
Gibson	920	3,942	1,022	1,442	251	97	275	1,170	.366	.688	14.3
Oh	2,831	9,250	1,967	2,786	422	25	868	2,170	.301	.634	10.7
Ruth	2,549	8,520	2,196	2,901	508	146	715	2,214	.340	.686	11.9

Aaron and Espino had identical career SLG but Aaron’s AB/HR ratio (17.1 to 18.1) was better. Oh outdistanced his “competitors” with a 10.7 AB/HR ratio, followed by Ruth (11.9), Bonds (13.2), Gibson (14.3), Aaron and Espino. Gibson (.688 SLG) edged Ruth (.686 SLG) for first-place, and had the highest AVG. Oh hit 68 more HR than Aaron, but Aaron outhomered Bonds, 800-to-789. Bonds hit six more HR than Espino’s 783. Post-season, including Caribbean Series, World Series, playoff games, semi-final, final series and All-Star Games are not included. Joshua Gibson’s Cooperstown plaque reads, in part, that he was a “Power-hitting catcher who hit almost 800 home runs in league and independent baseball during his 17-year career.”

Grateful acknowledgment to Miguel Dupouy Gómez for his blog on Joshua Gibson’s 1940 season with Centauros, in Venezuela; to Eduardo B. Almada, for a digital version of Enciclopedia del Béisbol Mexicano; to Arturo López, for insights on playing against Espino in 1964, and against Oh, in 1973. Mike Cuellar, Rubén Gómez, Elrod Hendricks, Juan Antonio Jasso Rodríguez, Ignacio Romero Navarrete, Jesús Alberto Rubio contributed insights on Mr. Espino. Joe Morgan’s thoughts on Espino, as a 1964 Jacksonville Suns teammate; and, Eric Nusbaum’s marvelous 2013 essay on Espino, were quite helpful. Jorge Colón Delgado, Official Historian, Roberto Clemente Professional Baseball League, furnished Hank Aaron’s Caguas stats, and Joshua Gibson’s Santurce stats.