Enrique Roberto "Hank" Izquierdo Valdés (March 20, 1931 – July 31, 2015) was a Cuban-born
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Mod ...
catcher
Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...
,
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
,
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
and
scout
Scout may refer to:
Youth movement
*Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement
**Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom
**Scouts BSA, sectio ...
for almost four decades. He made his playing debut in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
at the age of 36 and in his 17th professional season as a member of the
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
games played
Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested.
Basebal ...
. It was his only
MLB
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
playing opportunity.
Listed at 5' 11" , 175 lb. , Izquierdo batted and threw right handed. He was a solid defensive catcher but a modest hitter who spent 23 seasons in the
minor leagues
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...
— five of them in the Mexican League — and also played winter ball in Venezuela.
Matanzas
Matanzas (Cuban ) is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore, it is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Matanzas (Spanish ''Bahia de Matanzas''), east ...
, Izquierdo was originally a
middle infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.
Standard arrangement of positions
In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...
and
third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
with good range and ability to turn and complete a
double play
In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs.
In Major Leag ...
. Eventually, he made the conversion to catcher successfully, to become one of the best defensive backstops Cuba ever produced. According to those who saw him play, Izquierdo was magnificent at all the intangible things that a catcher does, like calling the game, working the pitch counts, framing pitches and blocking home plate, which combined with a fine defense and a strong and secure throwing arm.
Izquierdo entered the Cuban League with the Elefantes de Cienfuegos, playing for them during the 1954–1955 season before joining the Alacranes de Almendares from 1955 through 1961. Almendares won easily the 1958-1959 pennant. As the league champions, the team represented Cuba in the
1959 Caribbean Series
The eleventh edition of the Caribbean Series (''Serie del Caribe'') was played in 1959. It was held from February 10 through February 15 with the champions teams from Cuba ( Almendares), Panama ( Coclé), Puerto Rico ( Santurce) and Venezuela ( Ori ...
held in
Caracas
Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...
, where he guided a pitching staff that included
Mike Cuellar
Miguel Ángel Cuellar Santana (; May 8, 1937 – April 2, 2010) was a Cuban professional baseball player. He played for 15 seasons in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher in 1959 and from 1964 through 1977, most prominently as a membe ...
Orlando Peña
Orlando Gregorio Peña Guevara (born November 17, 1933) is a Cuban former professional baseball pitcher. The right-hander played in Major League Baseball for all or parts of 14 seasons between and for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Athletic ...
, while the Cuban team captured the competition with a 5–1 record.
Galveston White Caps
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...
of the Gulf Coast League, playing for them three years before joining the
Winston-Salem Twins
Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in ...
of the
Carolina League
The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...
in 1954. He then signed a contract with the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
organization in 1955, and was assigned to its Double-A affiliate Keokuk Kernels. He hit a .302
average
In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...
with a .427
slugging percentage
In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player, ...
triples
TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...
and seven
home run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
s in 119 games for Keokuk. After that he moved around for a while, playing in the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
and
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
Minor League systems from 1956 through 1961.
In 1957 Izquierdo reported to the Havana Sugar Kings, which played in the
International League
The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...
as the Triple A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, while playing their home games at Gran Estadio de La Habana. The Sugar Kings won the League championship in 1959, and then ended up winning the 1959
Little World Series
The Junior World Series was a postseason championship series between champions of two of the three highest minor league baseball leagues modeled on the World Series of Major League Baseball. It was called the Little World Series (no relation to ...
over the
Minneapolis Millers
The Minneapolis Millers were an American professional minor league baseball team that played in Minneapolis, Minnesota, through 1960. In the 19th century a different Minneapolis Millers were part of the Western League. The team played first in ...
of the
American Association American Association may refer to:
Baseball
* American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891
* American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997
* American Association of Profe ...
in seven thrilling games.
By 1960, Izquierdo attended the Sugar Kings spring training camp following his winter season in Cuba. On July 13 of this year, the International League announced that the Havana Sugar Kings would play the remainder of their home season in
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Cuban Revolution of 1959. As a result, Izquierdo and the other 10 native Cuban players decided to remain with the
Jersey City Jerseys {{unreferenced, date=January 2023
The Jersey City Jerseys was a minor league baseball team based in Jersey City, New Jersey that played in the International League for two seasons, 1960 and 1961. It was the AAA affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. ...
in its new home. In 1962, Izquierdo spent the season in Major League Baseball as the bullpen catcher for the Indians, whose
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
was former Cincinnati executive
Gabe Paul
Gabriel Howard Paul (January 4, 1910 – April 26, 1998) was an American executive in Major League Baseball who, between 1951 and 1984, served as general manager of the Cincinnati Reds, Houston Colt .45s, Cleveland Indians and New York Yanke ...
.
Minnesota Twins
Izquierdo returned to the active list the following season and played for the Twins organization during five seasons spanning 1963–1967. Overall, he hit .273 with five home runs and 161 RBI in 515 minor league games. In 16 games for the 1967 Twins, he posted an average of .269 (7-for-26) with two doubles, two RBI and four runs scored. He was Minnesota's starting catcher in nine games. Highlights included back-to back games on August 23 and 24 against the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
, in which Izquierdo collected four
hits
Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block
* ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998
* ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...
in seven at bats, including a double and one run batted in, as Minnesota won both games. The victories were crucial, as Minnesota and Detroit were embroiled in a four-team struggle for the 1967
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
pennant. The four safeties raised Izquierdo's average from .200 to .417. But he collected only two hits the rest of the way to lower his batting mark to .269, and Minnesota and Detroit were beaten out on the season's last day by the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
for the AL flag.
Later career
Izquierdo then moved to the
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
organization and was assigned to their Triple-A affiliate Oklahoma City 89ers from 1968 to 1969, where he served as a
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
and utility man. He was used sparingly in both seasons, hitting .263 in 131 games, while playing at all positions except
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...
.
In July 1969, Izquierdo was suspended for the remainder of the
American Association American Association may refer to:
Baseball
* American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891
* American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997
* American Association of Profe ...
season and fined $750 as the result of his part in a bat-swinging incident with catcher
Ted Simmons
Ted Lyle Simmons (born August 9, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. A switch-hitter, Simmons was a catcher for most of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the St. Louis Cardinals (1968–1980), the Milwau ...
, by then a 19-year rookie who played for the Tulsa Oilers. Izquierdo had just scored one run for Oklahoma City and was clearing the plate area of a bat when he and Simmons exchanged words. They then engaged in a shoving match and Simmons suffered a bruised thumb while trying to wrest the bat from Izquierdo. During the offseason, Izquierdo suffered a near-fatal gunshot wound in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, when the taxi he was driving was robbed and he was shot in the stomach.
Izquierdo spent the remainder of his career bouncing around the Mexican League, where he played and managed from 1970 through 1974 for the Rojos del Águila de Veracruz (1970–1971; 1974) and the Leones de Yucatán (1972–1973). He returned in 1976 to manage the Saraperos de Saltillo. He later scouted for the Twins for more than 10 years.
In between, Izquierdo played winter ball for the
Industriales de Valencia The Industriales de Valencia was a baseball club who played from 1955 through 1968 in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. The Industriales joined the league as a replacement for the Santa Marta BBC.
The Industriales were based at Valencia ...
West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...