Porfirio Altamirano Ramírez (born May 17, 1952), nicknamed ''"El Guajiro"'' is a

Nicaraguan Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...

former

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 ...

right-handed

middle relief pitcher In baseball, a middle reliever or middle relief pitcher, is a relief pitcher who typically pitches during the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings of a standard baseball game. In leagues with no designated hitter, such as in the National League prio ...

, who played 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), ...

(MLB) for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

(1982–83) and

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

(1984). He was inducted into the Nicaraguan Sports Hall of Fame, on August 2, 1994. Born in

Ciudad Darío Ciudad Darío () is a town and a municipality in the Matagalpa department of Nicaragua. It is the birthplace of poet Rubén Darío and the legendary guerilla leader Edén Pastora. Previously known as ''Metapa'' and ''Chocoyos'', Ciudad Darío i ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

, Altamirano first became successful in his native country in the 1970s, when he pitched for the

Estelí Estelí (), officially Villa de San Antonio de Pavia de Estelí is a city and municipality within the Estelí department. It is the 3rd largest city in Nicaragua due to the high urbanization of its municipality, at 83%, with an urban population of ...

team in the Nicaraguan National League, breaking many records. Altamirano

shut out Shut Out may refer to: * Shutout, a game in which one team prevents the opposing team from scoring * ''Shut Out'' (album), a 1977 album by Paul Jabara * "Shut Out" (song), a 1977 song by Paul Jabara and Donna Summer * "Shutout", a song by The Walk ...

the powerful

Cuban national team Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

in a tournament in Colombia, in 1976, beating them 5–0 and also shut out the USA team 4–0, in 1977, in a tournament played in Nicaragua; these considerable feats went a long way to his being recognized as one of Nicaragua's best amateur pitchers. Although not equipped with an overpowering arm, Altamirano had an 87–92 MPH

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

and mixed in a

slider Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * '' The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * ...

and an occasional

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...

. He was an ideal reliever for a bullpen-by-committee because if his ability to pitch two or three innings at a time, setting the table for a variety of teammates, from

Sparky Lyle Albert Walter "Sparky" Lyle (born July 22, 1944) is an American former left-handed relief pitcher who spent sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1967 through 1982. He was a relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, ...

Tug McGraw Frank Edwin "Tug" McGraw Jr. (August 30, 1944 – January 5, 2004) was an American professional baseball relief pitcher and long-time Major League Baseball (MLB) player, often remembered for coining the phrase "Ya Gotta Believe", which became th ...

Lee Smith Lee Smith is the name of: Arts, entertainment and media *Lee Smith (fiction author) (born 1944), American author of fiction *Lee Smith (film editor) (born 1960), Australian film editor *Lee Smith (musician) (born 1983), American drummer *Lee Smith ...

. Altamirano made his major league debut on May 9, 1982, and played in 60 games over two seasons for the

. Just before the 1984 season, he was traded to the

with

Bob Dernier Robert Eugene Dernier (born January 5, 1957), also known as "Bobby", is an American former professional baseball center fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs, in the 1980s. The fleet-afoo ...

and

Gary Matthews Gary Nathaniel Matthews Sr. (born July 5, 1950), nicknamed Sarge, is an American former professional baseball left fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from through for the San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phill ...

, in exchange for Bill Campbell and

Mike Diaz Michael Anthony Diaz (born April 15, 1960) is a former professional baseball player. He played all or part of four seasons in Major League Baseball between 1983 and 1988, for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago White Sox. He also play ...

. In his three-year MLB career, Altamirano compiled a 7–4 record with 57

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s, a 4.03

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA), two saves, and innings, in 65

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher; a player who is announced as the pitcher must face at least one batter, although except ...

. Altamirano also pitched as a closer in the Venezuelan professional league, in the mid-1980s for Aguilas de Zulia.

References

External links

Porfi Altamirano
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Porfi Altamirano
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) {{DEFAULTSORT:Altamirano, Porfi Chicago Cubs players Philadelphia Phillies players Nicaraguan expatriate baseball players in the United States Miami Amigos players Portland Beavers players Iowa Cubs players Oklahoma City 89ers players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Nicaragua People from Matagalpa Department 1952 births Living people

See also

References

External links