Rafael D. Almeida (July 30, 1887 – March 19, 1968) was a

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), ...

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 ...

from 1911 to 1913 with the Cincinnati Reds. Almeida and

Armando Marsans Armando Marsans Mendiondo (October 3, 1887 – September 3, 1960) was a Cuban professional baseball player who played as an outfielder in Major League Baseball from 1911 to 1918. He played in three different major leagues in his career: with the ...

debuted together with the Reds on July 4, 1911. They are sometimes named the first major league players born in Cuba, which is incorrect because Havana-born

Chick Pedroes Charles P. Pedroes (October 27, 1869 – August 6, 1927), was a Major League Baseball outfielder in 1902. He was the first Cuban-born player in MLB history. External links 1869 births 1927 deaths Baseball players from Havana Major Lea ...

played in the National League in 1902; in addition, Cuban-born Steve Bellán played from 1871 to 1873 in the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NA), a league whose status as a major league is disputed. Six years before Cincinnati, Almeida and Marsans both played " Negro baseball" in the United States as 1905 members of the integrated All Cubans. Almeida played winter baseball in the

Cuban League The Cuban League was one of the earliest and longest lasting professional baseball leagues outside the United States, operating in Cuba from 1878 to 1961. The schedule usually operated during the winter months, so the league was sometimes known a ...

from 1904 to 1925 and was one of ten players elected to the

Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame The Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame (''Salón de la Fama del Béisbol Cubano'') is a hall of fame that honors eminent baseball players from Cuban baseball. Established in 1939 to honor players, managers, and umpires in the pre-revolution Cuban League ...

in its 1939 inaugural class.Figueredo 2003, pp. 484, 508.

Notes

References

*. *Riley, James A. (2002). ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues.'' 2nd edition. New York: Carroll & Graf Publ. .

External links

1887 births 1968 deaths Baseball players from Havana Cincinnati Reds players Major League Baseball players from Cuba Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Major League Baseball third basemen New Britain Perfectos players Azul (baseball) players Carmelita players Montreal Royals players Scranton Miners players {{Cuba-baseball-third-baseman-stub