Tomás de la Cruz Rivero (September 18, 1911 – September 6, 1958) 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), ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

who played for the

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 ...

in 1944. The 32-year-old

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

was a native of

Marianao Marianao is one of the 15 municipalities or boroughs (''municipio ' (, ) and ' () are country subdivisions in Italy and several Hispanophone and Lusophone nations, respectively. They are often translated as "municipality". In the English languag ...

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

; he played from 1934 to 1947 in the winter

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 ...

and from 1945 to 1948 in the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. In 1960, he was 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 ...

Playing career

De la Cruz is one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He was a very effective pitcher for the Reds in his one big league season. His

major league debut 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), ...

was on April 20, 1944, which was the third game on the schedule. He was the

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

and winner in a 2–1 victory over the

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 ...

Crosley Field Crosley Field was a Major League Baseball park in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home field of the National League's Cincinnati Reds from 1912 through June 24, 1970, and the original Cincinnati Bengals football team, members of the second (1937) an ...

. On September 16, de la Cruz pitched a one-hitter—the first ever pitched in the major leagues by a Latin American pitcher—against the Pittsburgh Pirates, winning 2–1. He was a versatile hurler for Cincinnati, as he completed nine of 20 starts and appeared 14 times in relief. As a reliever he finished ten games and saved one other. For the year he was 9–9 with a 3.25

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 ...

, and finished in the league's top ten in four important pitching categories, including

WHIP A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

(1.124). He was also a good fielder, committing just one

error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistics ...

the entire season. During the winter, de la Cruz was called up for U.S. military service, but instead enlisted in the Cuban army. With reports that he would not be permitted to return to the United States until after the war, he decided to play in the Mexican League. Pitching for

México Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, de la Cruz went 17–11 with a 2.26 earned run average. He continued to play in Mexican League during 1945–48 and had a career record there of 40–26 with a 2.60 earned run average. Because Major League Baseball designated the Mexican League as an "outlaw league," he was banned for five years from returning to organized baseball. In his native Cuba, de la Cruz pitched in the winter

from 1934/35 to 1946/47, with a career record of 71–78. In 1947, the Cuban League agreed to affiliate with U.S. organized baseball, leaving de la Cruz and many other banned Cuban players ineligible to return to the Cuban League. De la Cruz was the leader of the players' union (''Asociación Nacional de Peloteros Profesionales de Cuba'') and organized an alternative league, the Liga Nacional (or Players Federation League) in which the banned players could compete. While the quality of play was high, the league was a financial failure and lasted only one winter, 1947/48.González Echevarría 1999, pp. 44–57. Figueredo 2003, pp. 298–304. De la Cruz died at the age of 46 in

Havana, Cuba Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Tommy de la 1911 births 1958 deaths De la Cruz, Tommy Azules de Veracruz players De la Cruz, Tommy Cuban military personnel Diablos Rojos del México players De la Cruz, Tommy De la Cruz, Tommy Major League Baseball players from Cuba Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Mexican League baseball pitchers De la Cruz, Tommy Baseball players from Havana De la Cruz, Tommy De la Cruz, Tommy De la Cruz, Tommy Tuneros de San Luis Potosí players De la Cruz, Tommy