In All-Star
pregame ceremonies Tuesday, MLB honored HOF Latino ballplayers. Seven former players and the family of
Roberto Clemente were on hand to throw out the first pitch. The only person missing was White Sox great
Luis Aparicio.
The ex-shortstop
tweeted: “Thanks MLB for the honor at
the All-Star Game but I can’t celebrate when young people of my country are
dying for their freedom.” Aparicio was
referring to the street protest embroiling his native Venezuela. The government of Nicolas Maduro may not be
long for this world, and there are indications it will be a bloody fall from
power.
Jim Brown left
the NFL to advocate for social and racial justice; Colin Kaepernick may have
been blackballed from the NFL for advocating the same issues. Aparicio is taking advocacy a step further;
to speak out in such a climate as envelopes Veneauela is to put one’s life at
risk. What’s interesting and ironic
about the situation is that former White Sox outfielder Magglio Ordonez was
elected mayor of Sotillo—a city of 250,000—in 2013 as a Maduro candidate.
I wonder where
Magglio stands today, with Maduro or Aparicio?
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