Chico Carrasquel ✝

Born in Caracas, Carrasquel began his professional baseball career in 1946 at the age of 17 with the Cervecería Caracas team, where he hit the first home run in Venezuelan Professional Baseball League history. He was signed in 1949 by the Brooklyn Dodgers, and was immediately promoted to the Double-A Fort Worth Cats. Carrasquel provided good fielding and hit .315 during the season and .364 in the playoffs to help spur the Cats to the 1949 Texas League championship. His inability to speak English fluently may have caused Dodgers General Manager Branch Rickey to sell him to the Chicago White Sox although, Rickey later admitted that the move was a mistake. White Sox\' General Manager Frank Lane solved the language communication problem by trading Carrasquel\'s uncle Alex for reliever Witto Aloma, who served as the interpreter between Carrasquel and White Sox\' manager Jack Onslow.\n', ' Carrasquel joined the White Sox in 1950, becoming the third Venezuelan to play in Major League Baseball after his uncle, Alex Carrasquel (Washington Senators, 1939) and Chucho Ramos (Cincinnati Reds, in 1944). He became the White Sox\'s starting shortstop, replacing the forty-one-year-old Luke Appling, who had held the position since 1930. Carrasquel soon established himself as an excellent defensive player, combining with second baseman Nellie Fox to make one of the best double play combinations in the league. His cheerful disposition and apparent love for playing baseball, made him extremely popular with Chicago fans. As a rookie, Carrasquel hit for a career-high .282 batting average in 141 games and, amassed a 24-game hitting streak until Red Sox pitcher Ellis Kinder stopped the streak. In September, he suffered a torn cartilage in his right knee and had to sit out the remainder of the season. Carrasquel finished the season ranked third in voting for the American League Rookie of the Year Award, behind Walt Dropo and Whitey Ford, and finished 12th in the 1950 American League Most Valuable Player Award ballot.\n', ' In 1951, Carrasquel beat out the reigning American League Most Valuable Player, Phil Rizzuto, in voting for the shortstop of the American League in the 1951 All-Star Game. He became the first Latin American player to be selected to start in an All-Star Game. On July 19, 1951, Carrasquel broke Rizzuto\'s Major League record by handling 297 consecutive chances in 53 games without committing an error. The record would stand for 18 years until 1969, when Don Kessinger of the Chicago Cubs set a new record by playing in 54 games without committing an error. He ended the year leading the league\'s shortstops in assists and in fielding percentage. In November 1951, it was reported that Boston Red Sox manager, Lou Boudreau, wanted to trade Ted Williams for Carrasquel but, Lane refused the offer.\n', '