FLUSHING, NY — Saturday afternoon baseball in mid-November at Citi Field is different of course considering the game is not meant to be played this time of year in a cold weather city and with two teams on the field, having no implications in the standings.
This was a baseball game without the home team, the New York Mets. A game that had no implications except for pride with two teams of All-Stars described as the RD vs. PR Showdown between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.
Mr. Met and Mrs. Met came dressed to impress on Saturday for the RD vs. PR Showdown at Citi Field – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
Names on the field were not familiar, just a few who have limited time in MLB. More so this nine-inning ballgame was for pride, two islands in the Caribbean known for producing some outstanding ballplayers with accomplishments over the years on the Major League level.
And the last time All-Star Robinson Canó would step on a baseball field in the United States, familiar with New York as a former player with the Yankees and Mets. A game that had interest and was played in front of 20,057 fans who waved the Dominican and Puerto Rican flags. They cheered loud, banged the drums in 40 degree temperatures.
Approximately 20,057 fans attended the RD vs. PR Showdown on Saturday at Citi Field – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
“Just thinking about coming back here again and being able to play again means a lot to me because I was here,” Canó said in Spanish at a pre-game press conference. “I saw the greatness of the Mets team the way they treated me the fans with that desire for that championship and to come back here again to that field it really means a lot to me.”
He wasn’t the outstanding player with the Mets as he was with the Yankees, even serving a suspension for PED’s twice in his career. Canó was hurt often, didn’t have the numbers in a Mets uniform and disappointed with a huge contract.
Saturday, though it was his day, Canó received a standing ovation and fitting send-off as he left his position at second base in the seventh inning. Teammates greeted him while exiting the field as the Dominican All-Stars wore jerseys with his number 24.
Robinson Canó was fighting back tears in the seventh inning of Saturday’s RD vs. PR Showdown as the Citi Field crowd gave him a standing ovation – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
Canó would finish going 1-for-3, a bare-handed play in the infield that got a huge response.
And that final moment, Dominican MVP Emmanuel Rodríguez (the Twins’ fourth-ranked prospect) would hand the award to Canó as two Caribbean baseball foundations embraced and celebrated an All-Star Game in November.
His Dominican team got the 6-2 win, a fitting tribute to a New York baseball star and to many a 43-year-old hero from San Pedro de Macoris, D.R. He was an eight-time All-Star, two-time Gold Glove Award winner and a Silver Slugger recipient five times.
The Dominican Republic All-Star team poses together for a photo after their 6-2 win over Puerto Rico – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
“As a Dominican not just in sports but in any field we’re always proud of our flag,” said Canó.
“I played most of my career here, This is where I achieved my dreams,” he said about winning a World Series with the Yankees in 2009.
He recalled a three-home run game at Citi Field. He said it meant a lot to see so many appreciate his exploits and dedication he gave on the field. But this final game and at Citi Field, though not having implications, was a celebration.
Many of Robinson Canó’s D.R. teammates and opponents on Puerto Rico stopped him for a photo after the RD vs. PR Showdown on Saturday in Queens – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
“I think these kind of events are positive because they give us Latinos the opportunity to unite to showcase our baseball skills and the passion that exists on two islands in the Caribbean,” said former Met Carlos Beltrán a team executive, he too a perennial All-Star, who is closing in on Cooperstown Hall of Fame enshrinement and recently announced to be inducted into the Mets HOF in 2026.
Beltrán and Carlos Delgado, a former Met who managed the Puerto Rican All-stars, surrounded Canó prior to the game. And after the final out they were first to embrace Canó on the field for a November baseball celebration that can only happen in New York.
“I prefer to call it brotherhood,” said Beltrán about players from the Caribbean and that also pertained to Canó. “People always talk about the rivalry and all that but I don’t like to call it a rivalry. Even though we step onto the field everyone wants to win. Everyone wants to do well. At the end of the day we are all Latinos.”
The RD vs. PR Showdown provided a glimpse of what’s to come in March of 2026 with the World Baseball Classic set to be played in Miami, Houston, Puerto Rico, and Japan – Image Credit: Ernesto Diaz/Latino Sports
Yes, it was about Canó and his last game in the United States. But it was an overall celebration, the last baseball game in New York until late March, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic will be part of the World Baseball Classic in March with rosters of Major League players.
And Robinson Canó will probably be at the WBC in some capacity, if not on the field cheering and supporting his team from the D.R.
Rich Mancuso is a senior writer and columnist at LatinoSports.com – X: @Ring786, Facebook.com/Rich Mancuso
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