The LatinoMVP awards began in 1989 when the Baseball Writers Association (BBWAA) bypassed Ruben Sierra for the American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) and gave it to Robin Yount of the then Milwaukee Brewers. Yount also had a good year, but it could be said that the young Sierra in his third year with the Texas Rangers had led the league in more offensive categories. Many sports writers, especially those from Puerto Rico and many in the Diaspora on the continent with a large concentration of Puerto Ricans and Latinos, believe that Sierra should have been the MVP of the American League.
It was then when the president of Latino Sports, Julio Pabón, who was in Puerto Rico at that time, learned about the controversy and promised that he would organized an event to recognize Sierra when he returned to New York when the season begins. Thus, the first ever award for a Latino player was given in 1990. The event was held in Yankee stadium and it was followed with a community reception at a restaurant, Marisco Centro the predecessor to what later became Jimmy’s Bronx Café. He called it, the LatinoMVP award. Since that day in 1990, Latino Sports has been organizing the award annually and is recognized as the oldest and most prestigious award given to Latino players. “This award is to allow Latino players to get the recognition they deserve and become the role models that many young Latinos need to see,” Mr. Pabón said during the awards ceremony in 1990 that is still prevailing today.
In 2007 the award was also given to the first non-baseball player. That year Latino Sports voted to also recognize one of the few Latinos in the NBA, Dallas Mavericks point guard, José Juan Barea in 2007.
