FLUSHING, NY — Yesterday, I went to Citi Field to keep a promise made during Spring Training to St. Louis Cardinals star, Nolan Arenado. Nolan was one of the 37 Latino players that appeared on the 2022 ballot of the prestigious LatinoMVP awards. This was the first time in the thirty-three-year history of the awards that we had so many candidates on our ballot and decided to do something special for all the candidates. We wanted each player to know that being on the ballot of the most prestigious and oldest award given to Latino baseball players was quite an achievement.
33rd Annual Latino MVP Awards – Image Credit: Latino Sports
Therefore, we decided to interview as many of the players as possible and present them with a special designed shirt that we would give to every player on the ballot.
Unfortunately, we could not get all the shirts delivered before starting our trip throughout the Spring Training camps. The few shirts we had were not enough for the different sizes needed. Many players were promised a shirt that would be delivered during the regular season.
Design for LatinoMVP Shirts – Image Credit: Latino Sports
Nolan Arenado was one of the players that we interviewed in Spring training, he liked the shirt, but we did not have his size. I promised that I would send him the shirt once they were made available. Being in New York to play the Mets was a perfect opportunity to keep our promise and deliver the shirt in person.
I saw Nolan in the locker room prior to batting practice, I introduced myself and reminded him of our conversation and our interview during Spring Training. He remembered, I gave him the bag with the shirt, but he was in a hurry to get to a meeting, placed the bag into his locker and told me he would open it later. I told him, no problem that I just wanted to deliver on the promise.
Later during batting practice, I was sitting in the dugout and Nolan running out onto the field noticed me and turned to thank me. Later after batting practice he again spoke to me and told me he would let us know how it fit. Other reporters milling around noticed the exchange between Nolan and myself and when learning the reason for the exchange acknowledged our efforts.
Nolan Arenado and Julio Pabón – Image Credit: Latino Sports
I felt good knowing that an award that was started in 1990 was still bringing smiles and pride to players, teams, and the community.
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