HOUSTON, TX – During my visit to Houston to present the prestigious 2023 American League LatinoMVP Rookie of the Year award to the young Dominican, Yainer Díaz, I also had the opportunity to catch up with the third-active Puerto Rican manager in MLB, Joe Espada (Alex Cora, manager of the Red Sox, and Davey Martinez of the Nationals are the others.)
I had been trying to meet Espada, a fellow countryman for a while. The fact is that there are not that many Puerto Rican managers, or in major front offices so we like to get to meet, congratulate and welcome those that have established themselves in major league sports.
2024 AL West division champ, Joe Espada, deserves major credit for the Astros’ 2024 success even with their tough start to the open the regular season – Image Credit: MLB
It’s also a Puerto Rican cultural thing that we like to connect by knowing what town they are from because our small island is connected by towns and family names.
I caught up with Espada as he was headed to the dugout for his daily pregame interview. I introduced myself as a fellow Boricua and told him, I had come from New York to give Yainer Díaz his 2023 LatinoMVP AL ROTY award.
Yainer Díaz receives his 2023 AL LatinoMVP Rookie of the Year at Minute Maid Park from Latino Sports president and founder Julio Pabón – Image Credit: Houston Astros/MLB
He invited me to walk with him as we spoke. He was unaware of the awards, and I gave him a short version of its beginning with Rubén Sierra being overlooked in 1989 which he remembered. He knows Rubén as he told me they played together. He asked me to show him the award and was impressed with what he saw. When we arrived at the dugout all the press was waiting. I asked him if I could have a few minutes to interview him after his press meeting. He said, “sure.”
The following is our one-on-one interview with Joe Espada, the very down to earth and humble manager of the Houston Astros.
Last week before our #LatinoMVP award ceremony with #Astros Yainer Díaz 🏆🇩🇴, we had the chance to sit down and interview Houston’s manager Joe Espada, one of three active Puerto Rican managers in #MLB – Alex Cora, Dave Martinez, and Espada ⚾️🇵🇷 #LatinoSports #PuertoRico pic.twitter.com/4kZNZwy5c2
— Latino Sports (@LatinoSports) September 26, 2024
Part two of our one-on-one interview with #Astros manager Joe Espada ⚾️🇵🇷#LatinoSports #MLB #LasMayores #Relentless #MLBPuertoRico pic.twitter.com/mv1qFpdzg2
— Latino Sports (@LatinoSports) September 26, 2024
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