• Submitted by: Camila
• Sports
• 03 / 04 / 2015

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Cuban Orestes "Minnie" Minoso, who homered in his first at-bat when he became the first black Major League baseball player in Chicago in 1951, has died, said Sunday the Cook County medical examiner.

The coroner's office gave no immediate details. There is some doubt about her age, but the team says it was 92 years.

Minoso played 12 of his 17 major league seasons in Chicago, batting .304 with 135 homers and 808 RBIs for the White Sox. The team retired his number 9 in 1983 and is a statue of Miñoso at US Cellular Field.

Miñoso debuted in the majors with Cleveland in 1949 and was sent to Chicago in exchange rates between three teams two years later. He made his debut for Chicago on May 1, 1951 and homered against Yankees right Vic Raschi on his first turn.

It was the beginning of a beautiful relationship between the Cuban slugger and White Sox.

Miñoso, considered the first of the largest Hispanic black star, was a habanero who spent most of his career in left field. It is one of only two players to play in a major league game in five different decades. He had his last hit in 1976 at the age of 53 and went 2-0 in 1980 in a match with the White Sox, who tried unsuccessfully for years to get checked Cuban Hall of Fame.

Source: El Nuevo Herald