Ed Bauta, a former Cuban pitcher with the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets died July 6, 2022, at Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin, New Jersey. He was 87. With Bauta’s passing and the recent deaths of Leo Posada and Cholly Naranjo, only a few players remain who played in the Cuban Winter League prior to Castro’s takeover.
The 6’3” right-handed pitcher grew up in the town of Florida in Cuba’s Camagüey province. He caught Pittsburgh Pirates scout Howie Haak’s attention at a 1955 tryout in Camagüey and was later signed to the Pittsburgh Pirates with a $500 bonus.
Toiling in the low minors, Bauta returned home to Cuba, but couldn’t latch on with one of the four major teams.
“I tried out, but they sent me home,” Bauta said in 2011.
He trained with Marianao as a reserve, but never saw any regular season action. Finally, after a strong showing in A-ball in 1958, he earned a spot on the team. He pitched the final three seasons of the Cuban Winter League, finishing the 1960-61 season with Havana.
“I finally played with Marianao for two years and then ended up with Havana,” he said. “Everybody’s salary was cut in two to help the revolution [the final season].”
Sadly, Bauta had to make the decision, like many of his Cuban brethren to leave his family behind in Cuba after the 1960-61 Winter League season.
“My family house was gone,” he said. “I had a few dollars in the bank and that was gone too.”
Stateside, Bauta continued to make strides towards the major leagues. When the Pirates traded Bauta in 1960 to the Cardinals with Julian Javier, it opened the door for Bauta to make his major league debut. He stayed with the Cardinals for the rest of the 1960 season.
He shuttled between the majors and the minors the next two seasons with the Cardinals, before being traded to the New York Mets for Ken MacKenzie in August 1963. The late-season acquisition allowed Bauta to be a part of Mets history, pitching in the final game at the Polo Grounds on September 18th. The game was played to little fanfare and Bauta didn’t recall much about the game during our 2011 conversation.
Bauta was also connected to another bit in Mets history, as he was the losing pitcher in the first game at Shea Stadium. He came in relief of Jack Fisher in the 7th inning, but couldn’t hold the 3-2 lead, giving up both the tying and go-ahead runs. Less than a month later, Casey Stengel sent Bauta to the minor leagues. It didn’t sit well with the Cuban reliever.
“In 1964, I only pitched eight games,” he said. “They sent me down to Buffalo. I went 8-4. They didn’t send me back up. I got pissed off and quit.”
Bauta never reached the majors despite pitching in the minors and the Mexican League until 1974. He worked in the moving business until 1988 before retiring due to knee problems. In retirement, Bauta kept close contact with fellow Mets and Cardinals pitcher Craig Anderson.
“He knows everything about baseball,” he said. “He’s a hell of a guy.”
At the time of our talk in 2011, Bauta also shared the news of his MLB annuity payments. The union agreed to make annual payments to non-vested players who were on MLB rosters at least 43 days before 1979. While Bauta played in parts of four seasons, he did not play long enough to vest for a pension. He welcomed the extra money.
It was a call I knew was coming, but I didn’t want to take. A week ago, one of Cholly Naranjo’s family members called to tell me he was hospitalized with COVID and was on a ventilator. I somehow hoped he could summon his mighty curveball to foil the toughest hitter he ever faced; however, at 9PM on January 13, 2022, they came and took Cholly from the mound for the final time.
I often write these memorials for other players I’ve met in my baseball travels, but this one is different. Cholly Naranjo was my best friend. How does someone who is almost 50 years your senior become that close?
Sitting quietly at a table with not much fanfare was Cholly Naranjo. I did some scant research about his lone 1956 season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but didn’t know the depths of his career. While the line was quite long for Miñoso, I decided to talk with Cholly. He was so vibrant and excited to share his memories. He told me he lived in South Florida and I should visit him the next time I go to see my mother, who also lived there.
First trip to Paul Casanova's home in 2009 / N. Diunte
I took him up on his offer a few months later, and that’s how our friendship began. At the time, I was still playing competitive baseball. Knowing that I loved the game, he took me right away to Paul Casanova’s home. Waiting there was Casanova, Jackie Hernandez and Mike Cuellar. Cholly introduced me as his friend and they immediately welcomed me. We spent an hour talking baseball (actually I just mostly listened) and Casanova invited me back for hitting lessons.
Soon the wheels started turning. I found there was this corner of baseball I didn’t know; the Cuban Winter League's rich history. Cholly was the key. He knew everybody and had a story for seemingly everyone that played in the 1950s, as well as the decade before. He learned by watching his uncle Ramón Couto, who was a star catcher in Cuban winter league, Negro Leagues and minor leagues in the 1930s and 1940s.
Ramón Couto and Luis Tiant Sr. / Couto Family
I leaned into Cholly for his encyclopedic knowledge. On almost a dime he could recall exact instances of players, games, and hilarious stories surrounding them. At the same time, he knew I was good with technology, so he would ask me to retrieve artifacts from his career. I later discovered just how much revisiting these stories kept him energized.
Cholly (l.) in high school with Chico Fernandez (r.)
We would talk weekly, sometimes about baseball, sometimes about life, relationships and everything else in between. As our trust increased, Cholly reached out to me to handle many of his other personal dealings, as he said I had the, “American style of communication.”
Some reading this might think as a former major league baseball player, Cholly was swimming in financial riches; however, this was far from the truth. Due to Cholly being in the majors when baseball players needed four full seasons to earn a pension (now it is 43 days), he didn’t receive one. He figured out how to live his best life on a small social security check with help from some baseball organizations. I was often tasked with organizing the necessary correspondence to make sure everything was running smoothly.
In 2010, he visited my home in New York for a few days. He was invited his cousin‘s wedding, who was Daniel Boggs' son, the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. It was the first time Cholly visited New York since he returned from Cuba. We took the subway to the MLB offices to visit and personally thank the B.A.T. staff for their help. The trip to the MLB offices gave him so much validation behind his big league career.
2010 Wedding / N. Diunte
The day before the wedding, he told me he wanted to go to the park to have a catch. I thought it was going to be a short session, but he just kept telling me to move back the longer we threw. Eventually, we were throwing from at least 120 feet apart. Mind you, Cholly was 77 at the time and he made the throws with ease! He finally said his arm was loose and as he shortened the distance, he showed me how to throw his famous curveball, the one Branch Rickey courted him for.
Branch Rickey's 1956 Scouting Report
After that trip to New York, I made it a point to visit 2-3 times per year. It was easy to visit my mother and then also spend a day or two with Cholly. I would meet him in Hialeah, and he would drive. It was on these winding card rides through Miami’s back streets where we bonded. He had story after story and told them with such clarity. He would take me to different Cuban restaurants, one’s that he thought I would enjoy. Every meal was “outstanding” in his words, and he was often right.
He had this little black book filled with telephone numbers. He would ask me who I wanted to see, and we would go. Every player he called said yes. They knew Cholly was genuine and took me in as the same. Everyone was relaxed, because as they all said, “it was family.” As I started to look around, I was slowly not only being accepted as part of that family, but his family as well.
Cholly with Almendares
Cholly’s major league stats don’t tell the whole story. It was deeper than that single season in Pittsburgh. He was a star pitcher in the Cuban Winter League from 1952 until 1961, primarily with Almendares. It’s hard to sit here and write down all the legends he encountered either as teammates or opponents. He loved discussing the 1954-55 Carribbean Series where his team had to face the Puerto Rican Santurce team with Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente in the same outfield (and the fight between Roger Bowman and Earl Rapp after Rapp misplayed a ball)!
He lit up talking about Jim Bunning who he faced in Cuba, who then later welcomed Cholly into his office in Washington D.C., or a young Brooks Robinson who played second base his one year in Cuba. Then there were Tommy Lasorda's hijinks after they won the championship in 1959. He told stories about Martin Dihigo, Satchel Paige, and his good friend Minnie Miñoso, who was also another tremendous gentleman.
He almost made the majors in 1954 with the Washington Senators. He made it through all of spring training and they took him up north for Opening Day; Cholly even made the official team photo. A few hours before the first pitch, manager Bucky Harris informed Cholly they would be sending him to the minors on a 24-hour recall. He was disappointed, but he still stayed with the team for that day.
He played with the Hollywood Stars in 1955 and 1956, when his team was the city’s main sports attraction (this was before the Dodgers and Giants moved). Famous entertainers would come to watch them play. Cholly regaled me with stories of his dinners and even dates with these luminaries. I wish I could remember them all, but the names have evaded my memory too.
He finally made the majors in 1956, coming up from Hollywood with his roommate and future Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski. Cholly saved his best performance for his final game, pitching 8 2/3 innings in relief for his first and only MLB victory. He told me how that win also kept Robin Roberts (whom he faced that day) from winning his 20th game of the season.
Cholly Naranjo with Roberto Clemente 1956 Pirates
Paul Casanova called me one afternoon in 2017, as MLB wanted to honor the Cuban players at the All-Star Game in Miami. He asked me to work as a liason for a group of players to help with the paperwork, negotiations and logistics. Cholly was one of the players in the group selected to be a part of the festivities, and without hesitation, he took me along for the ride.
Cholly (r.) with Dr. Adrian Burgos (l.), Jose Tartabull (center) 2017 All-Star FanFest / N. Diunte
For three days, Cholly was in heaven. MLB rolled out first class treatment, as did his peers. On the day he appeared at the FanFest to sign autographs and speak on a panel, MLB gave us a private SUV ride back and forth from the hotel to the convention center. They provided us both (yes me!) a private security detail that followed us through the FanFest. He was so excited to interact with the fans, as well as tell his stories on stage with José Tartabull and Dr. Adrian Burgos.
We spent the extended weekend with Luis Tiant, Tony Oliva, Bert Campaneris and Orlando Cepeda. It didn’t matter that Cholly wasn’t an All-Star or a Hall of Famer; not only was he readily accepted into the group, I found out they all looked up to him, as he was the senior member. Cepeda remarked how tough his curveball was on the rookie in winter ball. Tiant said he was a veteran influence on him as a rookie in the Cuban Winter League, and Oliva went out of his way to talk to B.A.T. to make sure Cholly was taken care of.
Tony Oliva, Cholly Naranjo, Juan Marichal / N. Diunte
We stayed up each night until 2AM talking about the game. The brotherhood was evident. Not only were they all there in the majors, they all faced the same challenges playing through the segregation in the United States. Every night, Cholly insisted at 84, to drive us back to my apartment in Fort Lauderdale. I was amazed how easily he navigated driving that late at night.
Things slowly started to change for Cholly after that wonderful weekend, and unfortunately, not in a good way. Paul Casanova died shortly after the Fan Fest (it was his last public appearance). Cholly worked with Casanova at the batting facility at Casanova’s home. He no longer had a place to go and interact. The young baseball players kept Cholly alive and the money Casanova paid him kept a little something extra in his pocket to enjoy life.
Paul Casanova, myself, Cholly / N. Diunte
Around 2019, Cholly stopped driving. He got into three accidents in a year and as he said, it was God’s way of letting him know he needed to get away from the wheel. I started noticing Cholly's once sharp mind started to show some cracks. He would lose his phone, or start to miss details in our conversations. Despite those missteps, when we sat down for a formal interview in 2019, he was amazed at how good he felt.
“I’ve got my health at my age,” he said. “I got this far, and I’m better than when I was playing ball. Can you believe that? Sometimes I think, well, give me the ball; I’m going to get somebody out.
“It makes me feel well that I can be a normal person and do all the things necessary to live in the United States and travel. … To me, it’s like a prize that I have proven that it can happen to anybody. ... I’ve lived over there and over here, and I’m clean in both of them. I have lived long enough to show everybody what is what. I feel proud of that inside. … I say Cholly, how old are you? Well, I’ve got more miles than Pan American Airlines!"
I saw Cholly early in 2020, right before the pandemic. We met for dinner, and he told me he walked for over 18 hours in a day just to prove to himself he could do it. I was amazed, but also feared for his safety, as the area in Miami where he lived wasn’t a walking city.
Our last meeting July 2021 / N. Diunte
Last year, he moved in with his nephew to be closer to the little family he had. I visited him in July 2021, as the pandemic put a huge wedge in my ability to travel. I could see the early stages of dementia from the time we spent together. A few months ago, Cholly had to be put into a nursing home, as he just couldn’t take care of himself any longer. Physically, he was in good shape, but he needed the care that comes with a nursing facility.
We would still talk on the phone a few times a week. When I called, it was always, “Coño! Nick! I am better than expected!” even as he struggled with recall. We kept the conversations short, but he always asked when I was coming down. I was aiming for the Christmas holiday to visit for a few days, but I came down with COVID on Christmas Eve. By the time I found a possible window to travel, his family let me know he also contracted COVID and wasn’t doing well in the hospital. I thought Cholly would miraculously find a way to pull through, but when the big man comes to get you off the mound, as Cholly would say, “You have to give up the ball.”
I am going to miss my friend. Cholly said he looked at me as a son, as he never had any children. I feel honored I was able to be a part of his life for so long and learn so much about his history, his culture and life story. I hope I can continue to elevate Cholly’s memory, as it was much greater than those 17 games he pitched with Pittsburgh in 1956.
QDEP Lazaro Ramón Gonzalo Naranjo Couto - November 25, 1933 - January 13, 2022.
After opening a box of 2021 Topps Chrome Black Baseball, it appears Topps has saved its best design for this late-season release. The black matte finish gives these cards a sleek look and feel that is markedly different from Topps' traditional releases. The deep black background isolates the players and cuts out much of the noise that comes with other Topps issues. With just four cards in each box, one is left with the feeling of wanting more cards from the base set before getting to the encased autographed card.
2021 Topps Chrome Black Baseball Base Set and Checklist
The 100-card base set checklist is awash with rookies including Alec Bohm, Ke'Bryan Hayes and Joey Bart. Each card is also minted in Topps' standard parallel rainbow (Refractor #/199, Purple #/150, Green #/99, Green Atomic #/99, Blue #/75, Gold #/50, Orange #/25, Magenta #/10, Red #/5, Superfractor 1/1), giving collectors even more opportunities to chase down their favorite players from this set.
2021 Topps Chrome Black Fernando Tatis Jr. / Topps
2021 Topps Chrome Black Baseball Autographs
The encased autographs, which come one per box, feature a mix of past, present and future stars. The signer list includes Hall of Famers Derek Jeter, Johnny Bench and Reggie Jackson, as well as Mike Trout, Luis Robert and all of the rookies included in the base set. These autographs also have serial-numbered parallels (Refractor #/150, Green #/99, Gold #/50, Orange #/25, Red #/5, Superfractor 1/1) that add excitement to the chase in each box.
Topps sweetens the deal by adding a highly curated 21-player Super Futures autograph set that is numbered to 99 or less of top rookies and young stars such as Randy Arozarena, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Juan Soto.
2021 Topps Chrome Black Baseball Box Break
Watch our box break video below of 2021 Topps Chrome Black Baseball to see which autograph we pulled, as well as to get an up close look at the tremendous design that we think make this set one of Topps' best this year.
Topps rolled out one of its high-end products earlier this year with 2021 Topps Tier One Baseball. The three-card boxed product is a high-risk, high-reward proposition, as collectors hope to hit one or more autographs that justify the $250 price tag.
Each box offers two autographed cards and one relic with a dizzying level of signature variations. A look at the checklist reveals nine different autographed card categories and an additional eight types of autographed relics. Major starts past and present are included in this set, with Shohei Ohtani and Ronald Acuña Jr. alongside the recently deceased Hank Aaron and the Hall of Fame's newest member, Gil Hodges.
Baseball's next wave is also heavily represented, as Topps highlights the game's emerging stars. Fans will find on-card autographs of coveted young talents such as Ke'Bryan Hayes, Jo Adell and Luis Robert in 2021 Topps Tier One Baseball.
The set's design is crisp, with the photo and signature getting an even split on the front, giving the signature room to breathe without disrupting the card's flow. The thick card stock has a premium feel in one's hand, which should be expected at this price point.
In the box Topps provided for this review, we scored a major hit that sure made 2021 Topps Tier One Baseball a fruitful dive. Watch the video below from our YouTube channel to see which superstar's autograph we pulled from the box.
No more debates about whether Gil Hodges belongs in the Hall of Fame. The 2021 Golden Days Committee voted Hodges in the Hall of Fame during its December vote, giving Hodges the 12 votes necessary for election.
Leading up to the vote, I debated in my Forbes Sports column whether the Hall of Fame had a financial interest in electing Hodges, as past committees haven't been favorable to deceased candidates from his era. Apparently, the committee went all in on four candidates—Jim Kaat, Minnie Miñoso, Tony Oliva and Hodges (with Dick Allen narrowly missing), focusing on widening the Hall's reach, instead of focusing on the living candidates who could promote the museum.
The three-time World Series champion (two as a player, one as a manager) died of a heart attack on April 2, 1972 during spring training with the New York Mets. Prior to his election, Hodges was the only Hall of Fame candidate eligible for the Veterans and Eras Committees that received at least 50% of the BBWAA vote and didn't get enshrined.
The Atlanta Braves just overcame the Houston Astros to claim the 2021 World Series after what was an utterly enthralling season of baseball, but we are already thinking about how next season will go – and who might win the 2022 Fall Classic.
Read on to find out who the favorites at vegasbetting.com to make the playoffs are – and what baseball fans can expect to see in the ballparks next year.
Braves to Repeat?
Atlanta ‘only’ won 88 games in the regular season in 2021 and was ranked third in the National League going into the playoffs. An excellent postseason run saw the Braves overcome Milwaukee in the NLDS, before beating favorites Los Angeles Dodgers in six in the NLCS. It then took another six games to get past Houston to win the World Series.
There doesn’t seem to be too much appetite for backing the Braves to repeat in 2022. A lot will depend on whether Freddie Freeman will return, even though Atlanta should be fine to finish atop of what is a very inconsistent NL East. Anything can happen in the playoffs, of course, but Atlanta might not be celebrating again this time in 2022.
Dodgers the Sportsbooks’ Favorites
Unsurprisingly, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been named the favorites with the bookmakers to win the World Series next year. That was the case this year. The Dodgers won 106 regular season games, but couldn’t take the NL West; however, they got revenge against the Giants in the NLDS.
There are plenty of question marks about the Dodgers going into 2022. A lot of money was spent two years ago to win multiple World Series – and that hasn’t quite happened. The flag was won in 2021, but there was no repeat. Now with many of their leading players as free agents, there is an uncertainty that hampers any real confidence in a Dodgers title.
MLB Teams to Look Out for in 2022
It doesn’t look as though there will be many surprises in 2022. A bunch of teams will be expected to make repeat postseason appearances – but once it gets to that point, that is where things will get interesting. As far as the regular season goes, the NL West is worth keeping an eye on. San Diego was disappointing in 2021, but could upset either San Francisco or Los Angeles next year.
The American League looks a little bit more predictable. Houston and the Chicago should win their respective divisions once again, while Tampa Bay should have the East locked up. The real battle in that division is with Toronto pushing to upset the Red Sox and Yankees to sneak into the wild card spots.
Race for the Flag
The 2021
MLB playoffs showed that anything can happen once the regular season ends. Tampa won 100 games last year and then fell to the Red Sox in the ALDS – a team that won eight fewer in the regular season. Both number one seeded teams fell away well before the World Series too.
Baseball’s postseason system might seem a little cruel to fans of other sports. After such a long and grueling regular season, only five teams out of 15 have a chance of progressing – and one of those only gets a one-off wild card game to stay in the competition. Whoever does make it to the World Series has definitely earned it.
Final Words
This article didn’t set out to confidently predict the winner of the 2022 World Series; however, hopefully you will see the race for the flag will be just as intense next year as it always has been.
There will be some very familiar faces at the business end of the season – that’s for sure. But as far as the 2022 champion goes at this point it's all speculation.
We recently opened a box of 2021 Topps Luminaries Baseball for our YouTube channel. Each box contains one encased autograph or autographed relic card. The checklist is impressive, containing the top modern stars such as Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, as well as Hall of Famers Ichiro, Mike Piazza and Ken Griffey Jr. One lucky fan will pull the 50-player Home Run Ultimate Book card which features 50 of the top past and present home run hitters.
Watch the video below to see which autographed card we pulled from 2021 Topps Luminaries Baseball.
The baseball card collecting world was turned upside down when both MLB and the MLBPA announced they would not renew Topps' licensing deals. This was a tremendous blow to Topps, as it foiled its merger deal with Mudrick Capital just one day after the announcement was made.
Fanatics will get the MLPBA license starting in 2023 and the MLB license in 2026. The MLBPA license will allow Fanatics to use the entire active MLB roster on its trading cards, while the forthcoming MLB license will give them use of the coveted team logos.
Topps' Allen and Ginter Baseball set traditionally appeals to a broad spectrum of collectors with it's vintage design and celebrity infused checklist. This year's 2021 Topps Allen and Ginter Baseball set stays true to form featuring the likes of Marc Anthony and Jason Biggs, alongside current stars and retired MLB legends. Old school collectors will be happy to see names such as Dick Allen, Vida Blue, Mo Vaughn, and Kent Hrbek in the set, as well as Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry getting his first Allen and Ginter card.
We took a look at the entire set, as well as spoke with Topps' communications manager Emily Kless about the set for our Forbes Sports Money column. Click here to read the review.
