Google Pays Tribute To Baseball Player Roberto Clemente With A Doodle

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Friday's Google Doodle pays tribute to a familiar face to baseball fans: Pittsburgh Pirates legend Roberto Clemente, who was featured for Hispanic Heritage Month. Clemente, who was born in Puerto Rico, is commemorated by Google as an exceptional baseball player and humanitarian.

Clemente was the first Latin American player to be inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame, and died when he was 38 in a plane crash on New Year's Eve in 1972. Clemente was on his way to deliver aid packages in Nicaragua after an earthquake that killed thousands of people.

"Today we celebrate Puerto Rico, the Hall of Fame baseball star Roberto Clemente, whose record-breaking performance on the field coincided with his groundbreaking humanitarian efforts off the field," the Google team wrote via Twitter.

Clemente was a 15-time All-Star player, 12-time Gold Glover winner, two-time World Series winner, and World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1971. He also won the MVP in 1966. After the Clemente's death, the Hall of Fame waived its five-year waiting period for players in March 1973 and induced Clemente. The Pirates retired No. 21 from Clemente in 1973.

Clemente's 12 Gold Gloves are tied by a fielder with Willie Mays, and according to CNET he has the only accredited pastime within the Grand Slam in MLB history. Clemente played at least 100 games in each season of his 18-year major league career. Although Clemente was not the first native of Puerto Rico to play in the majors (Hiram Bithorn played in 1942, 13 years before Clemente began his career), he was arguably the most influential.

Other Hispanic legends such as the late Queen of Tex Mex, Selena Quintanilla, and Peruvian singer Yma Sumac have been honored with Google doodles on past occasions.