Cuban Amateur League
| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1914 |
| Ceased | 1960 |
| Replaced by | Cuban National Series |
| Country | Cuba |
The Cuban Amateur League (Spanish: Liga Nacional de Béisbol Amateur, lit. "National Amateur Baseball League") was a baseball circuit active in Cuba from 1914 to 1960. At its peak during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, it was a major competitor to the professional Cuban Winter League in terms of talent and popularity.[1]
History
Baseball in Cuba originated at the amateur level; storied winter league teams like Almendares and Habana originated as social clubs before evolving into professional sides. Though this circuit evolved into the professional Cuban Winter League by the turn of the 20th century, which was largely played in Havana, there continued to be baseball played by amateur, semi-pro, and sugar mill teams that, according to historian Peter C. Bjarkman, was in many cases at the same level of play as the professional league[2]
The "Liga Nacional" was originally formed as the top-level nationwide amateur tournament in 1914, with Vedado Tennis Club taking the inaugural pennant. In 1917, the league received official government sanction, bringing under the Unión Atlética Amateur de Cuba in 1922.[2]
The Amateur League produced a high level of talent, including several players that would go on to play in Major League Baseball such as Conrado Marrero, Julio "Jiqui" Moreno, Sandalio Consuegra, Rogelio "Limonar" Martínez, and others.[3][2] Other players, such as Pedro "Natilla" Jiménez and Antonio "Quilla" Valdés, had fleeting pro careers or eschewed professionalism entirely, but were nevertheless stars of the game in Cuba, rivaling their professional counterparts.[2][4] After the Boston Red Sox lost to a Cuban amateur team in 1941, manager Joe Cronin reportedly said, "They may be amateurs, but many are better than our players."[5]
Unlike the professional Cuban League, the amateur league was segregated for much of its existence. This partially stemmed from the fact that the exclusive social clubs that initially made up the league had their membership excluded to whites.[6] However, amateur clubs would periodically play exhibitions against racially-integrated sugarmill and semi-pro teams.[2]
The Amateur League enjoyed its peak of popularity in the early 1940s, when its best players formed the basis of the Cuba national baseball team at the Amateur World Series tournaments, held in Havana from 1939 to 1943. However, the league began to decline towards the end of World War II due to a variety of factors: MLB scouts such as Joe Cambria made it a priority to sign Cuban ballplayers, including those from the amateur leagues, leading to many star players turning pro.[2]
Records and statistics for the Amateur League are incomplete, and, according to Bjarkman, historical studies of Cuban baseball have largely marginalized the amateur league in favor of the professional Cuban Winter League.[2] However, the league was recently commemorated when the Vedado Tennis Club site was chosen for the re-establishment of the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015.[7]
Teams
Vedado Tennis Club (the "Marqueses") and Central Hershey ("Azucareros") tied for the most championships in the Amateur League, with seven each.[8] The University of Havana team, fielding a collegiate team nicknamed the "Caribes", won five titles over the course of the league's existence.[9]
- Vedado Tennis Club
- Instituto de La Habana
- Sociedad de Marianao
- Club Atlético de Cuba
- Fortuna BBC
- Regla BBC
- Central Hershey
- Deportivo Matanzas
- Club Telefónos
- Círculo Militar y Naval
- Círculo de Artesanos
Champions (1914–1960)
| Season | Champions | Record | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1914 | Vedado Tennis Club | 13–3 | Gustavo de Zaldo |
| 1915 | Vedado Tennis Club (2) | 12–3 | Gustavo de Zaldo |
| 1916 | Vedado Tennis Club (3) | 16–4 | Ignacio Zayas |
| 1917 | Atlético de Cuba | 9–2 | Gustavo Gutiérrez |
| 1918 | Club Bellamar de Matanzas | 13–3 | E. González |
| 1919 | Atlético de Cuba (2) | 18–4 | Gustavo Gutiérrez |
| 1920 | Cienfuegos Sports Club | 19–4 | C. Esquivel |
| 1921 | Fortuna Sports Club | 15–3–1 | Juan Albear |
| 1922 | Fortuna Sports Club (2) | 14–5 | Alfonso Peña |
| 1923 | Universidad de La Habana Caribes | 16–1–2 | G. Kendrigan |
| 1924 | Atlético de la Policía | 14–4 | Horacio Alonso |
| 1925 | Vedado Tennis Club (4) | 17–5-2 | Rafael Almeida |
| 1926 | Vedado Tennis Club (5) | 20–7-1 | Rafael Almeida |
| 1927 | Vedado Tennis Club (6) | 16–5 | Rafael Almeida |
| 1928 | Vedado Tennis Club (7) | 17–4 | Rafael Almeida |
| 1929 | Universidad de La Habana Caribes (2) | 23–5 | Oscar Ortiz |
| 1930 | Universidad de La Habana Caribes (3) | 12–3 | Oscar Ortiz |
| 1931 | Club Telefónos | 18–3–1 | Octavio Diviño |
| 1932 | Hershey Sport Club | 18–2–1 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1933 | Regla Base Ball Club | 15–7-1 | José López |
| 1934 | Hershey Sport Club (2) | 17–3 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1935 | Hershey Sport Club (3) | 20–5 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1936 | Fortuna Sport Club (3) | 14–5-2 | Reinaldo Cordeiro |
| 1937 | Fortuna Sport Club (4) | 13–6–1 | Reinaldo Cordeiro |
| 1938 | Hershey Sport Club (4) | 21–3 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1939 | Hershey Sport Club (5) | 21–5–1 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1940 | Hershey Sport Club (6) | 20–5 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1941 | Cienfuegos | 18–6-1 | Candido González |
| 1942 | Círculo Militar y Naval | 22–5 | Evelio Miranda |
| 1943 | Deportivo Matanzas | 23–5–2 | Pipo de la Noval |
| 1944 | Círculo de Artesanos | 26–3-1 | José R. Castañeda |
| 1945 | Deportivo Matanzas (2) | 27–4-2 | Pipo de la Noval |
| 1946 | Universidad de La Habana Caribes (4) | 26–5-2 | Víctor Muñoz |
| 1947 | Deportivo Rosario | 23–3 | Lorenzo Fernández |
| 1948 | Hershey Sport Club (7) | 17–4-2 | Joaquín Viego |
| 1949 | Universidad de La Habana Caribes (5) | 20–4 | Víctor Muñoz |
| 1950 | Club Telefónos (2) | 20–3-1 | Oscar Reyes |
| 1951 | Club Telefónos (3) | 20–3 | Oscar Reyes |
| 1952 | Cubaneleco | 20–4-1 | Manuel de le Fuente |
| 1953 | Cubaneleco (2) | 25–5 | Manuel de le Fuente |
| 1954 | Cubaneleco (3) | 24–7-1 | Manuel de le Fuente |
| 1955 | Liceo de Regla | 9–1–1 | Jesús Mera |
| 1956 | Santiago de Las Vegas | 26–2–1 | Oscar del Calvo |
| 1957 | Artemisa | 20–5-1 | Abelardo Gómez |
| 1959 | Regla Baseball Club (2) | 19–5-1 | Antonio Suarez |
| 1959 | Artemisa (2) | 20–3–1 | Francisco Quicutis |
| 1960 | Club Telefónos (4) | 15–2–1 | Oscar Garmendia |
Source:[10]
See also
References
- ^ Peter C. Bjarkman (2016). "Cuban League". SABR. Society for American Baseball Research.
- ^ a b c d e f g Bjarkman, p. 156–159
- ^ "Rogelio Martinez". SABR. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ "Antonio "Quilla Valdés, el genio defensivo del campo corto". Cuba Net. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ "Cuba relives big-league baseball ties". The Miami Herald. 28 March 1999. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ González Echevarría, pp. 190–191
- ^ "The resurrection of the Vedado Tennis Club". Inter Press Service in Cuba. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ "Ligas Amateurs: época dorada del béisbol cubano". Habana Radio. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ "Los Caribes de la Universidad de la Habana en las ligas amateurs de béisbol en Cuba". Deportes Cine y Otros. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
- ^ Bjarkman, pp. 189–193
Bibliography
- Bjarkman, Peter C. (2007). A History of Cuban Baseball, 1964–2006. McFarland. pp. 152–158, 189–193.
- González Echevarría, Roberto (1999). The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195069914.