Héctor Benítez

Center fielder

Born: November 1, 1918
Caracas, Venezuela

Died: June 17, 2011 (aged 92)
Caracas, Venezuela

Batted: Left

Threw: Left

Teams

Cervecería Caracas (1946–47 – 1950–51)
Lácteos de Pastora (1950[mid])
Patriotas de Venezuela (1951–52 –1952–53; 1954–55)
Leones del Caracas (1953–54[start])
Navegantes del Magallanes 1953–54[end])
Licoreros de Pampero (1955–56 – 1956–57)

Career highlights and awards

Two-time Baseball World Cup Gold medal (1941; 1945)
Baseball World Cup Most Valuable Player (1945)
Caribbean Series All-Star (1952)
Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum inductee

1941 Venezuela national baseball champion team roster (2006)
Individual induction (2008)

Héctor Benítez (November 1, 1918 – June 17, 2011) was a Venezuelan professional baseball player. Listed at 5' 7" (1.73 m), 160 lb. (73 k), he batted and threw left handed.

Born in Caracas, Benítez spent 21 years in Venezuelan baseball, playing in three different leagues as well as for his national team in international tournaments. A solid line-drive hitter and an aggressive base runner, he excelled as a speedy center fielder with a strong arm who gained notoriety for his spectacular diving and shoestring catches.

A Most Valuable Player and Venezuelan Hall of Famer, he was the first ballplayer born in Venezuela to make a Caribbean Series All-Star Team and also became the first to ever hit three home runs in a single game in Venezuelan baseball history.

Redondo, as he was dubbed by teammates and fans alike, made his professional debut in the First Division of Baseball of Venezuela, playing for five teams in eight seasons spanning 1938–1945. He then moved to the Cervecería Caracas club in 1946, to become a founding member of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League in its inaugural season.

The 18-year-old Benítez gained international exposure with the Venezuela national baseball team in the 1938 Central American and Caribbean Games held in Panama City, being used as a pitcher and cleanup hitter. But for much of the next decade, he was a valuable addition to the Venezuelan squad during the 1941 and 1945 Baseball World Cup tournaments, where he helped his team to win Gold medal at both championships, usually batting third in the order.

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Wikipedia