Luis Giraldo Casanova
Luis Giraldo Casanova Castillo (born December 5, 1956) is a former baseball player in the Cuban National Series who had a successful career in international tournaments. He led 7 major international tournaments in home runs, over half of the competitions he appeared in. Casanova's teams won many titles in Cuban league play and he led the league in all three Triple Crown statistics at least once.
He was born in Bahía Honda, Cuba. He was nicknamed El Señor Pelotero. He is the brother of Leovigildo Casanova and uncle of Reinier Casanova.
Casanova made his debut on the international stage in the 1978 Central American and Caribbean Games. The 21-year-old outfielder helped the Cuban national team win a Gold Medal, going 20 for 33 and tying for the most doubles (5).
In the 1978 Amateur World Series, Casanova hit .444 with 12 runs and eight RBI in ten games. He was second in the tournament in batting average behind Roberto Espino. His 3 homers tied for 4th, behind Antonio Muñoz, Tim Wallach and Ernesto Lopez. Cuba won Gold.
In the 1979 Pan American Games, Casanova had 13 hits in 35 at-bats to hit .371 and help Cuba win Gold. He tied Terry Francona for the most triples (3) and tied Francona and Agustin Marquetti for the most hits. In the 1979 Intercontinental Cup, Casanova hit .375 as Cuba cruised to victory.
Casanova had his first great season in domestic play in Cuba in the 1979-1980 Serie Nacional, leading in runs (64) and walks (57). He tied for the most sacrifice flies (5) and his 18 home runs tied Pedro José Rodríguez, Sr. for the most.
Casanova tied Antonio Muñoz for the 1980 Amateur World Series lead in home runs with seven as Cuba won Gold. In the 1981 Serie Nacional season, Casanova led the league with 9 times hit by pitch. In the Selective Series of 1981, he hit .363, leading the league in batting average. He also tied for the league lead in triples, with four. During the 1981 Intercontinental Cup, Casanova's Cuban team failed to win Gold for the first and only time of his career. He was 19 for 37 at the plate and led in average (.514), home runs (6), runs (12), hits (15) and RBI (19). Casanova won MVP honors though the USA took home the Gold Medal.
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