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  Luis A. Olave / the latin insider

About the Author
The primary goal of the Latin American Beisbol Guru is to introduce Latin American baseball to the North American public. The grand game has evolved and flourished magnificently for the past 140 years in Latin America.

We hope to increase an awareness of and an intrinsic appreciation for Latin baseball by sharing historical feature articles on the evolution and development of the game throughout Mexico, Central America, the fertile Caribbean Rim and northern South America, developing news coverage, commentary, Hot Winter League up-dates, player-development analysis, the Guru's Take on the current talent pool and movement and up-dated research topics, encouraging the serious study of Latin baseball by helping researchers and fans network.

A native of Cartagena, Colombia, Luis has researched and studied its nascent history, its pioneers, its leaders, its expansion, its professional leagues, its great players and legends, its significant milestones, its contribution to North America's pastime, its socio-cultural-political-economic impact, its geopolitics, its international export, its unique culture, the exuberance and infectious passion of its fans, its eclectic brand of play, and its well-documented mystique.

Luis is a soon-to-be-published author who has written numerous articles for publication and is an erudite Latin American baseball historian, a former player, college coach, professional scout and a team sports marketing executive, who has appeared as an expert guest analyst on sports radio talk shows throughout the United States and Latin America. He enjoys a voracious appetite for anything involving baseball history with side interests in Sabermetric Analysis, Negro Leagues, Bibliographical Research, Business of Baseball, Minor Leagues, Science and Baseball and Socio-Economic Aspects. He is a member of SABR, the Society for American Baseball Research.

Personal Favorites & Endorsements:

TEAMS: 1975-Cincinnati Reds, 1998 New York Yankees, 1961 & 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates, 1974 Oakland A's, 1962 San Francisco Giants, 1990 Oakland A's, 1986 New York Mets

LATIN LEGENDS: Martin Dihigo, Cristobal Torriente, Rafael, Almeida, Armando Marsans, Jose de la Caridad Mendez, Luis (Mulo) Padron, Alejandro Oms, Pelayo Chacon, Miguel Angel Gonzalez, Adolfo Luque, Eustaquio (Bombin) Pedroso, Luis Tiant Sr., Luis Tiant Jr., Manuel (Cocaina) Garcia, Pedro Formental, Alejandro Crespo, Silvio Garcia, Avelino Canizares, Claro Duany, Ramon Bragana, Lazaro Salazar, Basillo (Brujo) Rosell, Baldomero "Melo" Almada, Jose Luis "Chile" Gomez, Roberto "Beto" Avila, Jesus " Jesse" Flores, Ruben Amaro, Felipe " Clipper" Montemayor, Jorge "Charolito" Orta, Aurelio Rodriguez, Vincente "Huevo" Romo, Guillermo "Memo" Luna, Celerino Sanchez, Mario Mendoza, Aurelio Lopez, Ramon Arano, Jesus Sommers, Hector Espino, Fernando "El Toro" Valenzuela, Benjamin "Cananea" Reyes, Juan Esteban "Tetelo" Vargas, Horacio Martinez, Alonzo Thomas Perry, Osvaldo "Oregano" Virgil, Diomedes "Guayubin" Olivo, Federico "Chichi" Olivo, Felipe Alou, Manny Mota, Rico Carty, Juan Marichal, Francisco "Pancho" Coimbre, Pedro "Perchuco" Cepeda, Hiram Bithorn, Luis Rodrguez Olmo, Roberto Clemente, Orlando Cepeda, Stanley Cayasso, Jose Angel "El Chino" Melendez, Eduardo Green, Ernesto Lopez, Pedro "Bambino" Selva, Rigoberto Mena, Nemesio Porras, Alejandro Canales, Dennis Martinez, Alejandro "Paton" Carrasquel, Jesus "Chucho" Ramos, Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel, Dalmiro Finol, Jose de la Trinidad "Carrao" Bracho, Luis "Mono" Zuluaga, Vidal Lopez, Victor Davalillo, Cesar Tovar, Teolindo Acosta, Luis "Camaleon" Garcia, Humberto "Pipita" Leal, Damaso Blanco, Angel Bravo, Luis Aparacio, David Concepcion, Jesus Marcano Trillo, Antonio Armas, Andres Galarraga, Baudillo Diaz, Luis Leal, Felix "Nene" Heraldez, Pablo Cobas, Cleveland "Pinta La Gallo" Mitchell, Ismael Antadilla, Modesto Perez, Patricio Sacantlebury, Frank Silvester "Bin Bin" Austin, Oscar "Chic" Levy, Leon Kellman, Andres Alonso, Astor Cupidan, Ulyses Mahoney, Humberto Robinson, Hector Lopez, Rod Carew, Manny Sanguillen, Juan Berenguer, Reinaldo Stennett, Ivan Murrell, Benjamin Oglivie, Omar Moreno, Mariano Rivera, Gonzalo & Hibraim Zuninga Angel, Ramon & Alberto Urueta Mendez, Abraham Garcia Senior, Luis Castro, Pedro "Chita" Miranda, Carlos "Petaca" Rodriguez, Humberto "Papi" Vargas, Armando Crizon, Jose "Judas" Araujo, Isidro "Cobby" Florez, Pablo Arrieta, Rafael "Capi" Arrieta, Pedro "Pollo" Zambrano, Enrique "Quique" Hernandez, Ramon "Varita" Herazo, Inocencio Rodriguez, Orlando Ramirez, Abel Leal, Edgar Renteria, Orlando Cabrera.

BALLPLAYER-ALL-TIME: Roberto Clemente, Pete Rose, Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal, Tom Seaver, Sandy Koufax, Steve Carlton, Ferguson Jenkins, Catfish Hunter, Vida Blue, Willie Mays, Orestes "Minnie" Minoso, Tany Perez, Felipe Alou, Orlando Cepeda, Luis Tiant, Tony Oliva, Johnny Bench, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Lou Brock, Luis Aparicio, David Concepcion, Willie McCovey, Mike Schmidt, Roberto Alomar, Bill Mazeroski, Bert Campaneris, Sam McDowell, Rod Carew, Frank Robinson, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Ivan Rodriguez, Eddie Murray, Ted Kluszewski

HONORABLE MENTION: Dick Allen, Cesar Cedeno, Rico Carty, Keith Hernandez, Dave Parker, Tony Pena, Tony Fernandez, Manny Trillo, Felix Millan, Julian Javier, Manny Sanguillen, Rennie Stennett, Tony Taylor, Andres Galarraga,Vic Davalillo, Manny Mota

BALLPLAYERS-CURRENT: Alex Rodriguez, Pedro Martinez, Edgar Martinez, Manny Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero

MANAGER: Sparky Anderson, Earl Weaver, Dick Williams, Felipe Alou, Bobby Cox

SCOUTS: Joe Cambria, Howie Haak, Herb Rayborn, Eppy Guerrero, Mike Brito, Ralph Avila, Luis Rosa, Andres Reiner

GENERAL MANAGER: Branch Rickey, Joe L. Brown, Paul Owens, Tal Smith, Pat Gillick, John Schuerholz, Brian Sabean, Billy Beane, Omar Minaya, Jim Bowden

BOOKS:
Only the Ball was White by Robert Peterson
The Complete Book of the Negro Leagues, the Other Half of Baseball History by John Holway
The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball by Jonathan Fraser Light
The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract by Bill James
Remember Roberto by Jim O'Brien
1960:The Last Pure Season by Kerry Keene
The Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn
The Pride of Havana by Roberto Gonzalez Echeverria
October 1964 by David Halberstam
Ball Four by Jim Bouton
The Science of Hitting by Ted Williams
Baseball's Other All-Stars by William F. McNeil
The Lords of the Realm by John Helyar
The Long Season by Jim Brosnan
La Leyenda del Beisbol Cubano by Angel Torres
Baseball Dynasties: The Greatest Teams of All Times by Rob Neyer & Eddie Epstein

ANNUAL: STATS Red Book

WRITER: Peter Gammons, Roger Angell, David Halberstam, Lawrence Ritter

ANNOUNCER: Tony Kubek, Vince Scully, Jon Miller, Harry Caray, Buck Canel, Felo Ramirez

MAJOR LEAGUE BALLPARK: Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, Dodger Stadium, Busch Stadium, Jacobs Field, PNC Park

BALLPARK: (0verseas): Estadio Latinoamericano, Havana, Cuba
Estadio Universitario Los Chaguaramos, Caracas, Venezuela
Estadio Roberto Clemente Walker, Carolina, Puerto Rico
Estadio Quisqueya, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

MINOR LEAGUE BALLPARKS: Franklin Covey Field, SBC Bricktown, Louisville Slugger Field, Durham Bulls Athletic Park, Victory Field, Harbor Park, Yale Field, Cohen Stadium, Ray Winder Field, Holman Stadium, The Diamond, Centennial Field, John C. O'Donnell Stadium, McCormick Field, Legends Field, Wahconah Park, LeLacheur Park

MOVIES: Bull Durham (vhs), The Natural (vhs), Field of Dreams (vhs), 61 (vhs), Major League (vhs), Pride of the Yankees (vhs), The Rookie (vhs), For Love of The Game (vhs), The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (vhs)

BEST CURRENT POSITION PLAYER: Alex Rodriguez

BEST CURRENT PITCHER: Pedro Martinez

FAVORITE QUOTE: "Baseball is ninety percent mental. The other half is physical" by Yogi Berra

Contact
Email Luis Olave

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