Santo Domingo, DR– He Duartiano Institute (ID) last night summoned prominent personalities of national life to a solemn “Patriotic Tribute” in honor of Don Juan Marichalfirst baseball player from the Dominican Republic to enter the Cooperstown Hall of Fame.
The ceremony, which highlighted the national pride that “The Monster of Laguna Verde” represents, took place in the “Profesor” auditorium. José Joaquín Pérez Saviñón”, located on the second level of the headquarters of the patriotic entity, located on the emblematic Isabel la Católica street in the Colonial City.
The event began with the words of the general secretary Duartiana, Rafaela Mesa and the motivation of the sports narrator Ricky Noboa, who expressed that “Marichal filled our country with glory, exhibited exemplary conduct as a baseball player and as a citizen, and, in addition, always offered the country the benefit of seeing him perform generously in the fall-winter tournaments of the Dominican league.”
On his side, the sports announcer and chronicler César Daniel Medina Núñezwrote a tenth for the occasion, which was read with the grace typical of the traditional sports radio space “Amalgam of colors on the ball”, preceded by the reproduction of a cut from the song “Me lo dice Adela”, which attracted enthusiastic applause from those present.
You may be interested in reading: Leonel Fernández: “I wanted to be Juan Marichal”
The president of the Duartiano Institute, Dr. Wilson Gómez Ramírez, stated that the expression “honor honor” gains all its power with this meaning and highly deserved recognition of a good son of this land, who, with humility, achieved the highest sporting glory of his discipline, always carrying his nationality with healthy pride, setting an example on and off the sports field.
He added that, at this time, the country enthusiastically welcomes those who, like “Juan Marichal, have given luster to its name and have presented themselves to the world as worthy sons of the Father of the Country and Founder of the Republic, Juan Pablo Duarte.”
The honored baseball star was accompanied by his wife Alma de Marichal, his children Yvette, Juan Antonio, Úrsula, Rosie and Charlene; also from his grandchildren Juan III and Miranda.
Among the attendees were also directors and members of the Duartiano Institute, as well as Roberto Saladín Selín, Adalgisa Pantaleón, Luisa Rivera Damirón and María Cristina Mere de Farías, among other personalities.
The day included the screening of the documentary “Homage to Don Juan Marichal”, with which the Duartiano Institute replicated a previous dedication made to the legendary baseball player. Immediately afterwards, the master of elocution, sports chronicler and poet César Daniel Medina Núñez, member of the ID, performed a tenth dedicated to the star’s career.
The most emotional moment of the night was the presentation of a plaque of recognition to Don Juan Marichal, the placing in his hands of the National Flag, the gift of the collection of Duartiana publications, the Duartiano button and a desk bust with the figure of the Trinidadian leader, crowning the distinction decided unanimously by the members of the national board of directors of the patriotic organization.
The first Dominican immortal then expressed his words thanking the Duartians for “the honor of recognizing his sporting career and his civic life, specifying that he always took his homeland into account in every act as a Major League and Dominican baseball pitcher.”
The event concluded with the singing of the Hymn to Juan Pablo Duarte and a toast in the Patriotic Plaza of Liberty, located inside the Duarte-Díez Family House.
The path that led a Dominican to immortality
Juan Marichal, known by nicknames such as the “Dominican Dandy,” was born on October 20, 1937 in Laguna Verde, Dominican Republic. Throughout his 16 seasons in the Major Leagues, the elegant right-hander recorded 243 wins and 142 losses, with an ERA of 2.89, and was selected to ten All-Star Games.
Marichal established himself as an icon of the San Francisco Giants, the team with which he spent most of his career, and his famous elevated leg drive when throwing became his hallmark.
His legacy transcended statistics by becoming, in 1983, the first Dominican player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. His accomplishments include leading the National League in wins twice and throwing a no-hitter on June 15, 1963.
Today, Marichal is considered one of the greatest right-handed pitchers in baseball history, and his number 27 was retired in his honor by the San Francisco Giants Major League team.
