Vidal López

In 1935, at age 17, López debuted professionally with the Royal Criollos BBC of the newly created Liga Nacional de Béisbol, which had stabilized the first national championship of first division in Venezuela since its inauguration in 1930.[4] The circuit included other three teams, which resulted in a revised weekend schedule of 24 games in which each team played its three opponents four times apiece. López emerged as a dominant shutdown starter in his debut, pitching in seven of the 12 games of his team and going 5–0 with 28 strikeouts and a minuscule 0.65 earned run average in 55 innings, guiding his team to the championship pennant.[5]

López was used sparingly in his second year, but enjoyed a superb all-around season with the Sabios de Vargas in 1937, as he topped the league in home runs (4) and RBIs (12), while posting a .312 batting average with a 2-1 pitching record and a 2.77 ERA in three pitching appearances. In addition, he etched his name in the records books by setting two marks in Venezuelan baseball history. On August 22, he smashed a grand slam off Centauros' pitcher Oscar Estrada, which became the first grand slam ever hit in a Venezuelan ballpark. Then, on September 26 he also became the first player ever to hit two home runs in a single game.[5]

By then, the appearance of professional baseball in Venezuela attracted many ball players from the Caribbean and the United States to the country, showing a more integrated sport there than it was in the United States. This is evidenced in the hiring of stellar pitchers like Ramón Bragaña, Martín Dihigo, Bertrum Hunter, Satchel Paige, Roy Welmaker and the aforementioned Estrada among others, to whom the teenage López had to face more than one once, either as a hitter or pitcher.[5]

López returned after a one-year absence and was impressive on the mound for the repeating champion Vargas in 1939, going 5-1 with a league-best ERA of 1.71 and 30 strikeouts, allowing 12 earned runs on 47 hits and 12 walks in 63.0 innings. He also contributed as a two-way player, batting a .274 average, two homers and six RBIs in 23 games.[5]

Traded to the Cardenales BBC in 1940, he tied with Centauros' Josh Gibson for the most home runs (4) and finished second in RBIs (11) behind teammate Chucho Ramos (14). He also made 14 pitching appearances, going 3-6 with a 3.44 ERA and 55 strikeours in 110 innings.[5]

After the regular season, López signed a contract to play with the Elefantes de Cienfuegos in the 1940–1941 Cuban League tournament. He quickly became the best pitcher of the league, topping all pitchers with 12 victories and 16 complete games,[6] playing in a highly competitive league that boasted such pitching stars as Martín Dihigo, Agapito Mayor, Gilberto Torres, Tomás de la Cruz and Luis Tiant, Sr., as well as noted hitters as Lázaro Salazar, Ray Dandridge, Sam Bankhead, Roberto Estalella, Alejandro Crespo and Santos Amaro. That season, López also was involved in the fastest game played in Cuban baseball history, as he won a complete-game pitching duel against René Monteagudo and the Leopardos de Santa Clara by a score of 2–1, which lasted one hour and nine minutes.[7] Eventually, López played in the outfield corners during his lone season in Cuba, but was also notable as he made the All-Star team and was just the second Venezuelan to play in the Cuban league after fellow pitcher Alejandro Carrasquel, an MVP Award winner in the 1938–1939 season.[8]

The first and most important event in Venezuelan baseball history was the 1941 victory of the national selection over the Cuban squad in the Baseball World Cup tournament held in Havana. It served to consolidate baseball as the deporte rey –the dominant sport– in Venezuela in the years to come.

Even though López did not participate in the 1941 event, he had time to join the Venezuelan league after returning from Cuba. He was unquestionably the dominant pitcher in the circuit, fashioning a ledger of 9-4 with 55 strikeouts and a 0.67 ERA to win the pitching Triple Crown, while handling a 121-inning work in his first full season for Magallanes, allowing also only nine earned runs on 67 hits and 22 walks. As an ace pitcher and cleanup hitter, he also hurled two no-hitters, led in innings pitched, and smashed the only home run of the tournament. Although this was a wasted effort, because of the fact of his team lost the final and decisive game to the eventual champions Patriotas de Venezuela.[1][5]

Short before the Venezuelan tournament ended, López arrived in San Juan, Puerto Rico to play with the Cangrejeros de Santurce one day before the 1941–1942 Puerto Rican season began.[9]

López had some pretty memorable moments while playing in Puerto Rico. In his debut, he struck out 11 Tiburones de Aguadilla batters, including the side in the fifth inning, but lost the game. He rebounded in his next start, pitching a shutout against the Leones de Ponce and also homering in that win. Then, López faced Negro league star Terris McDuffie and the Senadores de San Juan in game one of a crucial series. During the game, Cangrejeros fans roared when López struck out Monte Irvin with the bases loaded and forced McDuffie to hit into an eight inning double play to preserve a 2–1 lead. Previously, López had driven in both Santurce runs with a single. He was carried off the field by the Santurce fans after the victory, while the Cangrejeros swept the two games of the series.[10]

Nevertheless, Santurce lost several close games, being unable to match Ponce, the team that won both halves of the season led by slugger Francisco Coimbre. López was selected for the league All-Star games played on January 1, 1942. It had been three seasons since the league's first All-Star game took effect in 1938–1939. Besides López, both contests featured notable players as Barney, Raymond and Willard Brown (non-relatives), as well as Bill Byrd, Roy Campanella, Buster Clarkson, Ray Dandridge, Leon Day, Josh Gibson, Luis Olmo, Quincy Trouppe, Willie Wells, and Coimbre and Irvin, among others.[10]

After his stint in Puerto Rico, López joined the Cervecería Caracas club during the 1942–1943 season, as the Venezuelan league shifted players as needed to help new teams stay afloat.

During what turned out to be another productive season for López, he claimed his second and consecutive pitching Triple Crown in Venezuelan baseball.

He posted a 6–1 record with a 1.14 ERA and 26 strikeouts in his eight starts and also led in complete games (6), while scattering eight earned runs on 11 hits and 10 walks over 63⅓ innings of work. To complement his fine performance, he contributed with a .313 average, drove in 20 runs, and posted a solid .417 of slugging in 12 games.[5]

López went 3-3 with a 1.83 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 1943–1944, completing six of his eight pitching appearances for Magallanes. He also hit .375 with one home run and 12 RBIs in 18 games, while leading the league in doubles (6).[5]

López continued his winning ways in the Mexican League from 1943 through 1945.[11] There were just too many good ballplayers, and not only from Mexico. The homegrown Mexican players included former Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Senators infielder Chile Gómez, as well as future American League champion bat Bobby Ávila, to name a few.[12]

All Mexican league teams were also strengthened by an abundance of Cuban talent such as former Senators catcher Mike Guerra, who played and managed, while the versatile Martín Dihigo managed, pitched and excelled at second base. Ultimately, López improved at least from the perspective of his long term development as a two-way player, so he joined the league with the Industriales de Monterrey, where he formed a battery with future Hall of Fame catcher Roy Campanella.[13]

López resulted victorious in his Mexican debut, compiling a 16-12 record with a 2.08 ERA and also hitting a .304 average in 78 games as an outfielder, while leading all pitchers in ERA and tying for fifth for the most wins.[13]

In 1944, he again was a two-way star for Monterrey, batting a .280 average with 11 home runs and 60 RBI in 85 games, ranking also second with 23 stolen bases and tying for third in homers. As a pitcher, he fashioned a mark of 13-14 with a decent 3.70 ERA.[13]

At the time, López was enjoying the best moment of his career, but then things began to change. Between Venezuela, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Mexico, López had worked close to 1,000 innings in his previous four years, a considerable amount of usage for anyone, but especially for a pitcher who was then only in his early twenties.

As a result, López was suffering from arm fatigue and a sore elbow in 1945, ending with a 0-1 record and a 9.00 ERA in only seven innings of work for Monterrey. Additionally, his offensive production declined as the season progressed, while batting .270 in limited action as an outfielder.[13]

Briefly after returning from Mexico, López was kept under wraps due to his fears concerning his pitching arm. Unfortunately, the acute effects of overload pitching and nagging injuries rendered him ineffective with Magallanes in the 1945 season, losing his only start in which he gave up just two runs on 10 hits through seven innings, while striking out two batters and walking one. Nevertheless, he enjoyed a successful season as an outfielder, winning the batting crown with an average of .464 in 16 games, driving in 13 runs and scoring 14 times in 16 games, while also leading the league in hits (26), doubles (9), and slugging percentage (.714).[5]

When the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League started to operate in 1946, López stayed with Magallanes for the rest oh his career and also managed the team in part of that season. He batted a paltry .216 average and three homers in 28 games, while his 23 RBIs ranked him fourth in the new circuit despite missing significant playing time due to recurrent injuries. He also realized that his pitching arm was gone, and though he might come back for a couple of games, he could never again pitch effectively at all, giving up three earned runs on four hits and five walks, while striking one in his final three innings of work. López became the first player to pinch-hit a home run in VPBL history in that season, when he belted his blast off Vargas' ace pitcher Roy Welmaker.[5]

López rebounded sharply during the 1947–1948 season, winning the batting title with a .374 average, driving in 29 RBIs and collecting a .532 of slugging in 39 games, while again managing Magallanes for a brief stint. He also led the VPBL in hits (52), had six RBIs less than leader Dalmiro Finol (Cerveceria), tied for fourth in home runs (4), and finished fourth in slugging, being surpassed only by Luke Easter (Patriotas), Henry McHenry (Magallanes) and Roy Campanella (Vargas).[5]

In 1948–1949, López served as an outfielder and part-time manager with Magallanes for a third season in a row. He topped the league with 29 RBIs and batted a second-best .372 average, losing the batting race to Caracas' shortstop Chico Carrasquel by a narrow margin (.37288 to .37209).[5] He then reinforced the Cervecería Caracas champion team in the First Caribbean Series to be played in 1949, going 1-for-2 in a pitch-hitting role.[14]

López posted another strong offensive performance in 1949–1950, when he batted .355 and led the league with nine home runs and 43 RBIs in 49 games. He also led the hitters with a slugging of .645, .009 points ahead teammate Jim Pendleton, and finished second in batting average, .32 points shy of Pendleton.[5] This time, López managed Magallanes to the pennant and advanced to the 1950 Caribbean Series. The team finished last with a 1–5 record, while López went 4-for-15 and paced the offense with a team-high four RBIs, leading also the Series in doubles (4) and tying for fourth in RBIs.[15]

In 1950–1951 López hit .359 with five homers and 36 RBIs in 35 games, helping Magallanes win a second consecutive pennant and a ticket to the 1951 Caribbean Series.[5] He went 3-for-6, including a double and one RBI as a backup outfielder and pinch-hitter, in what would be his final Series appearance.[15]

In later years López suffered problems with his weight and old injuries, which disminished his effectiveness on the field. Nevertheless, he mastered the art of pinch-hitting and eventually played decent defense in the outfield corners. He declined in the 1951–1952 season, lowering his average to .240, while batting two home runs with 19 RBIs in 41 games. Used exclusively as a pinch hitter in the next two seasons, he went 2-for-19 with a double, retiring after the 1954–1955 tournament.[5]

Bold denotes category leader.