The legendary Cuban baseball player René Arocha returned to the mound on Monday for the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium, where he threw the first pitch in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Cardinals wanted to honor Arocha by inviting him to throw the first ceremonial pitch before the game, in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.
"One of the things that excited me the most tonight was when my images were shown on the board," he expressed on his Facebook wall.
The star pitcher, who attended the stadium with his family, relived his glory days with the team he debuted with in Major League Baseball in 1993.
"Ryan Fernández, pitcher son of Cubans, was the one who received my first pitch today in Saint Louis," he said in another post.
Like 31 years ago, Arocha was applauded by the thousands of fans present at the sports venue. On that occasion, he did not play at the Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium II, which was demolished in 2005.
Born in Havana 60 years ago, he was the first Cuban baseball player to leave a delegation.
His departure in 1991 paved the way for many athletes who emigrated in the following years and fulfilled their dreams of living in freedom and developing in professional baseball.
He played four seasons in the Major Leagues.
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