The last living Cuban resident on the island with experience in the Cuban Professional League, Luis Zayas Travieso, passed away this Monday in Havana at the age of 87, according to state media on the island and people close to the former player.
Zayas Travieso was a professional player on the teams of La Habana and Cienfuegos before Fidel Castro came to power in 1959.
For 12 years, he played in the Minor League circuits of professional baseball in the United States, as well as in Mexico and Nicaragua.
After the changes that occurred in 1959, he stayed to reside on the island and was involved for several years as a coach in the National Series and director of the teams from Isla de La Juventud and Metropolitanos, recalls the Prensa Latina agency.
He was a member of the famous Cuban Sugar Kings in 1958, where he batted .219 with 23 runs scored, 26 RBIs, and 50 hits, including eight doubles, four triples, and three home runs.
Various people linked to the world of sports echoed his passing, such as sports journalist and former announcer of the Tele Rebelde channel, Yasel Porto, who mentioned that Zayas had undergone a leg amputation months ago, and "unfortunately, his health deteriorated over time."
Another journalist from the official Prensa Latina, José Francisco Reinoso Zayas, added that “baseball and sports say goodbye to a camouflaged mulatto, an authentic Cuban who enjoyed cigars.”
Reinoso also mentioned that the family of the deceased "was making arrangements to achieve the cremation of the legendary figure, after being viewed at the Marta Abreu funeral home, in Zanja."
The popular Cuban sports narrator Andy Vargas sent his condolences to family and friends for the loss of the baseball player.
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