The former Cuban pitcher Big leagues Lázaro Gonzalo “Choly” Naranjo passed away in Miami, at the age of 87, after several weeks hospitalized due to complications of COVID-19.
The prestigious pitching coach Orlando China released the sad news on his Facebook profile, where he recalled details of the player’s career former team Almendares in the professional baseball of the island and of the franchise of the Pittsburgh Pirates in American ball.
“Sad day for Cuban baseball: a pitcher born in Cuba who pitched in the Major Leagues has passed away, made his debut in 1956 with Pirates. Gonzalo Choly Naranjo. EPD good Cuban! Thank you for your friendship and your legacy!! Chinea said in her post.
Naranjo was born in Havana on November 25, 1934 and began his sporting adventures in the 50s. Precisely, in 1951 he joined the team that represented Cuba in the Amateur World Series in Mexico. That was the only time he played baseball outside his country and the United States.
His professional career began in 1952, when he was hired by the Washington Senators as an amateur free agent, although he never made his debut with the main team of that franchise, playing only in the Minor League with the teams Chattanooga and Richmond, refers the American Baseball Research Society website (SABR).
Naranjo debuted in the Cuban Winter League during the 1952-1953 season, at the age of 18, when he joined the Almendares Scorpions in the disappeared Cuban Professional League, where he won eight games and lost six, maintaining a 3.77 ERA on the mound.
In 1956 he managed to be signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he barely recorded one game won and two lost, while his earned run average was 4.46. In general, as a professional player both in Cuba and in the United States, he won 73 games and lost 79.
Naranjo’s last playing season was in 1961, when he was 26 years old. He decided to retire due to persistent problems with his throwing arm, which made it difficult for him to continue playing in any meaningful way; “However, he had achieved the dream of becoming a Major League pitcher,” says the article published on the SABR website.
Gonzalo Naranjo married several times but never had children. After retiring from the sport, he worked for several years in the field of private security in the United States and later joined other former Cuban players such as José Tartabullto the baseball academy Paulino Casanova (Former catcher for the Washington Senators and the Atlanta Braves).
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