2013 Baseball: The Season of Latinos

Baseball David Ortiz — Oct 30, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz gestures to the crowd after being named World Series MVP after game six of the MLB baseball World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals at Fenway Park. The Red Sox won 6-1 to win the series four games to two. Reuters

2013's Major League Baseball season could well be dubbed 'The Year of the Latino' after a number of Hispanic players have risen to enormous prominence and attracted the attention of thousands of fans. Whether it was big hitter David 'Papi' Ortiz for the Boston Red Sox or Carlos Beltran for the St. Louis Cardinals, Latino players have had an impressive run this season. Headlines and crowd cheers had a significant Latino sound to them this year: Hanley Ramirez and Adrian Gonzalez for the Dodgers, rookie Yasiel Puig for Los Angeles and Mariano Rivera for the Yankees.

Latinos have played a significant role in Major League Baseball for decades. With players like Adolfo Luque, Minnie Miñoso, Louis Aparicio and of course Roberto Clemente, Latinos have long been a force to be reckoned with. In 2006 for 23 out of 71 All-Stars were Latino and 6 of the 10 players with the highest batting averages were Latino. The rising trend of Latino stars continues: 30 percent of MLB players are Latino or Hispanic. This year also marked the last season for beloved Yankees player Mariano Rivera who is expected to enter the Hall of Fame.

Latinos also caused their share of controversy this year: when ESPN's Pedro Gomez interviewed players in Spanish and then simultaneously translated, fans took to Twitter to voice outrage that an English-language channel should have interviews in Spanish. But, with the rise of the Latino presence in pro-baseball, Spanish might become an increasingly important skill for both journalists and fellow players.