2013’s Big Moments in Latino Sports

It’s almost the end of 2013, which means it’s the time when publications look back on everything that happened this year and make a bunch of lists about it. Lists that reflect, remember, celebrate and make excessive use of GIFs, obviously. In this one, we take a look at some of the best moments in Latino sports this 2013. We begin in Oaxaca:

14. Barefoot Youth Basketball Team Wins Everything!

It’s a problem we see far too often in far too many countries: indigenous citizens living in poverty and squalor in their own land. It happens in Oaxaca, Mexico where the young protagonists of this story are from.

A group of pre-teen basketball players from the region (Rio Venado, to be more exact) shocked the world as they swept their competitors in six games to become the champions at this year’s International Festival of Mini-Basketball. The catch: most of the Trique/Triqui youth played barefoot as they are too poor to afford athletic shoes, much less ANY shoes.

The little dudes amazed everyone and have been rewarded with trips to the US to watch NBA games where they’ve met many NBA superstars. They even played a game against the San Antonio Spurs in Mexico City who, in the spirit of the champions, also played barefoot.

Little dudes, big ambitions, and bigger hearts. How beautiful is that?

13. Big Papi & Boston Red Sox Win The World Series

David “Big Papi” Ortiz cemented his status as the face of Boston twice this year. The first was when he gave that now-infamous speech on April 20th, the day after the second Boston bomber was captured. The second was when he and his fellow Red Sox beat the St. Louis Cardinals in six games to become MLB’s 2013 champions.

Big Papi also won a few awards this year because he’s a badass like that. He was an MLB All-Star, the World Series MVP, and was awarded both the Silver Slugger Award and the Edgar Martinez Award.

What would Puritan John Winthrop say about all this if he were resurrected today? Who cares?! This is Big Papi’s world. We just live in it.

Shoutout to all the other Latinos on the BoSox team such as Rubby De La Rosa, Brayan Villareal, and others who made the title run possible.

12. Los Angeles Falls Under The Spell Of Puigmania

The Los Angeles Dodgers were looking pretty wack heading into the 2013 season. Too many of their stars were getting injured, no one really knew what they were doing, and the team quickly sunk to last place in the National League West Division. The team needed a miracle. That miracle arrived in a 6’3” frame known as Yasiel Puig.

Puig defected to Mexico from Cuba in 2012 and immediately filed paperwork as a Mexican resident in order to be eligible as a MLB free agent. The Dodgers signed him on June 28th thanks to the efforts of fellow Cuban and Dodger legend Mike Brito. Everyone thought the Dodgers had lost their mind. Oh, how they were mistaken.

Fast-forward nearly a year later to June 3rd when Puig made his official debut with the team. His first game was a modest one but then…DAMN!!! He hit two homeruns in his second game, a grand slam in his fourth followed by another homerun in his fifth game. This made him the first Dodger to start his career with multiple homeruns in one of his first two appearances.

That was just the beginning: he became the third player in league history to hit 10 RBIs in his first five games and was named the National League Player of the Week in his first week in the majors. His 27 hits in 15 games was two hits shy of shattering the league record and his success on the mound and on the field led the Dodgers to a team-record of 46 – 10 through the summer. The Dodgers skyrocketed out of last place and flew far ahead into first with the rest of the division playing catch-up. They made it to the semi-finals of the playoffs but lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in six games.

And then there were Puig’s many other “first” records as well. He was the first Dodger with five RBIs in two games, the first Dodger with 16 hits in eight games as well as the first with six multi-hit games in his first eight games.

He is also the first player in league history to win both the National League Rookie of the Month Award and the National League Player of the Month Award in his first month.

There’s a lot more…but you get the point.

11. Henderson Álvarez And The No-Hitter, Walk-Off Win

September 29th was a funny one in the history of the Miami Marlins. The team was in last place and simply playing for the sake of playing. Their competitor that night was the first place Detroit Tigers who had already secured their playoff spot. As such, the Tigers sent out a team filled with “basics” onto the field.

Marlins pitcher Henderson Álvarez took advantage of the situation and went through nine scoreless, hitless innings against the Tigers. There was just one problem: his own team had also failed to put up an offensive fight and both teams were scoreless halfway through the ninth.

Thankfully for Álvarez, the Marlins did manage to win thanks to an error from Tigers reliever Luke Putkonen. The bases ended up loaded, Putkonen threw a pitch that went far astray from catcher Brayan Pena allowing Giancarlo Stanton on third base to run for home. The highlight reel should include the Benny Hill soundtrack if it doesn’t already.

10. Carlos Beltran Receives The Roberto Clemente Award

The late and great Puerto Rican player Roberto Clemente died tragically on December 31, 1972. Clemente was famous for spending every off-season traveling to his homeland of Puerto Rico and other Latin American countries to help supply them with various types of aid. The league decided to honor his memory and work by renaming the Commissioner’s Award to the Roberto Clemente Award in 1973.

This year’s recipient is also a boricua: Carlos Beltrán of the St. Louis Cardinals. He received it for his work with the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy in Puerto Rico, which he founded in 2011. The academy is designed with the young athlete in mind so they can receive a proper balance of academics alongside their athletic training. The academy hosted its first graduating class this year on June 10th.

Beautiful beisbol: truly América’s pastime.

9. The CONCACAF Hexagonal Telenovela (An Epic Poem of Tragedy & Triumph)

¡PERO ROGELIO! ¡ES TÚ HIJO! Okay, so there wasn’t any baby mama drama in this telenovela. What there was, though, was one of the wildest seasons in CONCACAF’s (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) World Cup qualifying (a.k.a. the Hexagonal) tournament.

Team USA led the pack with a perfect home record thanks to the genius of coach Jürgen Klinsmann while Costa Rica came in right behind them with a great record. The real heartache and insanity came at the hands of the ineptitude of Jose Manuel “El Chepo” De La Torre, whose failures led Mexico through its roughest patch at qualifying yet. That, however, was good news for Panama who was literally a few goals away from heading to its very first World Cup tournament.

What followed in the final games of the Hexagonal were pure displays of glory and tragedy that only a system of aggregate points can provide. Both Mexico and Panama had mostly tied their way through qualifying with a victory here and there…until September arrived. It was then that Chepo lost to Honduras 2 – 1 at the Azteca and, rather than blame himself for not responding to his opponent’s strategic shift in formation, pinned the blame on a young defender. Mexico’s federation had finally had enough and fired him hours later. Meanwhile, Panama played to a scoreless standstill against last-place Jamaica. Costa Rica, on the other hand, walloped USA by a score of 3 – 1 as payback for forcing them to play in the snow back in March.

Three days later, Luis Fernando Tena begrudgingly took control of El Trí for their game against the USA and lost #DosaCero. Panama, however, managed to clock in a second goal to tie Honduras for a point. This was it! Both teams were now neck-to-neck for a ticket to ultimate glory and both needed victories. Unfortunately, they were now also at the mercy of the results of their competitors for the final duels in October.

Of course, it just so happened that the penultimate qualifying match on October 11th was between Mexico and Panama. Mexico, now under the guidance of the highly-lauded Victor Manuel Vucetich, needed nothing but positive results against the combined might of twin brothers Julio Dely and Jorge Dely Valdés.

It all started off just fine with Oribe Peralta opening the game up on the 39th minute. Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez missed a chance at increasing the lead with a failed penalty shot. El Trí held on until the 81st minute when Luis “El Matador” Tejada tied the game up giving Panama the advantage on total aggregate points.

But then…it happened! Quetzalcóatl and Huitzilopochtli combined their powers from above to raise their children and silence all of Central America with one goal, the beautiful Jimenez goal, that gave Mexico the victory it desperately needed.

There went the ball…off the post…in the net…the crowd went insane, the world looked on in shock and even the haters applauded. Mexico defeated Panama and kept its dreams alive.

UNTIL FOUR DAYS LATER!!!

The victory, no matter how grand, was just one game of two. And, even then, both teams were fighting for the fourth-place wild card spot, which would require another two games against Oceania Group winner New Zealand for a spot at the World Cup.

The geniuses behind CONCACAF decided to schedule all three matches during the same time, 6:30pm Pacific on October 15th. None of this was good news for the nerves or health of either Mexicans or Panamanians. It did, however, make for one the most tense moments ever in World Cup qualifying.

Here, then, is a little play-by-play of the collective heart attack suffered by thousands as it happened between the two games that mattered the most: Costa Rica vs. Mexico and Panama vs. USA.

00’ (1830 hours Pacific): kick-off at Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica and the Estadio Rommel Fernández in Panama City.

18’: Gabriel Torres scores for Panama. Panama’s ticket is secured at the moment.

24’: Bryan Ruiz scores for Costa Rica. Mexico is doomed…

28’: …until Oribe Peralta responds with the tie. Mexico’s ticket is secured.

63’: Alvaro Saborío heads one in for Costa Rica. All is lost for Mexico for about 60 seconds when…

64’: …Michael Orozco, the same Chicano player who gave Team USA its first-ever win against Mexico at the Azteca, scores against Panama. The game in Panama City is tied and Panamanian hopes are, for the moment, gone.

83’: Commentator Andres Cantor yells “¡¡¡ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN!!!” from his box in the Estadio Nacional press box. “El Matador” Tejada strikes again for Panama giving them a 2 – 1 lead. Mexico is doomed once again. Costa Ricans in the stadium hear of the news via social media/the stadium scoreboard/big screen and immediately start cheering. If there’s anything that unites Central American soccer fans, it’s their hatred of Mexico.

90’: Jamaican referee Courtney Campbell announces three extra minutes of overtime in Panama City.

92’: “¡¡¡ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN!!!” Graham Zusi of Team USA scores, tying the game. A tie is not enough to send Panama to New Zealand. Panama is out unless they can pull a miracle in 60 seconds.

93’: “¡¡¡ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN ATENCIÓN!!!” Panama’s defense crumbles horribly as USMNT forward Aron Jóhannsson stuns EVERYONE with a last second goal in Panama City. Panama is DEFINITELY out now. #YoureWelcomeMexico trends on Twitter as the debt to Mexico for filling the USA’s youth league with players worth a damn is finally repaid. President Ricardo Martinelli calls for a national day of mourning in Panama.

Panama has yet to qualify for a World Cup tournament. Meanwhile, Mexico defeated New Zealand in both games of the wild card race and will be in Brazil next summer.

That, my friends, is one HELL of a ride.

8. Raul Jimenez, Oribe Peralta Among Recipients of CONCACAF Awards

Mexico may have played its worst Hexagonal ever this year but that didn’t mean that fans recognized the good stuff when they saw it. Raul Jimenez’s chilena at the Azteca against Panama was voted as the Goal of the Year. Meanwhile, Oribe Peralta’s work as a striker earned him the CONCACAF Player of the Year award. It was his work in the final matches of qualifying that earned him the award. In fact, even when not including the games against New Zealand, he still managed to score the majority of goals in the Hexagonal and scored in every game he started.

7. Monterrey Wins Third Straight CONCACAF Champions League Title In A Row

Aye, Monterrey, why you so greedy right now? The club from Mexico has pulled a record with its three straight wins in the CONCACAF Champions League.

The series pit’s the best clubs from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean against each other. The team to win the tournament wins bragging rights as the best club in CONCACAF and Monterrey has secured those rights with three back-to-back wins.

They destroyed the dreams of Real Salt Lake, hoping to become only the second US club to win the title, in 2011, defeated Mexican club rivals Santos Laguna in 2012, and again in 2013 in a rematch of the previous year. The funny thing is that both Mexican clubs defeated US clubs (Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders) in the semis this year to advance to the final. Sick burn, brah!

6. Álvaro Saborio Voted MLS Latino Player of the Year

When not scoring goals with the Costa Rican national team, Álvaro Saborio is scoring goals with US club Real Salt Lake. The tico signed with the MLS team in 2010 on loan and on a more permanent basis in 2011. Saborio has since become the club’s leading scorer with a total of 40 goals with the club so far and is one of their go-to guys for goals.

5. Atlético Mineiro Wins Its First Copa Libertadores Title

Ah, the Copa Libertadores…the original Champions League of South America (and, since 2000, also including Mexico). This year’s title went to Brazilian club Atlético Mineiro who won its first-ever Copa Libertadores title since its founding in 1908.

Club Olimpia of Paraguay (the -guay suffixed country that hasn’t legalized “it”) held strong against Mineiro in the first leg with a 2 – 0 lead. Mineiro, however, struck back in game two and defeated their rivals in penalty kicks.

The victory was also a big one for Brazilian legend Ronaldinho who many considered him past his prime. He silenced all the haters by lifting his (and his team’s) first Copa Libertadores title. And his free kicks? As jaw-dropping and accurate as ever.

4. Club Lanús Wins Its First Copa Sudamericana Title

The Copa Sudamericana is much like the Copa Libertadores except it doesn’t include Mexico. Think of it as the Europa Cup of South America to the Libertadores Champions League and you’re on the right track. It also merges a number of defunct tournaments including the Copa CONMEBOL, Copa Mercosur, and Copa Merconorte and only hosts teams from South America (although it included a berth for CONCACAF teams from 2005 – 2009).

As Argentine clubs go, Lanús is not one of the most well-known but its star has been rising thanks to a number of high-profile wins and seasons including this year’s Copa Sudamericana. The title win was the first for the club in its history and deservedly so. The team managed to win every single one of its opponents by an aggregate total of at least +2 goals. What I would give to watch these guys play against Bayern Munich!

Club Lanús’ victory also gives it a top-spot in next year’s Copa Libertadores tournament.

3. Club América Wins 11th Liga MX Title

It was a good year for Club América and chilangos everywhere as Las Águilas who showed everyone why they’re one of the top clubs in Mexico. The club, led by Christian “El Chucho” Benítez, reached second place in the league, just one loss behind Tigres. No matter!! América went on to win it all in a freeway series against Cruz Azul, which you can read more about here. It was a wild win under buckets of pouring rain, goalies scoring goals from corner kicks, extra time, and penalty kicks.

The title win was a warning to their arch-rival Chivas de Guadalajara who also have 11 title wins. Unfortunately, América lost its opportunity at creating history with a 12th title win during the 2013/14 Apertura when it fell to Club Leon over two games.

2. Ronaldinho Is Stripped Of Uniform By Members of Opposition Team

Thanks to its aforementioned Libertadores title, Atlético Mineiro was invited to partake in the FIFA Club World Cup. It’s the local club version of the annual World Cup. Mineiro advanced to the semi-finals of the competition where they faced Raja Casablanca of Morocco.

Raja defeated Mineiro 3 – 1 thanks to two goals in the last 10 minutes of the game. The win was historic for the Moroccan club. The focus of this story, however, is what happened after.

What looked like the entire Moroccan team including the staff, bus driver, and kitchen sink approached Ronaldinho after the game ended and shook hands with the living legend. As is customary, a few players wanted to trade shirts with him as a memento. Unfortunately, he only had the one to give…so a few other players helped themselves to a shoe and other items leaving Ronaldinho nearly-nude on the field.

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1. Luis Suarez Is Hungry…For The Flesh of Branislav Ivanovic!!

I have no words for this other than: WTF Luis?!