MY LATEST BOOK: LATINO STARS IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL Players on the Cusp (Concluded)

Wrapping up my current series of posts, I'd like to include some of the smaller Latin American countries whose contributions have been less noticeable.

BRAZIL

PAULO ORLANDO
Orlando didn't reach the majors until he was 29 years old. He has been a member of the Royals since 2015. After an encouraging rookie season, he hit .302 in his follow-up while appearing in 128 games. So far this year, he has made just 21 appearances for Kansas City and managed a feeble .164 batting average. Demoted to the minors, the 31 year old outfielder posted an impressive .341 mark at the Double-A level. Moving up to Triple-A at Omaha, he hit .293, earning another call to Kansas City on September 1st. He has been used primarily as a late-inning defensive replacement and pinch-hitter since then.

CURACAO

DIDI GREGORIUS
Gregorius was excluded from my book on a technicality. Though he grew up in Curacao, he was born in the Netherlands. After failing to hold down a starting job with the Reds and Diamondbacks, Gregorius emerged as a major star with the Yankees. Faced with the unenviable task of replacing Derek Jeter at short, he is currently in the midst of his finest offensive season to date, hitting .291 with 21 homers and 68 RBIs through early September. Defensively, Gregorius has sure hands, a strong arm and covers a lot of ground.

NICARAGUA

VICENTE PADILLA
The right-handed Padilla finished with double-digit win totals five times in an eight-year span. He had his best season on the mound in 2002, posting a 14-11 record for the Phillies with a 3.28 ERA. He made an All-Star appearance that year and is perhaps best remembered for it. With the National League down to its last available pitcher, Padilla worked 2 scoreless innings but couldn't continue. The game was declared a tie, forcing Commissioner Bud Selig to change the format of future All-Star games. Padilla became less effective as time wore on and made his last big league appearance in 2012.

HONDURAS

MAURICIO DUBON
Though Honduras has only produced two major league players to date, it may soon boast of a third. 23 year-old Mauricio Dubon has slowly moved up the minor league ladder. After hitting .301 in the South Atlantic League during the 2015 slate, he followed with a .339 showing in the Eastern League. He was promoted to the Triple-A level this year and at the time of this writing was hitting .272 for the Colorado Springs Skybox--a Milwaukee Brewers affiliate. He was a South Atlantic League All-Star before his promotion. The Brewers currently have a promising young Latino at shortstop--Orlando Arcia--but Dubon may get his shot by the time September call-ups are concluded.