2006 World Baseball Classic Players of Puerto Rico - Ivan Rodriguez, Carlos Delgado, Bernie Williams, Carlos Beltran, Javier Vazquez (Paperback)

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 124. Not illustrated. Chapters: Ivan Rodriguez, Carlos Delgado, Bernie Williams, Carlos Beltran, Javier Vazquez, Joel Pineiro, Alex Cintron, Alex Rios, Yadier Molina, Alex Cora, Javy Lopez, Jose Cruz, Jr., Jose Valentin, Kiko Calero, J. C. Romero, Ricky Ledee, Ruben Gotay, Pedro Feliciano, Javier Valentin, Eduardo Perez, Fernando Cabrera, Luis Matos, Jose Santiago, Juan Padilla, Dicky Gonzalez, Willie Collazo. Excerpt: Ivan Rodriguez Torres (born November 30, 1971, in Manati, Puerto Rico) commonly nicknamed "Pudge," is a Major League Baseball catcher for the Washington Nationals. In his career, he has played for the Texas Rangers (on two different tours, comprising the majority of his career), Florida Marlins, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Houston Astros, and Washington Nationals. He is ranked as one of the greatest defensive catchers in the history of the major leagues. Rodriguez was awarded the AL MVP award in 1999. Rodriguez won the World Series with the Marlins in 2003, and also played in the 2006 World Series while with the Tigers. On June 17, 2009, Rodriguez set a MLB record by catching his 2,227th game, passing Carlton Fisk. Rodriguez was born in Manati, Puerto Rico, and raised in Vega Baja. His father, Juan, worked for a U.S.-based construction company, and his mother, Eva Torres, was an elementary school teacher. Ivan's first job involved delivering flyers in the shopping malls in Puerto Rico. He learned baseball at an early age, his biggest rival being Juan Gonzalez, who he often played against in his youth. As a Little League player, he moved from pitcher to catcher because his father, who was also his coach, thought he was throwing too hard and scaring opposing players with his pitches. Rodriguez attended Lino Padron Rivera High School, where he was discovered by scout Luis Rosa. Rosa reported that "he showed lead...