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Dateline: Goodyear, Arizona
Benito Gonzalez worked on a successful farm in Cuba and have time for baseball, although he did follow his favorite player and pitcher Tommy Lasorda, who played for Almendares in Havana in the 1958-59 Cuban Winter League.
When Fidel Castro came to power, Gonzalez fled to Spain as the Castro regime, nationalized the farm that was a big producer of sugar cain among other products. He sent for his wife and daughter, settling in Miami.
Gonzalez is now 89, still has contacts in Cuba. He believes that repression in Cuba is in it's last days. He is a saavy individual and has a new favorite pitcher, grandson, Nick Martinez,who has established himself in the major leagues.
Reds manager Terry Francona praises Martinez for his competitive nature and willingness to take on the role that will benefit the team.
After email interviews through Martinez it is clear that Gonzalez instilled into his family, through his daughter, Annie, a work ethic and loyalty to America and its immigration opportunities. He was not here for a hand out, but a hand up.
Benito Gonzalez avoided the oppression of the Castro regime and found the United States as the country the country that gave him a chance. Martinez mother told him that Benito's father, had a third grade education and ran a farm. Benito worked the farm as a kid. Rags to riches is a concept as American as baseball, hot dogs and apple pie.
Martinez lived it. Belen Jesuit Preparatory High School in Miami.
"It (the school) started in Cuba. Castro went to that school," Martinez explained. "When Castro took over he kicked all the priests out. Those same priests started the school back up. It was the same priests, the same philosophy, it is the same school that just moved."
Martinez, who is a member of the Hall of Fame, believes it is the only institution that survived the revolution.
"My high school has a very long tradition," Martinez said. "One of the priests from Cuba is still a priest at Belen today. "He's still kicking. I think he's 130 years old," joked Martinez of Father Pedro Cartaya from the class of 1954 in Cuba. He began teaching at Belen in 1962 after it relocated in 1961. He became a priest in 1967 and celebrated 50 years as a priest in 2017.
Martinez' father, Nick, was a good athlete but had a heart murmur and couldn't pass a physical at Southridge High School in Miami.
"My father was a pretty good athlete. He was able to dunk a basketball in high school and he was only 5'9". He did get cut from the baseball team, actually. Fred Bernstein was the coach. He is a legend high school coach here in Miami. My father told me that there were, like nine or 10 major league baseball players on that high school team (1980). It was the same high school as Yan Gomes."
Former Atlanta Braves manager. Fredi Gonzalez and Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Shannon Stewart are also alumni.
The elder Nick Martinez' parents were also from Cuba. He would be born about two years after the Castro takeover. All of four of the grandparents became US citizens.
On Wednesday, (030426) the Cincinnati Reds, who once had a farm team in Havana, will play the Cuban National team as a tune up to the World Baseball Classic.
Abuelo Benito Gonzalez. confirmed the Cuban team is professional and very talented. He told his grandson that baseball is still popular in Cuba.
Martinez was on United States team in 2023 but was not on the team when they played in Miami.
"I flew back with the team but there was a chance that I wasn't going to be able to pitch the rest of the tournament, so I had to return to San Diego, training in Arizona. I had to continue my progression. There was a chance that I wouldn't be able to pitch for 10 days. I couldn't risk that."
Technically, Martinez could pitch for the Cuban National team and played with or against a couple of them during the four years he spent pitching in Japan from 2018 through 2021.
"(Livan) Moinelo, I played with, (Alfredo) Despaigne, I played with," Martinez said. "I don't think I would take the opportunity to play for them out of respect for my grandfather. Cuba is a communist country. I've played for the US team twice, now. It is the greatest honor I can have and for my grandfather. He came to this country for the opportunity. In a single lifetime, his grandson is playing for the country that gave him that opportunity.
"My grandfather still keeps up with what's going on in Cuba and doing what he can on this side, I guess. I don't know how connected he is politically," Martinez said. "My grandfather would always tell us as kids. Venezuela was thriving at the time. He told us communism wasn't going to make its way to us directly from Cuba. It would stretch it's tenacles to Venezuela. He was right."
Recent political events bear him out.
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