Could Fidel Castro Have been a Professional Baseball Player in an Alternate Ending?
Fidel Castro, the father of communist Cuba who led the country as Prime Minister from 1959 to 1976 and then as President from 1976 to 2008, could have had a career in baseball. Yup, you read that right. One of history’s most iconic and notorious figures could have been a baseball player instead of political leader. Castro’s legacy in political history is well-documented. Even after his passing, people do not reflect upon his political beliefs with much kindness. His beliefs and methods were at the center of many painful moments for families from Cuba. But before his prolific and problematic rule, baseball could have been his future – which would have undoubtedly changed the face of history for the Western World. But it seems like when you look at the true athletic “talents” of Castro, they were blown a bit out of proportion.
Castro was a pitcher at the University of Havana when he began drawing the attention of scouts in the United States in the late 1940s. There are various reports from different scouts. In 2015, the Daily Kos reported the scouts’ findings: “In one version of the story, a scout reported of Castro: ‘Lots of enthusiasm, not much of an arm. Suggest he go into another business.’ In another version, though, various teams were said to have sent some players down for batting practice to test him (during one of which Castro struck out future Hall-of-Famer Hank Greenberg). According to some versions, Castro was offered a tryout with either the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Washington Senators, or the New York Yankees, but failed to make the cut-and, in bitterness and resentment, became intensely anti-American. In another version, he was actually accepted by the New York Giants in 1949 (or in 1951) and was offered a contract, but turned down the offer to get his law degree and go into politics instead.”