Chito Martinez, only MLB player from Belize, dead at 59
Former Orioles outfielder Chito Martinez, the first and still only MLB player from Belize, has died, the team announced on Tuesday.
He was 59.
'We mourn the passing of former Orioles outfielder Chito Martinez, the only native of Belize to play in the majors,' the Orioles said in a statement on X.
3 Orioles' Chito Martinez bats during a baseball game on July 1,
1991 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.
Getty Images
Though an official cause of death was not announced, Crescent City Sports reported that Martinez suffered a heart attack.
A GoFundMe page set up to help his family said Martinez had a 'series of hospitalizations' over the past few weeks and died on Sunday.
'As a ballplayer myself growing up, I never had his talent but I always looked up to him,' his brother, Robbie, told Crescent City Sports. 'They called Chito 'Mex' and called me 'Little Mex.' He introduced me to baseball. I worshipped those guys in 1983 and 1984 at Brother Martin. Even more, he taught me about life, about how to be a dad, about golf, above and beyond baseball.'
Martinez, born in Belize in 1965, immigrated to New Orleans with his family when he was 2 years old.
He starred at Brother Martin High School and was then drafted by the Royals in the sixth round of the 1984 MLB Draft.
3 Orioes' Chito Martinez looks on before a game against the Red
Sox on May 13, 1991 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.
Getty Images
After six years in the minor leagues with Kansas City, he caught on with the Orioles and made his MLB debut in 1991.
During his rookie season, he smacked 13 homers with 33 RBIs and an .817 OPS.
3 Orioles' Chito Martinez looks on before a game against the White
Sox on July 8, 1992 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore.
Getty Images
Martinez played two more seasons in the big leagues, finishing with a .259/.330/.445 slash line and 18 long balls.
'Our hearts go out to the family of Crusader Baseball legend Chito Martinez '84,' Brother Martin's baseball program wrote on X..
'Please pray for them during this difficult time.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fast Company
25 minutes ago
- Fast Company
This hidden detail in the Milwaukee Brewers logo was worthy of a ‘Jeopardy!' clue
Two hidden letters embedded inside a Major League Baseball team's logo were clues on Jeopard y! And if you didn't know their secret meaning before, don't worry—because some of their own players and fans didn't either. The clue in the 'Logo-A-Go-Go' category for $200 was: 'Some players have been on this MLB team for quite some time before noticing that its ball-and-glove logo forms the letters M and B.' Contestant Ted Nyman gave the correct response: 'Who are the Milwaukee Brewers?' — Richard (@ifiwasrichard) June 9, 2025 The Brewers announced a rebrand in 2019 for the club's 50th anniversary. The team brought back an old logo first used in 1978 that cleverly placed a lowercase B underneath a letter M to form a baseball mitt out of the team nickname's initials—and they're hidden in plain sight. It's a concept by Tom Meindel, a former art history student at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire who submitted the design to a team logo contest. The contest was open to the public, and out of nearly 2,000 submissions, Meindel's logo won. (He received $2,000 for his work.) That the Brewers revived his classic ball-in-glove logo for their 50th anniversary is a testament to the logo's simplicity and proof that nostalgia sells in sports. You can't unsee the hidden M and B in the Brewers logo once you see them. But like the Jeopardy! clue said, it's not always obvious at first glance, including to the team's own fans and players. 'I had actually been in the organization for probably five years before I figured it out,' right fielder Ryan Braun admitted in 2019. And in an open poll that year on what was then called Twitter, the Brewers team account asked: 'How old were you when you realized the glove is also an 'm' and a 'b'?' And the responses were 39.1% for 'Always known,' 31.4% for 'Far too late in life,' and 29.5% for 'Wait. What?!'
Washington Post
39 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Andrew Abbott throws 3-hitter and Spencer Steer drives in only run as Reds beat Guardians
CLEVELAND — Andrew Abbott pitched a three-hitter for his first career complete game and Spencer Steer had an RBI single in the fifth inning, lifting the Cincinnati Reds to a 1-0 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night. Abbott (6-1) struck out five and walked one in a 110-pitch gem, bouncing back from his first loss on June 4 against Milwaukee. It was the first shutout by a Cincinnati pitcher since Wade Miley no-hit Cleveland on May 7, 2021, also at Progressive Field.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
MLB games today: Schedule, times, how to watch for June 11
MLB games today: Schedule, times, how to watch for June 11 Show Caption Hide Caption With the Dodgers favored to repeat, is the MLB becoming too top-heavy? Bob Nightengale and Gabe Lacques discuss whether or not the MLB is lacking parity and could be facing a potential problem in the future. Sports Seriously Here is the full Major League Baseball schedule for June 11 and how to watch all the games. Or see our sortable MLB schedule to filter by team or division. MLB schedule today All times Eastern and accurate as of Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at 4:41 a.m. Watch MLB games all season long with Fubo (free trial). MLB scores, results MLB scores for June 11 games are available on Here's how to access today's results: See scores, results for all the games listed above. See MLB Scores, results from June 10
