What a long, tough, rewarding trip it’s been for Rockies shortstop Jose Iglesias.
In July 2008, at age 18, he was traveling with Cuba’s national team to a tournament in Canada. That’s when he defected and eventually became a United States citizen.
Saturday, Iglesias celebrated 10 years of service time in Major League Baseball, one of only three current Rockies players to touch that milestone. The others are outfielder Charlie Blackmon, who made 10 years of service time earlier this season, and right-hander Jhoulys Chacin, who hit the 10-year mark last season.
“I left my family, left my parents, left my country, left my culture, and left everything behind to make my dream come true and try to be a big-league player,” Iglesias said before the Rockies hosted the Giants at Coors Field. “For one game, it’s a blessing. So imagine 10 years. It’s pretty special.”
Iglesias, 32, is having one of his best seasons as a hitter. He entered Saturday night’s game hitting .313 and led the majors with a .380 average with runners in scoring position and a .354 average on the road.
“I’m pretty young, right?” joked Iglesias, who will become a free agent at the end of the season. “I feel really good. I’m healthy, I’m moving around and I think I still have quite a few years.”
Manager Bud Black made sure to take the time to congratulate Iglesias.
“Ten years at this level, with the talent of players now, it’s a significant achievement,” Black said. “When you do it, it tells you a lot about the player. I told him that I’m very proud of him.”
In 2008, Iglesias and pitcher Noel Arguelles, whose father had defected in 1994 as a member of Cuba’s national soccer team, worked out a plan to escape the Cuban team. With Arguelles’ father helping to coordinate, the two players walked out of the team hotel in Edmonton, got into a car and drove toward the U.S. border.
According to a story in The Orange County Register, the players didn’t have the proper documentation to enter the U.S., so when Iglesias walked across the border in Montana, he eventually landed in the hands of law enforcement.
Iglesias told The Register that officials in Montana weren’t as accustomed to such crossings as those on the southern border of the U.S., so they kept Iglesias overnight in a cell with no mattress while working through the paperwork.
After that, Iglesias found an agent who helped get him into professional baseball.
“It was a pretty emotional time,” Iglesias said Saturday. “I wouldn’t do anything differently. Yes, I’ve been through a lot of stuff … But I made my dreams come true and I made my dad’s dreams come true to play in the big leagues. So today is a special day for him as well. I know he’s somewhere up there look (down on me).”
His father, Candelario, died earlier this year. Candelario worked in a factory in Cuba, raising a large family.
“He worked hard but he didn’t make any money,” Iglesias said. “He made $10 a month. But he never gave up, and no matter how tired he was, he always took me to the (baseball) field.”
Cron’s slump. First-time All-Star C.J. Cron, Colorado’s only representative at the game, has been in a big-time slump ever since he played in the Mid-Summer Classic at Dodger Stadium on July 19. Since then, the first baseman has hit .171 (18-for-105) with just two home runs, five doubles, one triple and 11 RBIs, entering Saturday’s game.
Black has some theories about what’s going on.
“There’s been a number of things,” Black said. “He’s put a lot of pressure on himself, especially in the second half. Collectively, we all know that he’s the heart of our order. He’s placed too much pressure on himself.
“I think this month, like a lot of players, I think fatigue has set in on his swing. You get a little tired. And I do think the league is pitching him much tougher.”
