Warrior of time
When I remember the career of left-handed Raúl Valdés pitching with the Vaqueros del Habana in the National Series in the late nineties, there is an indelible moment in my memory. I remember his impact in the 1998 postseason, when he recorded a streak of 28 consecutive scoreless innings.
The beginning of that feat was against the Metropolitanos team, which threatened to win in the Quarterfinal series. However, José “Cheo” Ibar won Game 4 11-0, and Raúl Valdés delivered another shutout in the 7-0 success that eliminated the Metros.*
*The end of that playoff led to one of the saddest stories that the “Reds of the Capital” suffered. After the elimination of Industriales against Pinar del Río, three days before, the capital's fans did not support the Metropolitans. The images were disconcerting. Since they took the field, the Metropolitanos players looked unmotivated. The stands of the Latin American stadium were practically empty. And, then, the Metros encountered the unbeatable mix of pitches from left-handed Raúl Valdés, who was in charge of annihilating them: he struck out five opponents, walked two in nine innings. He allowed only two hits: a single by Wilber De Armas, and a double by Iván Correa.
After two starts, Valdes reached the Semifinal without allowing an earned run for 17 combined innings. Yes, all five of Metropolitanos' scores in Game 2 were dirty. Valdés returned to the mound for Game 3 of the Semifinal and took the victory with another 7-0 shutout, but challenging the imposing offense of the Pinar del Río team, led by the Linares brothers, Juan Carlos and Omar, Yobal Dueñas, Daniel Lazo, Lázaro Arturo Castro and Yosvany Madera.
Finally, Raúl was three outs away from reaching the national record of 29 scoreless innings, a mark that Pedro Luis Lazo had set in the 1997 playoffs. What was the reason? Although the Pinar del Río team's offense was devouring Valdés' pitches, the Habana team's defense failed again in key moments. An error by first baseman Neylán Molina led to Valdés' explosion during the bottom of the third inning in Game 6.
And so the expectation about Raúl Valdés' personal streak was put aside, but after being defeated in Game 6, the next day he demonstrated once again his warrior lineage: he opened the decisive Game 7. Without enough rest, based on courage and love for the jersey, Raúl Valdés starred in a great pitching duel against the Pinar del Río team's ace, the right-handed José Ariel Contreras. The game arrived at the beginning of the sixth with a 2-1 advantage for the “pativerdes”, who completely turned the score around after producing a four-run rally at the end of the eighth inning.
Raúl Valdés could not obtain victory in that unforgettable Semifinal that will also be remembered for the duels between José Ibar and Pedro Luis Lazo, but he showed signs of his great combativeness. Since then, 25 years have passed and the left-hander from Havana continues to be the tireless competitor who does not give up in his battle against time.
Raúl Valdés left Cuba at the age of 24, looking for a new horizon in baseball and reaching the Major Leagues. In Cuba, he pitched in six seasons and posted a 52-58 record and 3.60 ERA in 139 starts. His last season was the worst of his career, when he pitched for a 4-11 record and a 4.31 ERA in 2002. It is true that on many occasions Raúl Valdés was criticized for inconsistencies in his performance, but he was also undervalued: with the exception of the 1996-1997 season, when he debuted with the Vaqueros del Habana team, Valdés always guaranteed at least 145 innings and 110 strikeouts.
That strength was key to breaking through as a pitcher at a higher level. In 2004, he made his organized baseball debut with the DSL Cubs — a Dominican Summer League team — due to a temporary U.S. embargo on H-2B work visas. His first impact was sensational: he went 7-2 with a 0.51 ERA, and 152 strikeouts in 87 2/3 innings — including a game where he struck out 20 batters in seven innings. With that performance, Valdés led the DSL in ERA and strikeouts. By the way, before going to the Iowa Cubs team in the Pacific Coast League, where he pitched during 2005 and 2006, Valdés hit .241 as an outfielder in some games. That was sensational!
The great opportunity for promotion came when the Mets signed Valdés in 2007. And, although they did not show much interest later, three years later they offered him the opportunity to debut in the Major Leagues. Valdés was part of five teams until finishing his career in the Majors with the Houston Astros in 2014. The expected moment came eight years after leaving Cuba, but Raúl Valdés did not give up. At 36 years old, he undertook a new challenge for three seasons with the Chunichi Dragons in the NPB.
When it seemed that his career was over, the left-hander from Havana once again defied time: he continued to sculpt his legacy in the Professional Baseball League of the Dominican Republic, and emerged to become a legend within the Caribbean classic. In eight participations before arriving in Miami this year, Valdés had four titles in the Caribbean Series, where he has participated wearing the uniform of all the Dominican representatives. Now Valdés is reinforcing the Tigres del Licey and continues to set records at 46 years old. Last Tuesday afternoon, he pitched five practically immaculate innings at loanDepot Park, allowing two singles against the Curaçao lineup. Valdés needed only 71 pitches for 15 outs. Valdés seemed so comfortable that his replacement to make way for the bullpen was surprising.
Valdés struck out seven of his 17 opponents — five of them were overwhelmed by his changeup — and no runner reached scoring position. The fastest pitch he threw wasn't even a fastball. According to Savant Baseball, it was an 86.8 mph changeup that he threw before dominating Juremi Profar for the third out of the fifth inning. The strongest hit connected by Curacao against Valdés' offers was a single by Roger Bernadina at the beginning of the third inning with two outs. And then he began a string of seven consecutive dominated batters until the end of the fifth inning. Halfway through the game, the Tigres del Licey's 1-0 lead was in the hands of the bullpen and the offensive contribution. Although it seemed like a high challenge to keep Curacao's lineup limited, the Dominican reliever combo completed the shutout.
A sacrifice fly by Robinson Canó after singles by Emilio Bonifácio and Gustavo Núñez made the score 2-0. With the effectiveness of the Dominican bullpen, the outcome of the eighth inning heralded the end. Three strikeouts by closer Jairo Asencio sealed the victory for the Dominican team, but the story of the game had barely begun: with his sixth success out of nine decisions in the Caribbean Series, Cuban Raúl Valdés equaled the all-time leaders, Rubén Gómez (Puerto Rico), José de la Trinidad Bracho (Puerto Rico) and another Cuban, Camilo Pascual (pitched for Almendares and Cienfuegos).
Valdés also added another honorable number, demonstrating his class at 46 years old: he was one strikeout away from tying with Puerto Rican Juan Pizarro, who holds the historical record of 62 strikeouts in the Caribbean Series.
When I analyze each of these records, I think about how many young pitchers have not been able to extend their baseball careers due to lack of motivation, injuries, accidents or poor performance. And then, it is instantly inevitable to think about the great legacy of Raúl Valdés, who is still making history on the mound at 46 years old. A decade ago, when he said goodbye to the Major Leagues, it might have been the closest time to start thinking about retirement. However, that was not Raúl's approach. He was willing to face both challenges, competing on the baseball field.
It goes without saying how much a high-performance athlete needs to achieve a career of so many years and, above all, at the level that Raúl Valdés has done in the demanding professional baseball of the Caribbean. Until when will he pitch? That is a difficult question to answer — perhaps Raúl does not even remember the word “retirement” — but his glory pages have already been written.
When we talk about perseverance and love of baseball, without a doubt Raúl Valdés stands out among the admirable warriors who have defeated time.