Al enterarme del fallecimiento de Dom DiMaggio este el viernes 08 de mayo de 2009 fue inevitable regresar a la sala del hogar de mis padres una tarde dominical de mediados de los a\u00c3\u00b1os setenta. En el televisor pasaban la biograf\u00c3\u00ada de Joe DiMaggio. Pap\u00c3\u00a1 ve\u00c3\u00ada la pantalla de reojo. S\u00c3\u00b3lo cuando empezaron a hablar de que los padres de los jardineros centrales Vince, Joe y Dominic eran inmigrantes sicilianos, sus ojos se clavaron en las im\u00c3\u00a1genes de blanco y negro.<\/p>\n
Dominic sigui\u00c3\u00b3 a los Medias Rojas de Boston hasta el \u00c3\u00baltimo momento. Al expirar su \u00c3\u00baltimo suspiro, el televisor de su habitaci\u00c3\u00b3n transmit\u00c3\u00ada la repetici\u00c3\u00b3n del juego del jueves 07 de mayo entre los Indios de Cleveland y los patirrojos.<\/p>\n
Pap\u00c3\u00a1 sonri\u00c3\u00b3 cuando hablaron de la cadena de 56 juegos dando de hit de Joe. Sus conocimientos del b\u00c3\u00a9isbol llegaban hasta cierto punto. Por eso cuando explicaron que Dom hab\u00c3\u00ada impuesto una marca de 503 outs para un center fielder en 1948 que fue batida por Chet Lemon en 1977, gir\u00c3\u00b3 sus manos hacia delante y estrech\u00c3\u00b3 los ojos.<\/p>\n
El apodo de \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Peque\u00c3\u00b1o Profesor\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, iba m\u00c3\u00a1s all\u00c3\u00a1 de las simples apariencias de un hombre de 1,75 metros que usaba espejuelos. Fue un genio de las matem\u00c3\u00a1ticas qui\u00c3\u00a9n consigui\u00c3\u00b3 una beca para estudiar en la Universidad de Santa Clara y luego de retirarse estableci\u00c3\u00b3 un exitoso negocio para lo cual le sirvieron de mucho sus conocimientos.<\/p>\n
De acuerdo a declaraciones del hijo de Dom DiMaggio, Dominic Paul, su padre respetaba mucho al t\u00c3\u00ado Joe y todo lo que hizo. Pero nunca se sinti\u00c3\u00b3 inferior, era un gran competidor. Enos Slaughter dijo que su carrera descabellada de la Serie Mundial de 1946, que termin\u00c3\u00b3 d\u00c3\u00a1ndole el t\u00c3\u00adtulo a los Cardenales de San Luis, estuvo a punto de ser detenida en tercera base, pero record\u00c3\u00b3 que Dom DiMaggio no estaba en el centerfield. Dom hab\u00c3\u00ada igualado el partido a 3 carreras en el octavo inning con un doble de dos carreras pero se lesion\u00c3\u00b3 un m\u00c3\u00basculo de la pierna al deslizarse en segunda y debi\u00c3\u00b3 salir del juego.<\/p>\n
Dom dice que ver la carrera de Slaughter hacia el plato en la Serie Mundial fue muy doloroso para \u00c3\u00a9l, antes del batazo de Harry Walker estuvo haci\u00c3\u00a9ndole se\u00c3\u00b1as desde el dugout a su sustituto, Leon Culberson, pero este no lo vio y no se ubic\u00c3\u00b3 en el lugar que le indicaba Dom DiMaggio.<\/p>\n
Pap\u00c3\u00a1 se qued\u00c3\u00b3 mirando las declaraciones que hac\u00c3\u00ada Joe DiMaggio sobre sus hermanos Vince y Dominic. De este \u00c3\u00b9ltimo en principio dudaba si iba a ser capaz de jugar en las Grandes Ligas pero pronto not\u00c3\u00b3 que esas dudas eran infundadas. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Los \u00c3\u00banicos que sab\u00c3\u00adan bien qui\u00c3\u00a9n era Dom, eran los aficionados de Boston, pero en el resto del pa\u00c3\u00ads no le daban mucho cr\u00c3\u00a9dito. \u00c3\u2030l pod\u00c3\u00ada tocar la pelota, pod\u00c3\u00ada hacer la jugada de bateo y corrido, pod\u00c3\u00ada batear largo si ten\u00c3\u00ada que hacerlo, pod\u00c3\u00ada robar bases. Te pod\u00c3\u00ada vencer de muchas formas\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n
Su compa\u00c3\u00b1ero de los Medias Rojas Mace Brown siempre habl\u00c3\u00b3 de la calidad defensiva de Dom. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Jugaba muy corto en el jard\u00c3\u00adn central, su rapidez e inteligencia le permit\u00c3\u00adan hacer eso. Muchos juegos se salvaron y muchos rallies detenidos porque Dom ven\u00c3\u00ada corriendo a tomar flancitos detr\u00c3\u00a1s de segunda cuando estaban a punto de caer y despu\u00c3\u00a9s de tomar la bola no se ca\u00c3\u00ada, sino que hac\u00c3\u00ada el disparo donde deb\u00c3\u00ada hacerlo\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n
En la televisi\u00c3\u00b3n hablaban las fechas de nacimiento de los 3 center fielders DiMaggio. Vince, Joe y Dominic qui\u00c3\u00a9n naci\u00c3\u00b3 en San Francisco en 1917 y empez\u00c3\u00b3 a jugar con sus hermanos en terrenos bald\u00c3\u00ados, las bases eran piedras, usaban una pelota vieja ajustada con cinta pl\u00c3\u00a1stica, su bate era una pedazo de remo que tomaban del bote de su padre el pescador Giusseppe DiMaggio. Pap\u00c3\u00a1 sonre\u00c3\u00ada cada vez m\u00c3\u00a1s con las im\u00c3\u00a1genes de la familia DiMaggio.<\/p>\n
Dom DiMaggio siempre estuvo pendiente de los peloteros de su \u00c3\u00a9poca que adolec\u00c3\u00adan de una pensi\u00c3\u00b3n, por mucho tiempo don\u00c3\u00b3 el dinero que hac\u00c3\u00ada firmando aut\u00c3\u00b3grafos, a la Asociaci\u00c3\u00b3n Americana de Jugadores de B\u00c3\u00a9isbol Profesional, una organizaci\u00c3\u00b3n que ayudaba a mantener a los jugadores en edad avanzada que carec\u00c3\u00adan de un plan de retiro.<\/p>\n
Los recuerdos de Dominic Paul acompa\u00c3\u00b1ando a su padre hasta lo profundo del center field de Fenway Park para despedirse como jugador activo, se mezclan con las emociones de pap\u00c3\u00a1 pegado del televisor viendo a los DiMaggio jugar \u00e2\u20ac\u0153bochas\u00e2\u20ac\u009d en el patio de su casa, una m\u00c3\u00basica de fondo suena por detr\u00c3\u00a1s de una conversaci\u00c3\u00b3n donde Dom le comenta al periodista: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Hubi\u00c3\u00a9ramos jugado por nada si no tuvieramos que comer o familias que mantener. Era una gran emoci\u00c3\u00b3n que sent\u00c3\u00ada al jugar b\u00c3\u00a9isbol. Tambi\u00c3\u00a9n lo fue para m\u00c3\u00ad demostrar que pod\u00c3\u00ada jugar a pesar de usar lentes\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n
English Translation<\/strong><\/p>\n As soon as I knew about the passing of Dom DiMaggio this Friday, May 08th 2009, I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t avoid returning to my parents\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 living room in a Sunday afternoon during the mid 1970\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. In the TV set they were broadcasting a Joe DiMaggio biography. Dad watched the TV from the tail of his eye. It was only when the teller said that the parents of the center fielders Vince, Joe and Dominic, were Sicilian immigrants that his eyes look straight to the black and white images.<\/p>\n Dominic followed the Red Sox until the last moment. When he emitted his last breath, there was a tv set in his bedroom with the replay of the Red Sox Thursday game, (against the Cleveland Indians) in the background.<\/p>\n Dad smiled when on the tv broadcast they talked about Joe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 56 games hitting streak. His knowledge about baseball was limited.Thats why when they explained that Dominic had established a record of 503 putouts for a center fielder in 1948 that only was improved by Chet Lemon in 1977, Dad moved his hands and almost closed his eyes.<\/p>\n Dom\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Little proffesor\u00e2\u20ac\u009d nickname went beyond simple appearance of a 5-foot-9, 168 pound guy who used eyeglasses. He was a mathematics whiz who was offered a scholarship to Santa Clara College. After his playing days he developed a succesful business career based on his math knowledge.<\/p>\n According to Dom DiMaggio\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s son, Dominic Paul, his father respected a lot his uncle Joe and his achievements. But he never felt inferior, he was a great competitor. Enos Slaughter said that his mad dash in the 1946 World Series, which ended with the Championship for the St. Louis Cardinals, was almost stopped at third base, but he recalled that Dom DiMaggio wasn`t at center field. Dom had batted in 2 runs with a double in the eight inning to tie the game 3-3, but he injured his leg while running the bases and had to leave the game.<\/p>\n Dom said that watching Slaughter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dash to the plate in the World Series was very painful for him. Before Harry Walker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hit, he tried to position his replacement Leon Culberson through making signals from the dugout, but Culberson didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t notice DiMaggio\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s advice.<\/p>\n Dad kept watching Joe DiMaggio talk about his brothers Vince and Dominic. About the last one, at first Joe doubted if Dom was going to be able of playing in MLB, but soon he noticed that doubts were unfounded. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Boston fans were the only ones who knew what Dom was capable of doing in a ballpark, but in the rest of the country they didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t give him any credit. He could bunt, he could do the batting and running play, he could bat for the long ball if he had to, he could steal bases. He could beat you in many ways\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n Mace Brown, his teammate in the Boston Red Sox, always talked about Dom\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s defensive play. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153He played very shallow in the center field. His intelligence and speed allowed him to do that. A lot of games were saved and many rallies were stopped because Dome came running to take pop ups behind second base when the ball was almost touching the grass. After taking the ball, he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t fall down. He got ready to make the throwing where it was necessary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n In the tv broadcast they talked about the three center fielders DiMaggios birthdays. Vince, Joe and Dominic, who was born in San Francisco in 1917 and started to play baseball with his brothers in public places. The bases were rocks, they used an old baseball fixed with tape, the bat was an oar handle they took from the boat of their father Guisseppe DiMaggio..<\/p>\n Dom DiMaggio always cared about the players of his age who didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a pension. For a long time he donated the money he got by signing autographs to the American Association of Professional Baseball Players, an organization that helped to support old ballplayers who lacked of a retire plan.<\/p>\n The memories of Dominic Paul walking with his father to deep center field in Fenway Park to say good bye as an active player mix with Dad\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s emotions looking at the DiMaggios playing \u00e2\u20ac\u0153boccia\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (a Sicilian game similar to bowling) at the backyard. A musical brackground sounds behind a talk where Dom commented to the journalist: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We would have played for nothing if we wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have had to eat or families to support. I felt a great emotion by playing baseball. It was a great challenge for me to show that I could play no matter the eyeglasses.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t