Dominican Republic
History of the Dominican Republic
The islands of the Dominican Republic were first explored by renowned Italian explorer Christopher Columbus on his maiden voyage in 1942. His son, Diego, was the first viceroy of the island, then named, La Espanola. The capital, Santo Domingo, founded in 1946, is the oldest European settlement in the Western Hemisphere. Over the next 200 years, the rule of the republic was being taken over by both Spain and the Haitians.
Timeline of Events Between Haiti and Spain:
1795 - Spain takes over the colony
1801 - Haitian blacks under Toussaint L'Ouverture conquer the island
1814 - Spain regained the colony
1821 - The Spanish rule was overthrown
1822 - The colony was reconquered by the Haitians
1844 - The Haitians were thrown out and Spain regained the
During the time period of 1870 - 1924, the country's economy was in complete shambles. The then president of the country, Buenaventura Báez, tried to annex the country to the US, which was rejected immediately. Chaos continued with the dictator Ulises Heureaux until the United States sent in marines who remained there until 1924. The trained marines overthrew Horacio Vasquez in 1930. After three other presidency's that lasted each about 20 years, Danilo Medina, the president today, took over.
Timeline of Events Between Haiti and Spain:
1795 - Spain takes over the colony
1801 - Haitian blacks under Toussaint L'Ouverture conquer the island
1814 - Spain regained the colony
1821 - The Spanish rule was overthrown
1822 - The colony was reconquered by the Haitians
1844 - The Haitians were thrown out and Spain regained the
During the time period of 1870 - 1924, the country's economy was in complete shambles. The then president of the country, Buenaventura Báez, tried to annex the country to the US, which was rejected immediately. Chaos continued with the dictator Ulises Heureaux until the United States sent in marines who remained there until 1924. The trained marines overthrew Horacio Vasquez in 1930. After three other presidency's that lasted each about 20 years, Danilo Medina, the president today, took over.
Baseball in the Dominican
World Baseball Classic
In the spring of 2013, 16 countries took the stage at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona with dreams to become the champion of the world. 15 teams failed to reach their ultimate goal. One team, from a small country just south of the United States, captured gold and the grand prize, International Champions in 2013. The Dominican Republic, built with Dominican all stars from all around the MLB, won the tournament with flying colors. After going 7-0 in league play, their record was good enough to secure them a spot in the title game against their rivals Puerto Rico. On Tuesday, March 19th, both teams took the field with intentions to bring the title back to their home country. After a slow start to a soggy and wet game, the Dominicans finally turned up the heat and scored three runs to blank the Puerto Ricans, 3-0. They were the champions.
Fun Fact: 20 Dominicans that played on the team, also play in the MLB. Their combined salaries equaled over 104 million dollars.
Fun Fact: 20 Dominicans that played on the team, also play in the MLB. Their combined salaries equaled over 104 million dollars.
Many former major league baseball players have taken the journey to the Dominican Republic to see first hand why this unique culture can produce such outstanding athletes.
When photographer, and former Atlanta Brave, Micheal Hanson took the trip back in the spring time of 2013, he was amazed at the level of play these kids brought to the table. "Its on every corner, and its all day and night, and there aren't any other other sports as distractions. I think that's the difference between the United States and the Dominican Republic in my mind, and maybe that's why the level of success in the Dominican is so high" (Hanson) Down in the Dominican, kids don't have much. They have family, food, friends, and fields to play baseball in. Baseball is the young kids getaway, and the enjoy playing the sport more than anything in the world. In the Dominican, kids at a young age receive DAILY baseball training with up to 50 other kids. If you ask people why baseball is so important in the DR, they'll tell you its because of the countries such poor economic conditions and its solid baseball infrastructure. Hanley Ramirez, an all-star 3rd baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, described the baseball infrastructure as, "a rich tradition of ball players, fields, and instructors because baseball is their national game. Every 30 MLB teams has a training facility in the Dominican Republic where young players with hopes of big time baseball train 24/7 in hopes that one of the teams signs them to come play in America. Currently, there are over 500 Dominican baseball players playing in the MLB and its farm league teams. That is a staggering number. Oh, and how about the 2013 MLB World Series MVP David Ortiz, of Dominican Descent. His numbers in the playoffs were off the charts. After reading his book, "My Story of Big Dreams and Big Hits" I came to the plain conclusion that kids in the Dominican Republic just flat out want it more than we do here in the United States. With the conditions and lifestyle down in the country, baseball is the only thing kids can really look forward to being there for their whole lives.
When photographer, and former Atlanta Brave, Micheal Hanson took the trip back in the spring time of 2013, he was amazed at the level of play these kids brought to the table. "Its on every corner, and its all day and night, and there aren't any other other sports as distractions. I think that's the difference between the United States and the Dominican Republic in my mind, and maybe that's why the level of success in the Dominican is so high" (Hanson) Down in the Dominican, kids don't have much. They have family, food, friends, and fields to play baseball in. Baseball is the young kids getaway, and the enjoy playing the sport more than anything in the world. In the Dominican, kids at a young age receive DAILY baseball training with up to 50 other kids. If you ask people why baseball is so important in the DR, they'll tell you its because of the countries such poor economic conditions and its solid baseball infrastructure. Hanley Ramirez, an all-star 3rd baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, described the baseball infrastructure as, "a rich tradition of ball players, fields, and instructors because baseball is their national game. Every 30 MLB teams has a training facility in the Dominican Republic where young players with hopes of big time baseball train 24/7 in hopes that one of the teams signs them to come play in America. Currently, there are over 500 Dominican baseball players playing in the MLB and its farm league teams. That is a staggering number. Oh, and how about the 2013 MLB World Series MVP David Ortiz, of Dominican Descent. His numbers in the playoffs were off the charts. After reading his book, "My Story of Big Dreams and Big Hits" I came to the plain conclusion that kids in the Dominican Republic just flat out want it more than we do here in the United States. With the conditions and lifestyle down in the country, baseball is the only thing kids can really look forward to being there for their whole lives.
Top 10 Dominican Players in the MLB
1.Pedro Martinez - RHP
2.Vladimir Guerrero - RF
3.Juan Marichal - RHP
4.Robinson Cano - 2B
5.Manny Ramirez - OF
6.David Ortiz - DH/1B
7.Sammy Sosa - OF
8.Adrian Beltre - 3B
9.Julio Franco - SS/IF
10.Pedro Guerrero - OF/1B
1.Pedro Martinez - RHP
2.Vladimir Guerrero - RF
3.Juan Marichal - RHP
4.Robinson Cano - 2B
5.Manny Ramirez - OF
6.David Ortiz - DH/1B
7.Sammy Sosa - OF
8.Adrian Beltre - 3B
9.Julio Franco - SS/IF
10.Pedro Guerrero - OF/1B