Luis Arroyo, Puerto Rican baseball player, Died at 88

  Sports

Luis Enrique “Tite” Arroyo, was born on February 18, 1927, in Peñuelas, Puerto Rico and died on January 13, 2016,

He was a major league baseball pitcher.

His Major League Baseball debut on April 20, 1955.

He was a stocky left-hander.

Luis Arroyo spent one season primarily as a starter with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Despite that he was a member of the National League All-Star team that year, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates the next spring, where he was moved to the bullpen.

Striving to establish himself in the role, he went from the Pirates to first the Cincinnati Reds, then the New York Yankees.

Mr. Arroyo was the first Puerto Rican to play for the Yankees, and despite his earlier effort, he quickly became an important patron to the club.

The American League hitters had few victory against Arroyo’s screwball, and after a solid contribution at the back of their bullpen in 1960, he enjoyed the best season of his career in 1961.

Luis Arroyo pitched 119 innings with a 2.19 ERA, while winning 15 games as the team’s relief ace in that same year.

Arroyo totals of 65 games pitched and 29 saves both led the league, he surrendered only five home runs in a season where league-wide offensive totals were very high by historical standards and was named to his second All-Star team while finishing sixth in AL MVP voting.

Arroyo’s glory was, however, short-lived.

Luis injured his arm in the latter spring; while he pitched for two more seasons, he never recovered his prior injuries.

He resigned after appearing in only six innings in the 1963 season.

During the course of his MLB career, he pitched 5311⁄3 innings with a 3.93 ERA, collecting 40 wins, 32 losses, and 44 saves.

It was reported in 1976 in Esquire magazine, sportswriter Harry Stein published an “All Time All-Star Argument Starter,” consisting of five ethnic baseball teams.

Luis Arroyo, a Puerto Rican, was the relief pitcher on Stein’s Latin team.

Luis also served as a Yankees’ scout after his playing days.

Arroyo was hospitalized after suffering a “mild heart attack”, on July 16, 2010,

Luis fell ill at an event leading up to the Yankees’ July 17 “Old Timers Day” celebration.

Luis Arroyo passed away at 88 yrs old in Ponce, Puerto Rico.