Joe Azcue facts for kids

José Joaquín Azcue López (born August 18, 1939) is a former Cuban baseball player and manager. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is best known for his time with the Cleveland Indians, where he played for many years. In 1968, he was chosen to be an All-Star. People sometimes called him "The Immortal Azcue" because he had a very strong arm for throwing the baseball.

Starting His Baseball Journey

Joe Azcue threw and batted with his right hand. He was about 6 feet tall and weighed 190 pounds. His baseball career began in 1956 when he signed with the Cincinnati Redlegs as a young player. For the next few years, he played in the minor leagues, which are like training leagues for professional players.

He also played in the Cuban League for a team called the Cienfuegos Elephants. His team won the Cuban League championship and the Caribbean Series in the 1959–1960 season. This was a big achievement early in his career.

Making It to the Major Leagues

Joe Azcue made his first appearance in Major League Baseball on August 3, 1960, when he was just 20 years old. He played for the Cincinnati Reds. However, he didn't play much that season and was sent back to the minor leagues.

After playing another season in the Cuban League, he was traded to the Kansas City Athletics in 1961. He played 72 games for the Athletics in 1962.

Time with the Cleveland Indians

In 1963, Joe Azcue was traded to the Cleveland Indians. This is where he spent most of his career and had his best seasons. He played for the Indians for parts of seven seasons. His hard work paid off when he was selected to be an All-Star in 1968. This means he was recognized as one of the best players in his league that year.

On July 29, 1968, something very rare happened while Joe Azcue was batting. He hit into an unassisted triple play. This is when one defensive player gets three outs by themselves in a single play. It's one of the rarest plays in baseball!

Moving to Other Teams

After his time with the Indians, Joe Azcue played for a few other teams. In 1969, he was traded to the Boston Red Sox. After a short time there, he moved to the California Angels.

He played for the Angels through the 1970 season. He then took a break from baseball in 1971. He returned to play for the Angels briefly in 1972 before being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. He played only a few games for the Brewers before finishing his Major League career at age 32.

Joe Azcue's Baseball Stats

Over his eleven years in Major League Baseball, Joe Azcue played in 909 games. He had 712 hits and a career batting average of .252. This means he got a hit about 25% of the times he tried to hit the ball. He also hit 50 Home runs and had 304 runs batted in (RBIs), which means he helped his teammates score runs.

Joe Azcue was known as a very good defensive catcher. He was excellent at stopping runners from stealing bases. He threw out 45.17% of runners who tried to steal on him, which is one of the best percentages in baseball history! In 1966, he was even better, throwing out 62% of runners. He also led American League catchers in fielding percentage in 1967 and 1968, meaning he made very few errors.

He also had the honor of catching two no hitters during his career. A no-hitter is when a pitcher completes an entire game without allowing the other team to get any hits. He caught one for Sonny Siebert in 1966 and another for Clyde Wright in 1970.

After Playing: Managing

After his playing career, Joe Azcue stayed involved in baseball. In 1974, he became a manager for a minor league team called the Reno Silver Sox.