Paul Casanova facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Paul Casanova |
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| Catcher | |||
| Born: December 21, 1941 Colón, Cuba |
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| Died: August 12, 2017 (aged 75) Miami, Florida |
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| debut | |||
| September 18, 1965, for the Washington Senators | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 9, 1974, for the Atlanta Braves | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .225 | ||
| Home runs | 50 | ||
| Runs batted in | 252 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Paulino Ortiz Casanova (born December 21, 1941 – died August 12, 2017) was a professional baseball player from Cuba. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1965 to 1974. During his career, he played for the Washington Senators and the Atlanta Braves.
Paul Casanova's Baseball Journey
Starting in the Minor Leagues
Paul Casanova began his journey in professional baseball on January 1, 1960. He was first signed by the Cleveland Indians. After playing a few games, he was released. He later joined the Indians again, but was released a second time.
In 1961, he played for the Indianapolis Clowns. This team used to be part of the Negro leagues. Later, he had a short time with the Chicago Cubs.
His professional career truly started when he signed with the Washington Senators on October 5, 1962. He played 94 games in the minor leagues in 1963. In 1964, he played 120 games in the New York–Penn League. He hit 19 home runs and had a .325 batting average. In 1965, he played for the Burlington Senators. That September, he was called up to play in the major leagues.
Playing in the Major Leagues
Paul Casanova made his Major League Baseball debut on September 18, 1965. He played against the Minnesota Twins. He played four more games that season.
His first full season in MLB was in 1966. He hit 13 home runs and had 5 triples, which were his career bests. The 1967 season was his most successful. He was chosen for the All-Star team. He played 141 games and had a great fielding percentage of .984. He was also among the top players in the American League's Most Valuable Player (MVP) voting.
On June 12, 1967, Casanova was the starting catcher for a game against the Chicago White Sox. This game lasted a very long time, 6 hours and 38 minutes! It is still the longest night game in MLB history. Casanova caught the entire game. In the 22nd inning, he got a hit that brought in the winning run for his team.
The next season, 1968, was not as good for him. He played in only 96 games. His batting average was .196.
Casanova continued to be a strong fielder, with fielding percentages over .985. However, he found it hard to hit well for the next three seasons. The Washington Senators team moved and became the Texas Rangers. But Casanova did not move with them. He was traded to the Atlanta Braves on December 2, 1971.
He played for the Braves for three seasons. He mostly played as a backup catcher. In 1972, he played behind Earl Williams. In 1973, he shared playing time with Johnny Oates. After playing only 42 games in 1974, Casanova was released on March 28, 1975.
As a Brave, Casanova was the catcher for Phil Niekro's no-hitter game on August 5, 1973. A no-hitter is when a pitcher completes a game without allowing the other team to get any hits.
Paul Casanova passed away in 2017 in Miami, Florida. He was 75 years old.
