Francisco "Paquito" Montaner

Francisco ("Paquito") Montaner García[note 1] (August 16, 1894 – April 5, 1945) was a Puerto Rican pitcher from Ponce. He was the first baseball player to throw a "no-hitter" in Puerto Rican baseball,[2][3] an event that took place on 10 December 1911.[3] He is honored with the name of one of the largest stadiums in Puerto Rico, the professional baseball league's Francisco Montaner Stadium in Ponce. In 1955, he was inducted into the Puerto Rico Sports Hall of Fame[4] and, in 1983, into the Galeria de los Inmortales del Deporte Ponceño (Ponce's Gallery of the Inmortals of Ponce Sports).[5]

Francisco ("Paquito") Montaner García
Born: (1894-08-16)August 16, 1894
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Died: April 5, 1945(1945-04-05) (aged 50)
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
1911, for the Ponce Baseball Club
Last MLB appearance
1923
MLB statistics
First player ever to throw a "no-hitter" in Puerto Rican professional baseball[1]22 January 1912[1]
Career highlights and awards
Pabellón de la Fama del Deporte Puertorriqueño (1955)[1]
Galería de Inmortales del Deporte Ponceño (1983)[1]

Early years and schooling

Francisco "Paquito" Alfonso Montaner García was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, on August 16, 1894,[6] to Francisco Montaner Colón[7] and Eugenia García Colón.[8] His parents separated when he was young and Montaner was raised by his mother, together with his other three siblings, Manolo, Mercedes and Amanda.[8] His father was a member of the local chapter of the Unionist party.[9] Montaner García was a graduate of Ponce High School.[4]

Baseball career
Main entrance to the stadium named after Francisco Montaner

Montaner García predated professional baseball in Puerto Rico, which was not organized until 1926.[10][11] He was one of the greatest Puerto Rican pitchers of all times.[4][12] He also played ball performing brilliantly as an infielder. Prior to this, he was responsible for raising the name of his alma mater Ponce High School to the summit of Puerto Rican sports.[4]

On one occasion Montaner García pitched two games on the same day without allowing the opposing team, Santurce's Central High School, to score a single run. On another occasion Montaner scored all strikeouts against 15 batters in succession and, in 1914, Montaner eliminated the All-American team as he threw a no-hitter against a team made up exclusively of American players belonging mostly to major league teams. After this game, the All-American team extended Montaner an offer to play for their team. Montaner's parents refused, however, given that Montaner was still a very young man. "Had the contract materialized, Montaner would have been the first Puerto Rican ever to have played in the major leagues with the New York Yankees, then known as the All-American team".[13][14][11] On January 22, 1912, while playing for Ponce's Liga del Castillo, Montaner García threw another no-hitter against San Juan's Capital Pope team.[11] Montaner García was a right-hand pitcher.[15]

Montaner García and his team, the Ponce Baseball Club, played at the Campo Atlético Charles H. Terry located on Calle Lolita Tizol in Ponce. Among the players in his team were Vicente Laborde, Octavio Rodriguez, "Ciqui" Faberlle, Carlos Bonet, Angel Pou, Cayetano Pou, Cosme Beitia, "Pellin" Alicea, Leopoldo Martinez and Lorenzo Roque.[3] Montaner García retired from baseball in 1923 when he hurt his right arm.[3]

Life outside the diamond

Shopkeeper

As professional leagues had not yet formed in Puerto Rico at the time Montaner played, he made his living outside the baseball field. Montaner García came from a family of shopkeepers. His father, Francisco Montaner Colón (b. 1872- d.?)[16] owned a cigar and liquor shop in Ponce, located near the center of town at the corner of Arenas and Intendente Ramirez streets, in Barrio Sexto (Cantera).[17]

Music lover

Montaner Garcia loved music and in the 1930s he recorded two 78 rpm records with Jose Piñeiro in New Jersey, United States. The recordings consisted of danzas by Manuel Gregorio Tavárez and Juan Morel Campos.[18] "He loved music, playing the guitar and singing."[3]

Family life

Montaner García married Sarah Bigay and had four children: Carmen Maria, Francisco (Paquito) (1925–2009), Victor Manuel, and Ausberto (Boty).[19][12]

Later years and death

Montaner García spent his last few retirement years playing dominoes.[20] He died in Ponce on April 5, 1945, after suffering from leucemia for some time.[21] He was 50 years old at the time of his death.[18] Montaner García was the first major figure in Ponce baseball. His death in 1945 prompted the city of Ponce to honor him by naming the local baseball stadium after him. The stadium broke ground two years after Montaner García's death and opened two years after that, in 1949.[3]

Legacy

See also

Notes
  1. In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Montaner and the second or maternal family name is García.

References
  1. http://foro.univision.com/t5/Maria-Elena-Salinas/LA-MALDICION-DE-LOS-LEONES-DE-PONCE-POR-LOS-YANKEES-DE-NY-Y-CHEO/td-p/388965843#axzz228Nx8wRP Archived 2013-02-05 at archive.today La Maldicion de los Leones de Ponce por los Yankees de NY y Cheo Cruz.] 03-10-2010. Univision Television. TV > FOROS > Maria Elena Salinas. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
  2. Honran a Paquito Montaner. Hector Diaz Salichs. Comite Monumento y Celebracion del 1er Centenario del Natalicio de Francisco "Paquito" Montaner Garcia. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 7 August 1994. Page 1.
  3. Mil anécdotas en homenaje a Montaner. José ‘Pepén’ Fernández Colón. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Year 30. Issue 1465. 28 December 2011. Page 53. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  4. Biographic sheet on Montaner, Francisco "Paquito". Baseball. Museo Francisco Pancho Coimbre. August 10, 2010.
  5. Biographic sheet on Montaner, Francisco "Paquito". Baseball. Museo Francisco Pancho Coimbre. August 10, 2010.
  6. Honran a Paquito Montaner. Hector Diaz Salichs. Comite Monumento y Celebración del 1er Centenario del Natalicio de Francisco "Paquito" Montaner García. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 7 August 1994. Page 2.
  7. Paquito Montaner y Colón. 1910 U.S. Census. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  8. 1920 U.S. Census. Ancetry.com Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  9. Asamblea Unionista de Ayer. Puerto Rico Eagle. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 8 September 1913. Page 1.
  10. Museo Francisco "Pancho" Coimbre. Revista Hola PR. 17 Sept 2010. Archived 2010-12-30 at the Wayback Machine
  11. Francisco (Paquito) Montaner. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 18 November 1992. Sports section. Page 84.
  12. Francisco (Paquito) Montaner. Periodico La Perla del Sur. 18 November 1992. Sports section. Page 84.
  13. Recordando a Paquito. Juan B. Roman. March 12, 1946. Folleto Deportivo from Luis Antonio "Wito" Morales. (Originally published in Ponce y el Beisbol Ayer y Hoy. By Efrain Figueroa y Julio Moreno. 1971. Pages 12 and 13.)
  14. Biographic sheet on Montaner, Francisco "Paquito". Baseball. Museo Francisco Pancho Coimbre. 10 August 2010.
  15. Dos centenarios para recordar. Archived 2011-12-04 at the Wayback Machine Jorge Colón Delgado. "Deportes 101." El Nuevo Dia. San Juan, Puerto Rico. 23 December 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  16. Paquito Montaner y Colon. 1910 U.S. Census.Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  17. "The Pictorial Guide and Business Directory of Porto Rico: A Commercial Guide and General Business Directory ..." November 1, 1910 – via Google Books.
  18. Paquito Montaner, Gloria Ponceña. By Luis Antonio Rodriguez. NotiSur. Week of January 15–21, 1998. Sports Section. Page 29.
  19. Honran a Francisco "Paquito" Montaner. Hector Diaz Salichs. Periodico La Perla del Sur. 31 August 1994. Sports section. Page 71.
  20. Honran a Paquito Montaner. Hector Diaz Salichs. Comite Monumento y Celebracion del 1er Centenario del Natalicio de Francisco "Paquito" Montaner Garcia. Ponce, Puerto Rico.
  21. Francisco (Paquito) Montaner. La Perla del Sur. 18 November 1992. Sports section. Page 84.
  22. Sports. TravelPonce.com Retrieved 18 April 2013.
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