The Eastern Stars - Mark Kurlansky [71]
These boys at the academies, whose future seemed so bright when they received their bonuses only weeks before, were under tremendous pressure. The usual practice when releasing players, whether in the Dominican Republic or in the minor-league system in the U.S., was to simply inform them that they were released without giving any explanation. Sometimes they were released for what was deemed “bad behavior.” What would happen today to a Dominican Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, or Ted Williams, all famous in their day for bad behavior? If the Dominican player was released in the U.S., he would be given a return ticket to Santo Domingo. With the termination of the job, the temporary work visa expired.
Exactly what the ball clubs were looking for was always a little mysterious. The scouts, the academies, the organizations, were looking for someone who would make a great Major League Baseball player. When considering a sixteen-year-old, however, this usually required some guesswork.
Traditionally, what everyone in baseball wants are the “five-tool players.” Baseball requires an unusually varied list of skills, and it is extremely rare to find someone who does everything well. Only a handful of major-league stars have been five-tool players. Playing ability has been reduced to five basic tools: a good throwing arm, speed at running, skill in fielding, the power to hit home runs, and the ability to hit consistently, which is measured by batting average.
Dario Paulino, who grew up in San Pedro and in 2007 became the coordinator of the Atlanta Braves’ academy in San Pedro, said, “That’s what we look for in every player: a five-tool player.”
But there were a lot of less tangible things that scouts and trainers wanted to see. Dany Santana said, “The first thing I look for is . . .” and he pointed at his head. He quoted a favorite Eddy Toledo saying: “No puede pensar, no puede jugar”—If you can’t think, you can’t play. “If you are young and smart, you can improve quickly,” Santana noted. Coming from a stable home with some education came to be considered an important asset for Dominicans, even though many great Dominican players hadn’t come from such homes. The organizations wanted boys who could learn how to speak English and get along in the United States.
Dominicans, especially Macorisanos, generally lived their lives confined to a small world. They didn’t travel and, despite the enormous number of both local and national newspapers, knew little about what went on in the outside world. During World War II, it was said that the average Dominican knew almost nothing about the war. Most sixteen-year-old Macorisanos had seldom left San Pedro. They may have gone a few miles east to La Romana or north to Hato Mayor, both agricultural areas. If they were signed by an organization with an academy a few miles east in Boca Chica or a little farther in Santo Domingo, that alone was a huge adventure.
Rafael Vásquez said, “I look for a good arm, how he runs, how he talks to other people. Is he a good guy with a good family?”
Asked what he looked for, Eddy Toledo said, “Athleticism and a passion for the game. It’s hard to find now. In the past, people loved the game more than now. Kids used to play baseball because they loved the game. Now the top priority is to be rich and famous, and not because of a passion in their hearts.”
As bonuses went up, the teams grew more cautious. They used to simply pay what the scout recommended. Then they started sending someone to take a look and decide if the player merited the investment. There was a growing feeling that the amount of money paid was adversely affecting the players.
Toledo did not like big bonuses. As of 2009, the biggest bonus he ever got was $43,000. He said, “If you give a poor kid $300,000, this is the first rock in the way of his development. He’s not hungry anymore. I am very worried about giving kids big money, because they