Cándido Hernández

Cándido Hernández Santana

Biographical Information

Cándido Hernández was a member of the first two Cuban national teams.

Hernández was the first baseman and leadoff hitter for Cuba in the 1926 Central American Games, their international debut; as a result, he was the first player to bat for Cuba in an international tournament. He was 1 for 4 with two runs in the opener against Mexico then was 2 for 6 with 4 runs the next two games. His .300 average was the second-lowest on Cuba, but his six runs led the tournament. He outscored the entire Mexican team, which had five runs in the three games (Cuba and Mexico were the lone competitors). He also handled all 24 chances at first base without an error and tied José Echarri for the lead with one home run.

In 1927, he hit .386 for Policia to lead Cuba's top amateur league. During the 1930 Central American Games, he was 3 for 12 with a double and steal for the Gold Medal winners. He fielded .977, the best of any starting first baseman in the event.

Sources

• 1926 and 1930 Central American Games Cuban final reports
• A History of Cuban Baseball by Peter Bjarkman