José Antonio Huelga Ordaz

Huelga is one of the illustrative cases of great sports figures with tragic ends because he died at just 26 years old in a car accident. He died young, at the age of the gods. He went to eternal life asleep, as he was resting peacefully beside the driver when the car crashed against a trailer, in the dark, parked on the Panamericana highway heading to Mariel.

He was born in Tuinicú, Sancti Spiritus. Huelga, whose biological father was also a noted pitcher, began practicing baseball at 16 years old in the Spiritan city where he had been living for about five years. He was shortstop and cleanup hitter for his high school and the newly created Special Baseball Area.

He pitched for the first time casually, his team was facing Camajuaní, a strong rival, for the provincial title in the category, and they had no fresh pitchers, so the manager turned to Huelga. The Spiritans won 6 to 5, Huelga's first victory, and tied the series. Two weeks later came the decisive game and Huelga asked the manager for the ball, the result?: a Yayabera victory of 9 to 0 with 17 strikeouts and only one hit allowed in the eighth inning. Thus began the pitching history of José Antonio Huelga. In that crucial game, Spiritan catcher Fernando Ibarra had to leave the game in the seventh inning due to swelling in his catching hand, such were the fastballs of the idol of Tuinicú.

The following year Huelga became more enthusiastic about baseball and in the Youth Regional tournament in just 36 innings pitched he distributed 69 strikeouts. That performance took him to the Youth National tournament. He only relied on his terrifying velocity and quick movement off the bases, he didn't know how to pitch, it was pure courage, but he had plenty of ability. Because of his competitive merits he was part of the youth team that made a tour of Canada, his first international experience.

It was Pedro Natilla Jiménez, once a great amateur and professional pitcher, who truly discovered him as a pitcher in 1966 and served as his first and great coach, the one who taught him all the secrets of the difficult art of pitching, his baseball father, who took him to stellar heights.

He debuted with Las Villas in National Series in the 1966-1967 national tournament. The following year he moved to the stronger Las Villas team: Azucareros. He jumped to stardom with 16 victories, 151 strikeouts and an earned run average of 1.31.

At the end of that series he participated in the First Series of Stars of Cuban baseball, his performance in it was fantastic, he went 19 innings on May 19, 1968 in a duel against Occidentales of 20 innings, the game had to end in a tie at three runs, it is amazing that, according to athletes, coaches and fans who witnessed it, Huelga maintained the same velocity as in the first inning, Natilla didn't take him out because he was unhittable.

He debuted with the Cuban national team and remained there continuously until 1972. His continuous successes and great feats, combined with personal magnetism and great charisma, earned him the affection of teammates and rivals, of women and men, of Cubans and foreigners. His parties, zest for life and jovial character were famous, always ready to help others, the more inexperienced ballplayers.

In '69 he formed a great pitching duo with righthander Rolando Macías El Músico de San Fernando de Camarones and guided by the arms of both they gave Azucareros their first national triumph.

In his magnificent 1970 season he won 8 and lost 5 with an incredible average of 0.92 and 102 strikeouts in 107.1 innings of work. In the Series of Ten Million, the true first Selective, again with his friend Rolando Macías he led Las Villas to an indisputable triumph. Macías led in earned run average, while Huelga followed him in that department, he was leader in save points and winning-losing average with 11 victories and one loss.

In the Central Americans held in Panama he led in shutouts with 2 and earned run average with 0.00 in 18 innings pitched. Then came his fabulous World Series in Cartagena where in a duel with American star Burt Hooton –who later pitched in the Major Leagues- he won in eleven innings 3 to 1, Cuba's first victory in the Play Off. In less than 48 hours he defeated the northerners again with a golden relief appearance of four and one-third innings to give Cuba the world title.

In '71 he again led the Azucareros pitching staff for another national triumph. In the Pan American Games in Cali he was the great figure of Cuban pitching and won the title for Cuba against the United States 4 to 3, although he allowed three home runs with the bases empty, but he prevailed with his boldness, put his arm in and won. Havana hosted the World Series at the end of the year, the first held in Cuba after the triumph of the Revolution. Huelga was once again the number one pitcher. At the conclusion of the World Series, a special game was held, by initiative and vote of the press, between the all-stars of the remaining participating teams against the Cuban national team. Huelga pitched a shutout 2 to 0 with two solo hits allowed and a total of 17 strikeouts, leaving them wanting to bat.

In the 1971-72 National he shone again and contributed importantly to the third championship won by his Las Villas Azucareros. In the extra Play Off Series between Azucareros and Mineros de Oriente, Huelga faced the already stellar Braudilio Vinent "El Meteoro de la Maya" and despite not being in good physical condition he defeated him in a great duel of 2 runs to 0 and hit a go-ahead run to give the victory to the central lands in the mecca of Cuban baseball: El Latinoamericano.

In the World Series held in Nicaragua he engaged in a great duel with Japanese submarine pitcher Hideo Furuya and defeated him 2 to 0 with one single allowed, the first victory in the history of baseball matchups between Cuba and Japan. He faced the weak team of the extinct German Federal Republic and in the seven innings he pitched he retired all 21 batters he faced with 18 strikeouts. It is still unheard of to think that the Cuban director and friend of Huelga, Servio Tulio Borges, did not allow him to complete that game when he was on his way to pitching the first perfect game in World Series history, Cuba won that game 10 to 0. He opened the final game against the United States, but this time although he did well he was taken out of the box in the seventh inning when the game was going against Cuba 2 to 0. The game was won as a relief pitcher by Vinent due to the historic home run by Agustín Marquetti that left the field to the Americans.

Huelga presented problems in one of his legs, for which reason he was demoted to the Las Villas team, weaker than Azucareros, and although he did well he was not included in the Cuban team in 1973. By medical prescription he had to stay away from the diamonds temporarily while his leg recovered. He told all his friends that he had a "stone" in his arm, that it was intact, but the pain in his leg did not allow him to pitch.

In baseball slang it is said that he had a "heavy" ball, as he allowed only 9 home runs in National Series, one in All-Star or exhibition games (in 1972 the rookie Fernando Sánchez) and he was batted for a low average of .180. After 7 nationals -including the Series of Ten Million which wasn't recorded until 1988- he was second in earned run average, third in strikeouts, fourth in games won, ninth in complete games, innings pitched and shutouts. Currently he is the historical leader in earned run average, is fourth in winning-losing average with 100 or more decisions and ranks among those who allowed the fewest hits.

On September 9, 1973 he made what would be his last pitching appearance in an exhibition game between the CDR and the MININT, he opened the game held at Victoria de Girón in the city of Sancti Spíritus, he came straight from the Hospital that borders the field, the stadium was falling apart with applause. He struck out the first five batters he faced, the sixth hit a single, a "Texas" hit behind second base, and the seventh and last batter grounded out to short.

Beyond his resources, his supersonic fastball that moved deceptively, his quick curve and his equally sharp and fast slider or his control, there was the best of his pitches: courage beyond question.

Great ballplayers who coincided with the legendary José Antonio Huelga agree that he instilled fear in a baseball game, that no matter how close the game was. He was a pitcher who asked his teammates for one or two runs and assured them victory if they fulfilled his request, great ones like Lázaro Pérez, his eternal catcher, Owen Blandino, Antonio Muñoz, Wilfredo Sánchez, Rolando Macías, Pedro Jova and Félix Isasi, among others, have testified to this.

With Huelga there were no impossibilities and you were never behind. Something that his short, but phenomenal numbers cannot reflect, is his courage and confidence that made him look immense on the field and in command of the situation.

Many expected his return, but he entered forever into immortality. Perhaps he would have come back, perhaps not, we will never know, but he will always be The Hero of Cartagena, the shooting star of Cuban baseball.

His name has honored the main stadium of his native land since 1991. Under his name eight editions of an international tournament have been celebrated since 1983, which at the time was the only event organized by a country that the AINBA -now IBAF- gave official status to, in the second to last one his statue was inaugurated and the stadium bearing his name.

Source: Baseball de Cuba.com