Montrew Dunham - Roberto Clemente: Young Ball Player

Dear Reader:

The Childhood of Famous Americans series, seventy years old in 2002, chronicles the early years of famous American men and women in an accessible manner. Each book is faithful in spirit to the values and experiences that influenced the persons development. History is fleshed out with fictionalized details, and conversations have been added to make the stories come alive to todays reader, but every reasonable effort has been made to make the stories consistent with the events, ethics, and character of their subjects.

These books reaffirm the importance of our American heritage. We hope you learn to love the heroes and heroines who helped shape this great country. And by doing so, we hope you also develop a lasting love for the nation that gave them the opportunity to make their dreams come true. It will do the same for you.

Happy Reading!

The Editors

Roberto Clemente

Young Baseball Player

Illustrated by Meryl Henderson

Young Baseball Player

by Montrew Dunham

ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed by the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this stripped book.

First Aladdin Paperbacks edition April 1997

Copyright 1997 by Montrew Dunham

Aladdin Paperbacks
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Childrens Publishing Division
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All rights reserved, including the right of
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CHILDHOOD OF FAMOUS AMERICANS is a registered trademark of
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ALADDIN PAPERBACKS and colophon are trademarks of
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Manufactured in the United States of America

10 12 14 16 18 20 19 17 15 13 11

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dunham, Montrew.

Roberto Clemente: young ball player / by Montrew Dunham

1st Aladdin Paperbacks ed.

p. cm.(Childhood of famous Americans)

Summary: Traces the personal life and baseball career of the Puerto Rican baseball
superstar, from his childhood love of the game through his professional career and
untimely death to his election to the Hall of Fame in 1973.

ISBN-13: 978-0-689-81364-1
eISBN-13: 978-1-439-13652-2

I. Clement, Roberto, 1934-1972Juvenile literature.

2. Baseball playersUnited
StatesBiograryJuvenile literature.

3. Puerto RicansBiographyJuvenile literature.

[1. Clemente, Roberto, 1934-1972. 2. Baseball players. 3. Puerto RicansBiography.]

I. Title.

II. Series: Childhood of famous Americans series.

GV865.C45D86 1997

796.357092dc21

[B] 96-37326

CIP AC

Dedicated to Ciudad Sportiva

I am grateful to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and the Pittsburgh Pirates for taking the time to answer all of my questions.

M.D.

Illustrations

Full pages

Numerous smaller illustrations

Young Baseball Player

R OBERTO C LEMENTE LOVED to play baseball more than anything else. Even when he didnt have a ball to play with, he and his friends hit tin cans. Often they used any kind of a stick they could find as a bat.

Roberto was born on August 18, 1934 in Puerto Rico, a sunny island in the Caribbean where people spoke Spanish. He lived in the small town of Carolina, which was near San Juan. The youngest of seven children, he had two sistersRosa and Ana Eliseand four brothersLuis, Matino, Andres, and Oswaldo. Luis and Rosa were Robertos mothers children from her first marriage. They were much older than Roberto. Sadly, Ana Elise died when Roberto was very young.

Like most of the men in Robertos neighborhood, the Barrio of San Anton, Robertos father, Melchor Clemente, worked in the sugarcane fields. He worked very hard, and had been promoted to a foreman. He oversaw the work of a crew of sugarcane cutters. Even so, he did not make very much money.

In the wintertime the children went to school Mondays through Fridays, but after school and until mid-summer they helped with the work. During the day Robertos older brothers went with their father to the fields to work, or sometimes they helped in the little store which their parents ran out of their home. Seor Clemente also had an old truck that he used to make extra money. With the truck, he hauled sugarcane or building materials or anything else that needed to be moved. Seor Clemente and his wife, Luisa, both worked very hard to have enough money to take care of their family.

One summer day, Roberto had helped his brothers Matino and Andres load the truck with sand. After they finished their work, he ran to the field across the road from his house to see if there were any boys playing baseball.

Jos was already there with his broomstick bat and a pile of tin cans. Roberto, will you pitch to me? Jos called.

Roberto went to the pretend pitchers mound by the tin cans and tossed a can to Jos. He swung at it and missed. Their rules were that if the hitter missed, he had to be the pitcher for the other boy. But Jos protested, I didnt see the can coming! Pitch another to me!

Okay, Roberto said, and pitched another can. This time Jos hit it. Roberto threw a couple more cans until Jos finally missed one. Now it was Joss turn to pitch to Roberto.

Jos threw the cans high and low. Sometimes he tossed the can so crooked that Roberto had to leap to the side to swing at it. But Roberto always hit the tin can. Jos complained, I always have to be the pitcher, because you never miss!

Roberto laughed. He loved playing ball, and liked being able to hit so well. Sometimes he hit the tin cans so hard that they sailed across the field to the banana trees.

Okay, you can be the hitter and Ill toss the cans to you, he said to Jos. But first we need to pick them up. The boys scrambled all over the dusty field to pick up the many cans Roberto had hit.

They collected all the tin cans and once again placed them in a pile next to where the pitcher would stand. Jos grabbed the stick and ran to the batters place. Roberto picked up a can and started to throw it to Jos. In the distance he saw some of the men walking down the road. They were coming home from the sugarcane fields.

Quickly he tossed the can for Jos to hit, and then he turned to leave. I need to go meet my father! he called back over his shoulder.

Nearly every day Roberto met his father at the sugarcane fields, and rode home with him on his horse. Melchor Clemente had a horse to ride because he was the foreman.