From the Saratogian (the newspaper of Saratoga Springs, NY)
…“I introduced him to my grandsons, because they didn’t know how important he is to the sport,” Dietrick said, “and I told them that he was from Carolina, Puerto Rico, and then I said, ‘Carolina is also the home of the great Roberto Clemente.’”
[He] looked up from the programs he was signing.
“That’s right,” he said.
Clemente, of course, is the first Latin American and Caribbean player to be inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates for 18 years, and in 1972, he died in a plane crash while bringing relief supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.
“Roberto was always a hero of mine, not only because of his status in the sport,” Dietrick said, “but because of who he was and how he died. He was killed the year my youngest son was born, and we named him Robert in Clemente’s honor.”
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My idol. Watching him play was like seeing ballet.