Joe Espada Wants Clemente\'s No. 21 To Be Retired By MLB
Houston Astros manager Joe Espada wants to see Major League Baseball retire Roberto Clemente\'s No. 21.
Clemente was the first Latin-born player to win National League MVP, a World Series MVP and a World Series title as a starting position player.
He was also widely known for his humanitarian work. He died on Dec. 31, 1972 in a plane crash while trying to deliver aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.
\"What Roberto Clemente has done, what he represents, what he did, opened the doors to a lot of people like me,\" Espada said. \"I think it should be an MLB celebration where that number should be in every corner of every major-league stadium. That\'s how I feel about that.\"
Espada, like Clemente, was born in Puerto Rico.
Sunday was Roberto Clemente Day in MLB and a good number of players across baseball donned No. 21 in honor of the man himself.