Luis Tiant was a Major League Baseball pitcher known for his distinctive windup and his years playing for the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians.
- Died: October 8, 2024 (Who else died on October 8?)
- Details of death: Died at the age of 83.
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Luis Tiant’s legacy
Born in Cuba, Tiant began his professional baseball career just as the Cuban Revolution was changing the face of his homeland. He signed with the Mexico City Tigers in 1959 while also playing for the Havana Sugar Kings, and in 1961, he joined the Indians, beginning to work his way up through the Cleveland team’s farm system. But as his career was on the rise, Tiant soon realized he had to make a choice between baseball and home.
Tensions between the U.S. and Cuba had intensified since he left, and his father advised him that if he returned to Cuba, he might not be allowed to leave. Tiant went ahead with his career, but it was 14 years before he was able to see his father again, a man who had his own notable baseball career, pitching for a Negro league team in the U.S. and a Cuban league team from 1926 to 1948.
The junior Tiant made his major league debut in 1964 with the Indians. He had his career-best season with the team in 1968, leading the American League in ERA, shutouts, and other metrics. The following year, though, injuries hampered his play, and Tiant was traded to the Minnesota Twins for the 1970 season. After a season-ending broken scapula, Tiant was released by the Twins, and he briefly went down to the minor leagues. There, he perfected a unique new pitching style that allowed him to excel despite his injuries.
Instead of facing the batter as he began his pitch, Tiant turned his back to home plate, winding up for a spin that would deliver a devastating ball to the batter. It became his signature as he made his way back to the major leagues, this time with a new contract with the Red Sox. He was with the Boston team from 1971 to 1978 in some of the best seasons of his career, and he became known as “El Tiante.” He was an All-Star twice during his Red Sox years, and he led the American League in ERAs again in 1972. In 1975, while the Red Sox were in the playoffs, his parents received a special visa to visit him in Boston, and they were able to see him pitch.
Later in his career, Tiant had brief stints with the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and California Angels. After retiring in 1982, he coached for minor league teams, the Nicaraguan Olympic team, and others. A longtime cigar aficionado, he also launched a line of cigars, called El Tiante.
A Boston fan favorite, Tiant was an inductee into the Red Sox Hall of Fame. However, despite several 15 appearances on the ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, he never received enough votes to be inducted.
Notable quote
“Everybody … they see me pitch all those years, they know I belong in the Hall of Fame. Wherever I go, people told me, ‘You should be in the Hall of Fame.’” — from a 2017 interview with The Sporting News
Tributes to Luis Tiant
Full obituary: The Athletic
