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Beisbol Sudamerica’s 1978 Hall of Fame voting led to two first ballot selections. RF Aleix Espinoza was the star of the pair with 96.9% of the vote. SP Roldan De La Herran joined him with a solid 81.5%. Two others were above 50% with closer Jaguare Maia at 53.7% on his fourth try and SP Jon Mancilla at 50.2% in his penultimate opportunity.



Two-way player Jay Carrizales was dropped after ten ballots despite debuting at 65.3%, missing first ballot induction by less than a percentage point. He ended up falling to 18.8% at the end despite hovering generally in the upper 40% range. His career was only 12 years and the last three were in MLB. Injuries made him largely irrelevant by the time his turned 30. Still, Carrizales was a star with Santiago, winning two MVPs, seven Silver Sluggers, and six Gold Gloves. As a pitcher in BSA, he had a 141-76 record, 2.53 ERA, 2044.2 innings, 1998 strikeouts, and 43.5 WAR. At the plate as an outfielder, he had 728 hits, 343 runs, 129 home runs, 344 RBI, a .271/.318/.482 slash and 28.1 WAR. His career was certainly memorable and worth spotlighting, but the longevity and totals were just low enough to leave him out of the Hall.

Also worth noting was Carino Colon, who fell below 5% on his ninth try. In 15 years mostly with Guayaquil, the 1B had 2362 hits, 1094 runs, 383 home runs, 1174 RBI, a .305/.345/.517 slash and 61.1 WAR. This was only enough to get him a peak of 16.4%.



Aleix Espinoza – Outfielder – Lima Lobos – 96.9% First Ballot

Aleix Espinoza was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed outfielder from Huancayo, a city of around 450,000 people in Peru’s central highlands. He was a jack-of-all-trades type hitter who wasn’t stellar at anything, but was consistently solid getting contact, drawing walks, avoiding strikeouts, and providing power. He wasn’t a prolific home run guy, but still got you around 20-30 per year while adding 30-40 doubles/triples. Espinoza did have very good speed and baserunning ability as well, making him a threat anytime on base. He was primarily a right fielder, although he did have starts in left and rarely in center and was a reliably average defender. Espinoza also had great durability and was viewed as a leader in the clubhouse, making him very popular in his career.

Espinoza emerged as one of Peru’s most promising prospects and was picked third overall by Lima in the 1953 Beisbol Sudamerica Draft. He started most of his rookie season and as a full-time starter for the rest of his Lobos tenure. Espinoza led the Bolivar League thrice in OPS and wRC+; twice in runs, total bases, and slugging; and once in hits, doubles, average, and WAR. He posted six straight 8+ WAR seasons from 1957-62, winning five over his seven BSA Silver Sluggers in that stretch.

He was third in MVP voting in 1957, second in 1960, and second in 1961 for his Lima run. Espinoza won the award in 1959 with 116 RBI and 1.027 and a career best 9.8 WAR. Notably in 1960, he won a batting title with a .387 average and 225 hits. Espinoza also began playing for Peru in the World Baseball Championship, making 135 appearances from 1955-73. He had 118 hits, 74 runs, 26 home runs, 69 RBI, and 4.3 WAR in the WBC.

Despite his efforts, Lima never made the playoffs in his tenure. The Lobos were consistently above .500, but in that era couldn’t get by nearby rival Callao. With Lima, Espionza had 1825 hits, 896 runs, 298 doubles, 139 triples, 234 home runs, 920 RBI, a .324/.371/.550 slash, and 68.4 WAR. Once his career was done, the franchise would retire his #13 uniform and he’d remain a popular figure with Lobos fans.

Espinoza’s final season with Lima ended with a broken bone in his elbow in August. He became a free agent at age 33 and got worldwide offers, ultimately signing with MLB’s Minneapolis to a five-year, $810,000 deal. Espinoza didn’t win awards with the Moose, but was a solid reliable starter posting 720 hits, 399 runs, 128 home runs, 383 RBI, a .259/.323/.454 slash, wRC+ of 129, and 18.2 WAR. His only playoff experiences came in 1967 and 1968, including a NACS berth in 1968.

His deal ran out and he was a free agent again at age 38 for the 1969 season. Espinoza decided to return home to Peru, but with Callao instead of Lima. He had a career renaissance with Silver Slugger seasons in 1969 and 1970 and a second place in 1970 MVP voting at age 39. Espinoza fell off a bit in 1971 for the then-rebuilding Cats, but still ended up with 18.3 WAR in three years. Callao traded him to Medellin for the 1972, where he played ultimately his final season. Espinoza hoped to find a home in 1973, but went unsigned, retiring that winter at age 42.

For his entire pro career, Espinoza had 3129 hits, 1606 runs, 502 doubles, 451 home runs, 1576 RBI, 839 stolen bases, a .300/.354/.515 slash and 106.5 WAR. For just Beisbol Sudamerica, he had 2409 hits, 1207 runs, 389 doubles, 171 triples, 323 home runs, 1193 RBI, 724 steals, a .315/.365/.537 slash, 153 wRC+, and 88.3 WAR. That career earned him a first ballot selection with 96.9% into BSA’s Hall of Fame.



Roldan De La Herran – Starting Pitcher – Cali Cyclones – 81.5% First Ballot

Roldan De La Herran was a 6’2’’, 195 pound right-handed pitcher from Medellin, Colombia’s second largest city. De La Herran was best known for having excellent control and stamina. His stuff and movement was only viewed as above average at best, but he mixed up five pitches and placed them very well. The arsenal saw 96-98 mph peak velocity with a slider, curveball, forkball, changeup, and splitter on offer. He was also a team captain with excellent leadership and work ethic, allowing him to find great success even without blistering stuff.

De La Herran was picked sixth overall in the 1957 Beisbol Sudamerica by Cali and immediately a full time starter, although he was iffy as a rookie. He’d pitch 240+ innings in all of his full seasons with the Cyclones, although he wasn’t looked at as an ace level pitcher initially. Cali stunk throughout the 1960s, but De La Herran finally was noticed with a third place finish in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1964, posting what was a career-best 7.8 WAR and 2.16 ERA to that point. De La Herran was 30 years old for the 1965 season and was traded by Cali in the summer to Medellin for two prospects.

This trade sent De La Herran back to his hometown with Medellin getting set to begin their late 1960s dynasty run. He finished third in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1965, then won the award for the only time in 1966 with career highs in WAR (8.8), innings (308.2), strikeouts (314), wins (25-7), and ERA (2.10). 1966 marked the first of five Bolivar League titles for the Mutiny between 1966-71, although they only won Copa Sudamerica in 1969. He played a huge role in the 1969 title, posting a 3-0 record and 1.12 ERA over 24 playoff innings. In 12 total playoff starts, De La Herran had a 4.24 ERA over 87 innings with a 6-5 record with 57 strikeouts.

1967 saw a major setback for De La Herran with a torn rotator cuff on May 2, putting him out nine months. Bone chips in his elbow put him out a chunk of 1968, but he bounced back with similar production to his past years for the rest of his Medellin run. With the Mutiny, he had an 81-43 record, 2.51 ERA, 1275.2 innings, 1249 strikeouts, and 31.8 WAR. He also pitched for Colombia in the World Baseball Championship from 1961-72 with a 3.75 ERA over 175 innings with 177 strikeouts.

Now 36-years old, De La Herran became a free agent and returned to Cali for his final two seasons. He fell off noticeably in his final two seasons and had more bone chips in his elbow in 1972 that ended his season early. De La Herran retired after the season at age 38 and finished between his two Cali runs with a 3.11 ERA, 123-128 record, 2448.2 innings, 2107 strikeouts, and 43.4 WAR. The Cyclones would retire his #12 uniform that winter.

De La Herran’s final stats: 204-171 record, 2.91 ERA, 3724.1 innings, 3356 strikeouts to 494 walks, 300/445 quality starts, 211 complete games, a FIP- of 86, and 75.2 WAR. His stats are more near the middle compared to other Beisbol Sudamerica Hall of Famers, but not out of place. Aided also by his role in Medellin’s playoff success, De La Herran grabbed the first ballot induction at 81.5%.