[FuzzyRussianHat]

The 1959 Central American Baseball Association Hall of Fame ballot was relatively unimpressive with only one inductee getting in after seven tries. Second baseman Ray Reyes got the bump on his seventh attempt at 77.5%. Closer Leroy Morillo was close on his eighth try, but fell short of the 66% mark at 63.5%. 3B Sandro Villanueba had a respectable debut at 604% and LE Se-Hyeon Kim at 56.5% on his second try was the others above 50%.



One player was dropped after the tenth go in RF Gabriel Tuitt. In his 14 seasons between Santiago, Haiti, and Guadalajara, he had 2110 hits, 1075 runs, 444 home runs, 1296 RBI, a .273 average, and 49.8 WAR. He won six Silver Sluggers, but didn’t have high enough accumulations to get the nod, peaking at 45.1% on his seventh try.



Ray “Ferret” Reyes – Second Baseman – Santo Domingo Dolphins – 77.3% Seventh Ballot

Ray Reyes was a 5’9’’, 200 pound right-handed second baseman from Santiago de Cuba, the second largest city in the country. Reyes was a terrific leadoff man who was a great contact hitter that could effectively draw walks. Reyes was a quick baserunner and solid base stealer as well, making him dangerous when he got on. Reyes didn’t have home run power at all, but was solid at finding the gap and getting extra bases with his speed. He was a career second baseman and considered a solid to good defender with a reliable glove at the position.

Reyes was drafted 14^th overall by Santo Domingo in the 1930 CABA Draft and would spend his entire professional career with the Dolphins. He made an unremarkable debut in 1931 and had some injuries. After an okay year two and a partial year three because a torn labrum, Reyes found his rhythm in year four. He won his lone Gold Glove in 1935 and picked up three Silver Sluggers in 1937, 1938, and 1946. Reyes led the Caribbean League in triples thrice, runs twice, walks twice, OBP four times, and stolen bases one.

He never was a top three MVP finisher, but posted 6+ seasons in 1937, 1938, and 1940; an impressive feat with only 25 career home runs. The Dolphins never made the playoffs in his run, but could rely on a solid presence at second base over the 1930s and 1940s. He was the eighth CABA player to 2500 career hits and became the second to 1000 career stolen bases, retiring second all-time at 1003. In 1945, a broken bone in his elbow put Reyes out for most of the season. He returned the next year at age 37 and was still solid, but struggled the next year. He did represent his native Cuba in the first World Baseball Championship and played his final game with the Cuban national team in 1948 at age 39, retiring after the tournament.

The final statistics for Reyes; 2530 hits, 1224 runs, 373 doubles, 283 triples, 25 home runs, 606 RBI, 905 walks, 1003 stolen bases, a .293/.362/.410 slash and 63.7 WAR. A solid career, but the lack of home runs and Santo Domingo struggling in that stretch meant Reyes wasn’t at the top of the list for many Hall of Fame voters. His debut at 44.0% made many think he wasn’t going to get in, although he steadily climbed in the coming attempts. In 1957, he barely missed at 65.3%, then dropped to 61.9%. Try number seven in 1959 was finally when he got the bump, making the cut at 77.5%.