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The Central American Baseball Association added two first-ballot players into the Hall of Fame with the 1984 voting. Pitcher Mario Benitez was a no-doubter with 98.5%, while fellow pitcher Allberto Gonzalez joined him with a very respectable 77.6%. 1B Carlos De La Fuente was close on his second try, but fell short with 59.2%. RF Juan Jose was at 58.3% on his tenth attempt and CF Santiago Perez had 51.5% in his seventh go.



For Jose, he had gotten as close as 60.5% in his eight ballot, but never could quite cross the line. The Panamanian had a 21-year career and four Silver Sluggers, but bounced around in his career, playing for five CABA teams and four MLB teams. For his entire pro career, he had 2764 hits, 1511 runs, 584 home runs, 1664 RBI, and 70.1 WAR. For just CABA, Jose had 2147 hits, 1177 runs, 304 doubles, 470 home runs, 1269 RBI, and 59.8 WAR. A nice career, but just low enough of the tallies to banish him to the Hall of Very Good.



Mario Benitez – Starting Pitcher – Guadalajara Hellhounds – 98.5% First Ballot

Mario Benitez was a 6’2’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Tuxpam, a city of around 150,000 people near the Gulf of Mexico in the east-central state of Veracruz. Tuxpan means “Place of Rabbits” in the Nahuatl language. Benitez was known for electric stuff with very good movement and above average control. His fastball peaked in the 99-101 mph range, but he could just as easily beat you with his forkball, changeup, or cutter. Benitez had excellent stamina and led the Mexican League in complete games seven times in his career.

Benitez quickly emerged as one of the top Mexican prospects and went to Guadalajara third overall in the 1963 CABA Draft. He played his entire pro career with the Hellhounds and debuted in 1964 primarily in relief. He became a full-time starter by year two, although it wasn’t until his fourth season that Benitez emerged as an ace. In 1967, he finished third in Pitcher of the Year voting and took his first of two Silver Sluggers; the other coming in 1969. For a pitcher, he was a decent batter with a career .238 average. Benitez also won a Gold Glove in 1973.

In 1969, Benitez won Pitcher of the Year for the first time. He’d win the top honor five times total, also taking it in 1971, 73, 75, and 76. He took second in 1970 and 1974 as well, becoming an elite strikeout pitcher in that stretch. Benitez led the Mexican League In strikeouts five times, wins six times, ERA twice, WHIP four times, and WAR four times. In 1970 against Chihuahua, he set a record for most strikeouts in a CABA no-hitter, fanning 20. In 1973, he had his finest season with a Triple Crown effort on a career-best 1.84 ERA with 342 strikeouts and a 19-8 record. That year also had career bests in WAR (9.0), and quality starts (27).

Improving his control allowed Benitez to see his most dominant seasons in his early 30s. After being a bottom-tier team in the 1960s, Guadalajara made the playoffs from 1969-71, although they were denied a deep run going against the Mexico City dynasty. After being more middling in the early 1970s, the Hellhounds put it altogether and won the 1976 CABA Championship, their first ring since the early 1920s. Benitez was excellent in the playoffs with a 1.53 ERA over 29.1 innings that year and 31 strikeouts. He was a great playoff performer generally with 59.2 career postseason innings and a 1.36 ERA.

Forearm inflammation cost Benitez part of the 1977 season and saw his production drop from the Pitcher of the Year quality the prior year, although he was still a solid starter. His velocity dropped noticeably in 1978 and Benitez had merely average stats, reduced to a relief role by the postseason. Guadalajara bought out the rest of his contract and Benitez decided to retire at age 36. His #12 uniform was retired almost immediately and he would remain one of the franchise’s favorite sons for years after.

Benitez’ final stats 243-151 record, 2.70 ERA, 3545.1 innings, 4057 strikeouts to 790 walks, 297/409 quality starts, 199 complete games, 77 FIP-, and 86.1 WAR. As of 2036, he is only one of six CABA pitchers to win Pitcher of the Year five or more times. At induction, he was 10^th in wins, seventh in strikeouts, fourth in complete games, and 15^th in WAR for CABA pitchers. Benitez doesn’t come up in the GOAT pitcher conversations, but his spot in the Hall of Fame is basically undisputed, getting the first ballot nod with 98.5%.



Allberto Gonzalez – Starting Pitcher – Guatemala Ghosts – 77.6% First Ballot

Allberto Gonzalez was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed starting pitcher from Santa Barbara, Guatemala; a town of 30,000 people in the western part of the country. Gonzalez had merely average stuff, but his solid control and movement made him effective regardless. His velocity only peaked at 91-93 mph, but he had a strong slider and curveball, plus a rarely seen changeup. Gonzalez was great at holding runners and had pretty solid stamina. He was viewed as a team leader, but some would criticize him for his inconsistent work ethic.

Gonzalez was noticed in his home country by the Guatemala Ghosts, who selected him out of high school with the ninth overall pick in the 1962 CABA Draft. He debuted with four relief appearances in 1965 at age 21. Gonzalez made some starts in 1966 and 1967, although he couldn’t crack the rotation in 1968 despite being healthy. The Ghosts were a dominant force in the Caribbean League at this point, making the playoffs ten times during Gonzalez’ tenure. They won the CL pennant in 1967, 69, 70, 71, and 74.

In 1969, Gonzalez finally emerged as an ace with a 20-3 record, 2.45 ERA, and 7.3 WAR; taking second in Pitcher of the Year voting. He took third in 1971 and second in 1973 with Guatemala, but ultimately never won the top award. Gonzalez wasn’t a league leader, but he put up solid reliable stats as Guatemala continued to contend. Over 129 playoff innings, he had a 3.35 ERA with 90 strikeouts. Gonzalez also played for the Guatemalan national team in the World Baseball Championship four times with a 3.75 ERA over 50.1 innings.

In 1974, the Ghosts finally won the overall CABA crown. Gonzalez had a strong season, but stunk with an 8.16 ERA in three playoff starts. Still, he got the big ring and the franchise would later retire his #17 uniform for role in their 1960s and 70s success. In total with Guatemala, he had a 134-70 record, 2.98 ERA, 2016 innings, 1844 strikeouts, and 50.4 WAR. Gonzalez became a free agent at age 31 following their championship series and signed a six-year, $1,908,000 contract with Santiago.

Gonzalez had a great debut season with the Sailfish, finishing second in Pitcher of the Year voting. He was good at the start, but saw his production start to slowly decline with age. Elbow inflammation would cost him a chunk of his final season in 1978 and he’d retire at the end of the year at only age 35. In his time with Santiago, Gonzalez had a 55-41 record, 2.88 ERA, 909.2 innings, 839 strikeouts, and 21.4 WAR.

The final stats saw a 189-111 record, 2.95 ERA, 2925.2 innings, 2683 strikeout to only 427 walks, 245/366 quality starts, 78 FIP-, and 71.8 WAR. He didn’t have the longevity or dominance to see big totals, but his rate stats weren’t out of place amongst other pitchers in the CABA Hall of Fame. Although Gonzalez never won the top award, he was a key reason Guatemala was so consistently good for a decade. Enough voters respected that for a first ballot selection with 77.6%.