‘In the Barrios and the Big Leagues’ runs through June 28 at the Bishop.
By Ramon Lopez
Original Air Date: May 22, 2026
Host: Puerto Rican, Cuban, Venezuelan and Dominican players are loading the bases, and their fans are filling up Major League baseball stadiums. A museum exhibit in Bradenton is celebrating this history, as Ramon Lopez reports.
[Piano accompaniment]
Singer: Take me out to the ball game
Take me out
with the crowd
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack
Ramon Lopez: Add tacos, churros and empanadas to the menu at baseball stadiums. This, because of the large number of Latino ball players and Spanish-speaking fans now filling the parks nationwide.
Latino players are significantly influencing baseball’s popularity in the United States as they are dominating the narrative. According to Major League Baseball, nearly 30% of MLB rosters are composed of Latino players.
From historic trailblazers to the current kings of the diamond, Latino players have turned baseball into a space for cultural pride, dynamic energy and unfiltered talent.
Countries like the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Venezuela produce a large number of MLB baseball stars. Notable pioneer players include legends like Roberto Clemente and Pedro Martínez. A current standout is the New York Mets’ Juan Soto, born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have a plethora of talented prospects in their farm system. One of those players is left-handed pitcher Reinold Navarro, who is currently with the Single-A Bradenton Marauders. He is only 19 years old and joined the Pirates from Santo Domingo.
Seth Ryan Hernandez is an American-born pitcher. He signed with the Pirates for $7.25 million, setting a record for the highest bonus ever given to a high school pitcher. He debuted with the Marauders, is now with High-A Greensboro, is heading to Double-A Altoona and should eventually debut it to Pittsburgh.
Bradenton’s Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, a Smithsonian Institution Affiliate, is proud to present the history and culture of Latinos and their impact on American culture and society through the lens of baseball.
Tiffany Labritt | Photo: Lopez
The “In the Barrios and the Big Leagues” exhibition captures the excitement of the game, from community baseball teams to the Major Leagues.
Tiffany Labritt, director of collections and exhibitions, provided a guided tour of the traveling exhibit.
Tiffany Labritt: In this first section, it gives us some context for early baseball—talks about some of the struggles of segregation with it—but then starting to tie it into how Latinos started to implement change in baseball.
As we go deeper into the exhibition, it does highlight playing in other spaces—like Cuba, the Dominican Republic—and how that influence there created a connection to America.
RL: Andrew Sandall, chief executive officer of the museum, said this exhibit gives context to the baseball culture Latin players come from and tells the stories of those who came before them.
Andrew Sandall: The impact of the Latin players—the Hispanic players—has just been massive on the game, but they’ve also brought their unique personality to the game.
Originally from England, Sandall, like many Latinos and Latinas, loves the game.
AS: I probably am the biggest baseball nut you will ever meet with this accent. It’s a bit of a labor of love for me.
My background, a lot of it, is about understanding popular culture subject matter and how the public can relate local history through popular culture.
RL: For the lucky ones, baseball has provided a path for a better future.
AS: But there’s always been a way that they can get out of poverty. I think it’s been an escape throughout the history of Hispanic players coming to America to play to get out of regimes and governments that were not good for them.
RL: Mike Winters says tomorrow, Saturday, will be Baseball Day at the museum.
Mike Winters: We’re going to be collaborating with the Bradenton Marauders and the Tampa Museum of Baseball at the Al Lopez House. They’re going to be bringing in their mobile museum to share some extra baseball memorabilia, and then the Bradenton Marauders are going to have their hitting nets out here so the kids can train on their hitting. There’s going to be some players here, and Marty the Marauder is going to be running around—he’s their mascot.
RL: The Latino baseball exhibit runs through June 28.
This is Ramon Lopez for WSLR News.
WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.