By SwingCompleto / contacto@swingcompleto.com
For a long time he had not appeared in public events due to the confinement of course, but the image that was seen this Tuesday in the Palmar de Junco stadium of the legendary local pitcher Jorge Luis “Tati” Valdés delighted all those present and many who they saw in photos through social networks. Satisfaction was the main weight in the complex situation in which for a long time the most successful southpaw in Cuban baseball had been.
For more than a decade, the 1992 Barcelona Olympic champion was affected by alcoholism and quite a bit. Such a problem took him out of baseball completely and had him in a physical and mental state that made him think that he would never get out of that crisis. He even entered several times to receive psychological treatment with very unfavorable initial results with an uncooperative attitude that caused even more concern to family, friends and fans of Matanzas and Cuban baseball in general.
But later the support of many such as his wife and daughter, as well as teammates, including Lázaro Junco, was combined with the will won by “Tati” to almost completely reverse the problem.
The improvement began to be seen little by little and already in the last ceremony of exaltation to the Palmar de Junco Hall of Fame in 2019, those who have lived this process for a long time realized the progress. Two years later, this same Tuesday, October 19, at the ceremony where baseball was proclaimed as Cuba’s cultural heritage, the outlook was even more promising.
According to some of the participants in the event with the subsequent confirmation of one of the members of Swing Completo, Valdés had excellent spirits and a very good memory. His physique has not changed much, but that thinness comes from those times when he became the best in Cuba between lefties and rights. But for his 60 years (he was born on February 12, 1961 in Jovellanos) and everything that has happened with this disease cannot be asked for more.
Another good news that could be known is that soon he will join the work with the minor categories in the anthological installation Yumurina. In this way, his official link with his sport will be resumed after a period of time that seemed eternal.
A case similar to the one who for years had the record for the most triumphs within Cuba (234 in 20 SN) was another star of his generation, as was the capital’s third baseman Lázaro Vargas. Like “Tati”, the charismatic player from Havana had to fight hard to overcome his addiction to alcohol and to this day he has stayed completely away from drinking.
Valdes Berrier He did not miss almost any national team during the entire eighties and until his last foray into the Cuba team in 1993. Throughout that period he achieved all possible international titles including the Olympic and on many occasions he appeared as one of the top pitchers .
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He has been by a wide margin the best Matanzas pitcher in the National Series. Not for pleasure he was the leader of the Yumurino staff for almost a decade and a half, a luxury protagonist in the Henequeneros titles in 1990 and 1991. His official retirement at the Victoria de Girón stadium in 2002 is one of the tributes of this type that he best remembers the fanatic.
Despite the fame of a somewhat irreverent and complex character of the players from Matanzas, “Tati” Valdés was always one of those who always broke that rule and alcohol could not destroy his personal virtuosity either, where joy and ethics occupy an important space . Although in cases of alcoholism victory can never be claimed as a misstep can ruin the advance of years, at least for the moment everything seems to be moving along a hopeful path that will allow him not only to live on his history as a player but also on what you can still bring to younger coaches along with the return of their much-needed testimonials.