ABSTRACT
This chapter details the early years of Spanish-language radio broadcasts of Major League Baseball (MLB) and highlights the pioneers of Spanish baseball broadcasts, some of whom first broadcast baseball in Latin America and later brought Spanish broadcasts to the United States. Many of these announcers had immigrated to the U.S. and, through Spanish MLB broadcasts, helped facilitate cultural integration among various communities around the shared experience of baseball.
In 1937, NBC began broadcasting Major League Baseball to Latin America by shortwave radio with the World Series between the New York Yankees and New York Giants. In 1958, the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles from Brooklyn and became the first MLB team with full-time Spanish-language broadcasts. The Spanish baseball broadcasts allowed the newly relocated team to reach Spanish-speaking fans and took on added cultural significance as a vehicle to rebuild the relationship with the Hispanic community after residents were forced from their homes in Chávez Ravine so that site could be used for Dodger Stadium.
