René Cárdenas, who was the first full-time Spanish-language announcer in MLB history with stints for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros and Texas Rangers, passed away at the age of 96.
Cárdenas began what would be a 60-year career when he joined the Dodgers’ radio booth in 1958, which was their first season on the West Coast after relocating from Brooklyn. He most notably worked and became a mentor to legendary broadcaster Jaime Jarrín, who also enjoyed a career that spanned more than six decades.
Cárdenas was most notably part of the first Spanish broadcast of the World Series in 1959 and the All-Star Game two years later. He initially spent three years in Los Angeles before moving to Houston to join the expansion Colt .45s, who would later become the Astros.
Cárdenas called games for the franchise over parts of 14 seasons before returning to his native Nicaragua in 1975. He would return to MLB in 1981, becoming the first Spanish-language broadcaster for the Rangers.
Cárdenas returned to the Dodgers the following year for a second stint as their Spanish-language announcer that lasted nearly two decades. Among other achievements, he called games for L.A.’s World Series championship in 1988.
Cárdenas eventually returned to the Astros in 2007, when he announced several games on television for the first time in his career. After retiring as a broadcaster, Cárdenas wrote for the Astros’ Spanish-language website.
Aside from baseball, Cárdenas called other high-profile sporting events, such as the heavyweight boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Jimmy Ellis at the Astrodome in 1971.
Cárdenas has since been inducted into the Nicaragua Baseball Hall of Fame and the Astros Hall of Fame. He is among the finalists for this year’s Ford C. Frick Award, which is considered baseball’s top broadcasting honor.
Dodgers statement on René Cárdenas
The Dodgers released the following statement on Cárdenas’s death: “We mourn the passing of René Cárdenas, who in 1958 with the Dodgers became the first full-time Spanish-language broadcaster in MLB history and would ultimately spend 21 years behind the mic for Los Angeles,” the team said in a social media post. “We send our condolences to his loved ones.”
Major League Baseball also released the following statement: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of trailblazing broadcaster René Cárdenas, who was 96.
“Cárdenas, who was the first full-time Spanish-language announcer in MLB history, had two stints apiece with the Dodgers and Astros broadcast teams, as well as time spent in the first-ever Spanish-language booth for the Rangers. In addition, he was part of the first Spanish-language broadcasts of both the World Series in 1959 and the All-Star Game in 1961.
“A native of Managua, Nicaragua, Cárdenas was inducted into the Nicaragua Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Astros Hall of Fame in 2024.”
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