267:. His father was a well-known shoemaker in Patillas who died when Emilio was 6 years old. His widowed mother soon moved to Ponce where she had family. From a young age, Navarro helped his family economically by selling newspapers, peanuts and ice. In Ponce he attended Castillo Public School, a public school on Calle Castillo, Ponce, and worked after school shining shoes and delivering the foods which his mother prepared to support the family. His first contact with baseball occurred when he went to watch the school team play. On one occasion he did not have enough money to pay for an entrance ticket to watch a game between the Castillo and Reina teams. He therefore jumped a fence, which happened to be in the outfield. It so happened that one of the Castillo team members became sick and when the coach saw Navarro jump the fence he asked him to play. He agreed and played baseball since.
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in
America's national pastime. He was elected to the Puerto Rico Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Puerto Rican Sports Hall of Fame in 2004. The Senate of Puerto Rico presented him with Resolution #1026 in recognition of his contributions to baseball on June 7, 2005. On December 29, 2006, Navarro
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In the 1920s, the United States was a racially segregated country and
Navarro's skin color presented a problem for his participation in American baseball leagues â in baseball, black players were not permitted to play in the same leagues as their
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on
September 26, 2005, and the following years saw many tributes to him in both Puerto Rico and the United States. His life and experiences in baseball were part of an American documentary called "Beisbol", on the contributions and influence of
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after suffering a stroke. He died two days later on April 30, 2011, after failing to overcome the effects of his stroke. He was survived by four children, 11 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.
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counterparts. As a consequence of this policy, a group of white and black businessmen joined forces and organized their own Negro leagues. The teams played against each other and even had their own
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in the United States, Navarro had returned to Puerto Rico. The experience and knowledge he had gained contributed to his success when he became one of the founders of the
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of .337. The experience was bittersweet for
Navarro, especially when they played in the South â he felt discriminated against due both to his skin color and his lack of
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history on
September 18, 2008. In 2010, Navarro was honored by "Experience Works" who recognized him as an outstanding active Senior Citizen in the United States.
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baseball team in his hometown of Ponce. He played, coached, and contributed in various other ways in the team, dedicating 20 years of his life to the "Leones".
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In 1938, Puerto Rican sportswriter Emilio Huike voted
Navarro as the "Ideal Professional Baseball Player".
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in Ponce after suffering a minor heart attack. On April 28, he was transferred to the hospital's
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held a ceremonial Negro league draft prior to the amateur draft. Navarro was selected by the
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held a moment of silence to honor
Navarro before the start of their game against the
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Joseph Gerard. Society for
American Baseball Research. Accessed 10 November 2019.
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After
Navarro retired from active baseball, he worked as administrator of the
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Emilio
Navarro, Puerto Rico baseball great, dies at 105 in Caribbean homeland
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After graduating from high school, Navarro was offered a grant to attend the
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Navarro played for two years with the Cuban Stars and had a
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Hispanic Baseball Museum to induct 101 year old player
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Noticel. 12 January 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
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854:MLB plans ceremonial Negro League draft for June
724:"Millito Navarro en unidad de cuidado intensivo"
364:in Ponce, a position that he held for 10 years.
420:On April 27, 2011, Navarro was hospitalized at
826:Career statistics and player information from
688:"Winfield's brainchild thrills Negro Leaguers"
397:presented the plaque of induction to Navarro.
387:Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame
217:Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame
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794:En marcha ciudad deportiva Millito Navarro.
314:. Both of those teams consisted mainly of
212:Puerto Rico Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee
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841:Negro League Baseball Players Association
760:ESPN MLB. ESPN. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
214:Puerto Rican Sports Hall of Fame Inductee
909:Baseball players from Ponce, Puerto Rico
813:TravelPonce.com Retrieved 18 April 2013.
201:"The Ideal Professional Baseball Player"
27:Puerto Rican baseball player (1905-2011)
832:Baseball-Reference Black Baseball stats
770:Michelle Estrada Torres (4 June 2011).
722:Karla Pacheco Ălvarez (28 April 2011).
631:Karla Pacheco Ălvarez (29 April 2011).
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914:Puerto Rican people of African descent
757:Emilio 'Millito' Navarro dies at 105.
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613:"Lamentan muerte de Millito Navarro"
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451:. He is also recognized at Ponce's
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884:People from Patillas, Puerto Rico
709:Ponce llora a uno de sus grandes.
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448:Ciudad Deportiva Millito Navarro
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633:"Hospitalizado Millito Navarro"
453:Parque de los Ponceños Ilustres
302:. Two of those teams were the
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894:Puerto Rican baseball players
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182:Career highlights and awards
117:ca. 1949, for the
112:Last Negro league appearance
846:100th birthday announcement
635:(in Spanish). Primera Hora.
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889:Cuban Stars (East) players
774:(in Spanish). Primera Hora
726:(in Spanish). Primera Hora
668:(in Spanish). Primera Hora
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125:Negro league statistics
385:was inducted into the
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551:El Siglo 21 newspaper
495:List of Puerto Ricans
416:Later years and death
402:Major League Baseball
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58:Patillas, Puerto Rico
437:On May 1, 2011, the
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255:Navarro was born in
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426:intensive care unit
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651:2007-12-17 at the
599:2012-02-07 at the
473:Puerto Rico portal
422:Hospital San Lucas
335:Dominican Republic
300:Negro World Series
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98:Negro league debut
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400:On June 6, 2008,
375:Navarro became a
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377:centenarian
320:Afro-Latino
308:Alex Pompez
306:, owned by
304:Cuban Stars
261:Puerto Rico
160:(1928â1929)
158:Cuban Stars
136:Cuban Stars
107:(1928â1929)
105:Cuban Stars
863:Categories
778:29 January
694:2008-06-06
672:2008-06-04
511:References
346:integrated
310:, and the
836:Seamheads
389:. Former
382:Hispanics
339:Venezuela
322:players.
251:Biography
169:Venezuela
649:Archived
597:Archived
459:See also
276:MayagĂŒez
257:Patillas
238:American
219:Inductee
337:and in
331:English
282:in the
83:Batted:
809:Sports
730:11 May
433:Legacy
393:great
391:Astros
89:Threw:
296:white
265:Ponce
150:Teams
91:Right
85:Right
65:Died:
53:Born:
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284:U.S.
141:.337
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209:NYY
205:MLB
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