Félix Mantilla (baseball)

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Félix Mantilla
Infielder / Outfielder
Born: (1934-07-29) July 29, 1934 Isabela, Puerto Rico
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
June 21, 1956 for the Milwaukee Braves
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1966 for the Houston Astros
Career statistics
Batting average	.261
Home runs	89
Runs batted in	330
Teams
Milwaukee Braves (1956–1961) New York Mets (1962) Boston Red Sox (1963–1965) Houston Astros (1966)
Career highlights and awards
All-Star selection (1965) World Series champion (1957)

Félix Mantilla Lamela (born July 29, 1934 in Isabela, Puerto Rico) is a former Major League Baseball player. In his 11-year career, Mantilla played for the Milwaukee Braves (1956–61), New York Mets (1962), Boston Red Sox (1963–65) and Houston Astros (1966). An infielder/outfielder, he played second base the majority of his career (326 games). He also played shortstop (180 games), third base (143), the outfield (156) and, in the latter part of his career, first base (16). He batted and threw right-handed.

Mantilla and two other black players joined the Jacksonville Braves of the Class-A South Atlantic League in 1953. This was one of the first two integrated baseball teams in the Southern United States. During this time Mantilla was the roommate of Hank Aaron. Mantilla and Aaron were both called up to the major leagues, playing for the Milwaukee Braves. Both were on the team when they won the World Series title in 1957. He was selected by the New York Mets in the expansion draft and became their most regular third baseman in 1962, establishing career highs in batting average, home runs and RBI (.275, 11 and 59 respectively). At the end of the season he was traded to the Red Sox for three players, two of whom were Pumpsie Green and Tracy Stallard.

Mantilla’s numbers improved dramatically in the hitter-friendly Fenway Park: he hit .315 in 66 games in 1963, hit .289 with 30 home runs in 1964 (five fewer than he had hit in his career prior to that season), and set a career high with 92 RBIs in 1965. During this latter year, he was also named to the American League All-Star team for the only time in his career.

Prior to the start of the 1966 season the Red Sox traded Mantilla to the Houston Astros for Eddie Kasko. He spent that year as a utility player before being released on November 28. The Chicago Cubs signed Mantilla as a free agent before the start of the 1967 season; however, he never played a game for them and was released that July 6.

A lifetime .261 hitter, Mantilla compiled 89 home runs with 330 runs batted in.

On May 26, 1959, leading off the 13th inning in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Mantilla ruined Harvey Haddix's bid for a perfect game, reaching first base on Don Hoak's throwing error.^[1] (Mantilla had not even been in the starting lineup; he entered the game in the 11th after Del Rice had pinch-hit for Johnny O'Brien.) Mantilla was sacrificed to second by Eddie Mathews, followed by an intentional walk to Hank Aaron. The following batter, Joe Adcock, hit one over the right-center field wall, just beyond Bill Virdon's outstretched glove, for an apparent 3–0 victory. Mantilla scored the winning run, but Aaron, thinking the ball was still in play and that the game ended when Mantilla scored the winning run, rounded second and then headed for the dugout. Adcock, running out his home run, passed Aaron on the bases; as a result, the ruling from National League president Warren Giles was that Adcock's hit was a double (not a home run), only Mantilla's run counted and the final score was 1–0.

References

↑ Banks, Kerry (2010). Baseball’s Top 100: The Game’s Greatest Records. Vancouver, BC: Greystone Books. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-55365-507-7.

External links

Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference

v t e Milwaukee Braves 1957 World Series Champions

1 Del Crandall 4 Red Schoendienst 5 Félix Mantilla 7 Del Rice 9 Joe Adcock 10 Bob Buhl 12 Bob Hazle 14 Frank Torre 15 Carl Sawatski 16 Dave Jolly 17 Taylor Phillips 18 John DeMerit 20 Don McMahon 21 Warren Spahn 22 Gene Conley 23 Johnny Logan 25 Nippy Jones 30 Bob Trowbridge 32 Ernie Johnson 33 Lew Burdette (World Series MVP) 34 Juan Pizarro 41 Eddie Mathews 43 Wes Covington 44 Hank Aaron 48 Andy Pafko Manager 2 Fred Haney Coaches 3 Johnny Riddle 8 Connie Ryan 31 Charlie Root 35 Bob Keely

Regular season

Persondata
Name	Mantilla, Felix
Alternative names
Short description	Puerto Rican baseball player
Date of birth	July 29, 1934
Place of birth	Isabela, Puerto Rico
Date of death
Place of death

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