Baseball is the epitome of an American pastime and has been a significant aspect of our culture for over a century. Baseball is as American as apple pie. Most people who do not religiously follow Major League Baseball (MLB) would assume the majority of professional ballplayers grew up somewhere in the United States. They are correct – to an extent. 28.8% of baseball players in MLB are not from the United States and this is something to ponder the next time you find yourself singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” in the seventh inning stretch.

About 12% of international players are from Puerto Rico and the remaining come from every other continent on the planet. One of the most popular players who hails from Puerto Rico is 2nd Baseman/Shortstop Javier Báez of the reigning World Series Champion team – the Chicago Cubs. He plays alongside catchers René Rivera and Victor Caratini who both grew up in Puerto Rico as well.

Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico on September 20 and since this devastating event, baseball players from Puerto Rico and America alike have been tirelessly working to bring awareness to the situation and have created a wide variety of charities to assist in recovery efforts. Every team in MLB has contributed to the widespread efforts to support Puerto Rico in a time of such catastrophe and uncertainty and devastation.

The Chicago Cubs, headed by manager Joe Maddon, have been no exception. Javier Báez is one of the most popular Cubs players and his nickname is “El Mago” because he is The Magician when it comes to difficult plays in the infield. He has continuously taken to his various social media platforms to encourage his fans to contribute to the efforts to raise money for Puerto Rico and has promoted t-shirts whose proceeds will go to his struggling native country. René Rivera began a gofundme page the day after Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico and he tweeted a promise to match all donations made. He involved fellow countrymen Javier Báez and Victor Caratini in this effort to raise money for Puerto Rico. The Chicago Cubs organization has also designed a set of t-shirts sporting the phrase “Puerto Rico Fuerte” in hopes to raise more money for the people of Puerto Rico.

Since September 20, the Puerto Rican natives along with every one of their teammates have continuously expressed their unwavering support for Puerto Rico. As the Cubs advance to the National League Championship Series to play for a spot in the World Series, I can be sure of one thing – Cubs players and MLB players alike will not forget about the millions of people who are struggling in Puerto Rico and will continue to support the efforts there.