Regino Otero brought slick fielding, triples to his 11 seasons with Cienfuegos

Sept. 7: On this day in 1915, Cuban League star Regino Otero was born in Havana, Cuba.

Elected to the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971, Otero was considered the finest defensive first baseman of his era in the Cuban League.

Otero, who played only one major-league seasons (1945) with the Cubs, played 11 of his 14 Cuban winters from 1936-53 with Cienfuegos, compiling a .244 career batting average.

According to Who’s Who in Cuban Baseball: 1878-1961, Otero never hit a home run in 2,202 career at-bats in Cuba but he ranks seventh in Cuban League history in triples (33) and twice led the league triples.

Otero (far left with Cienfuegos teammates Stanley Bread and Coaker Stanley in this photo that was up for auction at Mears Auction in February 2011) also managed Cienfuegos (1964) and Almendares (1961) in the Cuban League, Venezuela’s entry in the Caribbean Series in 1956 and ‘58 and the Cuban Sugar Kings from 1954-56.