Myriam Preciado and Luis Solano raised 3 children in Colombia, a country not known as a breeding ground for professional baseball players. Their two boys, Donovan and Jhonatan, were taught the game by their father, an electrician who had played baseball as a little boy. They were both very talented, but Major League teams did not customarily have tryout camps in a place where soccer is the most popular sport played. So when Jhonatan (the oldest of the 2 boys) found out there was going to be a tryout camp with Major League scouts in Venezuela, he was determined to get there to try out. The problem was, he had no way of getting across the border. So what did he do? Jhonatan hitched a ride in a van that carried both produce and people. He ended up riding next to the onions, so now he has been given the nickname of "Onion."
I don't know how Donovan made it to the big leagues (I couldn't find that information anywhere, so it clearly wasn't as dramatic!), but both brothers were signed by Major League teams - Donovan signed with the Marlins in 2005 and Jhonatan signed with the Nationals in 2006. They both spent many years in the Minors, going from the Pacific Coast Rookie League to A ball and making it all the way to AAA. Well earlier this month, 24-year-old Donovan got the call. He made his Major League debut on May 21 as an outfielder for the Miami Marlins, and has gone 4 for 8 so far. And 26-year-old Jhonatan? Well he got the call a few days later, on May 28. He made his Major League debut for the Washington Nationals last night...where? In Miami! Myriam and Luis got on the first flight they could get out of Colombia to watch their sons play against each other - mom wearing a Marlins jersey and dad wearing a Nationals one. Donovan did not play in yesterday's game, but Jhonatan, a catcher, was able to pinch hit in the ninth inning with 2 out... and guess what? He hit a double! His parents were crying and cheering and acting all crazy happy like us Hispanics like to do. The only thing that could have made the game more exciting was if the Nationals had come from behind to win the game or if Donovan had played too, but they still have one more game to play tonight, so perhaps mom and dad will be able to watch both boys play at the same time.
So a big yeay for the Solano brothers - only the 12th and 13th players from Colombia to reach the Major Leagues (Edgar Rentería comes to mind as another one). I hope they both have long and illustrious careers, and that Myriam and Luis can watch their sons play baseball for many years to come.
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