Former Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster René Cárdenas died at age 96 on Sunday. Cárdenas made history as the first full-time Spanish-speaking broadcaster in MLB history when he joined the Dodgers after their move from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958.
Cárdenas was part of the first Spanish broadcast of the World Series in MLB history in 1959. He went on to spend 21 years as a broadcaster for the Dodgers.
“We mourn the passing of René Cárdenas, who in 1958 with the Dodgers became the first full-time Spanish-language broadcaster in MLB history and would ultimately spend 21 years behind the mic for Los Angeles. We send our condolences to his loved ones,” the Dodgers wrote on X on Sunday.
Los Angeles Dodgers Hispanic Station baseball Announcers Rene Cardenas (L) and Jaime Jarrin inside broadcast booth at Dodger Stadium, September 21, 1997 in Los Angeles, California. Photo Credit: Bob Riha, Jr. / Getty Images / Bob Riha Jr
In 1962, Cárdenas joined the now-Houston Astros as a broadcaster for their inaugural season. He remained with Houston for 14 seasons before taking a six-year hiatus from broadcasting to return home to Nicaragua in 1975.
When Cárdenas returned to MLB broadcasting in 1981, he joined the Texas Rangers as the franchise’s first Spanish-speaking broadcaster. After one season with the Rangers, Cárdenas returned to the Dodgers for the remainder of his broadcasting career in 1982 and retired in 1998.
Cárdenas earned inductions into the Nicaragua Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000, the Broadcasters Wing of the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Astros Baseball Media Wall of Honor in 2013.
Photo Credit: Bob Riha, Jr. / Getty Images / Bob Riha Jr
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