Luis García, Venezuelan baseball player and manager (d. 2014)
Luis García Beltrán (September 11, 1929 – January 9, 2014) was a Venezuelan professional baseball player and manager. Listed at 5' 11" (1.80 m), 189 lb (86 kg), he batted and threw right handed.At an early age García was dubbed Camaleón by his family, and he carried this nickname throughout his professional career, which spanned 22 years.
He was born in Carúpano, a city located in the eastern coastal area of Sucre state in Venezuela. Despite his short, stocky build, he was a gifted athlete and knew more about baseball than his playmates, so he became the natural leader in pickup games and later in school. He was also a fine, dependable third baseman and, from the start, he had the ability to hit the ball to all fields, regardless of size or capacity. Owner of a strong throwing arm, he had good range, being able to catch fly balls from his left field and infield teammates, making everything look easy.
García played in the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Browns and Washington Senators Minor League systems, but never appeared in a major league game for either club. His career was largely associated with the Navegantes del Magallanes club of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League, but he also had a distinguished career in the Mexican League in a span of ten seasons.A member of four Hall of Fame organizations, García amassed more than 3000 hits, appeared in eight Caribbean Series, was the first player to reach 1,000 hits in Venezuelan baseball, and also set several records in the VPBL that still remain intact.