Detroit Tigers: Barbaro Garbey, the first defector

Different places will tell you different stories, but the real first Cuban defector to play in the majors was Barbaro Garbey with the Detroit Tigers.

Many say Rene Arocha was the first Cuban defector to reach the Major Leagues, but this isn’t entirely true. Manuel Hernandez Amoros was actually the first Cuban to defect in 1962, but he was never signed by an MLB team.

The first Cuban to actually play in the Serie Nacional, defect and play in the big leagues was Barbaro Garbey with the Detroit Tigers. The utility man made his way off the island via the Mariel Boatlift, which coincidentally is the same way I immigrated to the US.

Garbey, the brother of Rolando Garbey, a national team boxer made his debut with Havana’s Industriales Blue Lions in 1974 and led the national circuit in RBI’s in 1978 with 40.

His career in Cuba came to an abrupt end when he was arrested and thrown in jail after being implicated in a gambling scheme in 1978, his name disappeared from Cuban record books in 1979.

In total, he hit .290 and went yard 19 times in five seasons in Cuba.

Although he signed in 1980 with Detroit, Garbey toiled around in the minors until 1984 and when he made his first appearance as a pinch hitter on opening day against Minnesota, he was the first Cuban to make his debut on the grand stage since Tony Pérez twenty years earlier.

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”I was nervous, I couldn’t believe I was in the big leagues. I went through a lot and waited a long time for this opportunity, “said the rookie to the Detroit Free Press in 1984.

Garbey was a hit in his first year, the 27-year-old rookie hit .287 with five long balls and 52 runs batted. He was also a key player in the Detroit Tigers ALCS win hitting .333 for the felines. Although he didn’t get a hit in the World  Series he capped off a successful first season with a world title.

”It isn’t like a defected from the national team, I left Cuba to have a chance at a professional career,” said Garbey to the Sporting News in 1983. In total, he played three seasons on the grand stage and hit .267 with 11 round-trippers and 52 runs batted in.

After his MLB career was over, he resurfaced in the Mexican League playing with Dos Laredos, Mexico City, Campeche, Minatitlan, and Yucatán until he retired at the age of 37. In the current day, he is a minor league instructor with Atlanta Braves, “I never gave thought to being a coach, I just took advantage of the opportunity when it presented itself.”

Although Barbaro Garbey wasn’t the high profile and sexy defection that Rene Arocha was, he was still the first to defect and the man who blazed a trail for future stars from the island in the big leagues.