12 Days to Opening Day

April 5, 2007 is Opening Day for the Timber Rattlers. That is just 12 days away.

The number 12 is represented by Jose Mendez.



Before you go all "Who is Jose Mendez?" at your computer screen, here is the entry from a history of uniform numbers at the National Baseball Hall of Fame website:

Now Batting, Number “12.” José Mendez, Number “12.”

The earliest photographic evidence of the use of uniform numbers comes from a 1909 Chicago Daily News picture of pitching great José Mendez. A legendary Cuban ballplayer, Mendez was a member of the inaugural class of the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939 and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006. In the photograph, Mendez is seen in his Cuban Stars uniform with a number "12” on his left sleeve.