Hiram Gabriel Sosa Bithorn was born on March 19, 1916 in Santurce, Puerto Rico. He was selected by the Chicago Cubs from the New York Yankees in the Rule 5 major league draft on September 30, 1941. Known in the big leagues as Hi Bithorn, he made his major league debut on April 15, 1942 with the Chicago Cubs as a reliever in that game. He started 3 games without winning until he finally earned his first victory on June 5, 1942 as a reliever in a ten inning 4-3 win against the Brooklyn Dodgers.

His second win again as a reliever came on June 14, 1942, in an 8-6 victory against the Boston Braves. On June 21, 1942, he got his first win as a starter, beating the New York Giants 7-2. His first season record was 9 wins and 14 losses as a Cubs rookie. The righthander improved to 18-12 the next year, fourth in the National League in wins. He led the league in shutouts (7) and posted a 2.60 ERA.

His first victory for the 1943 season came as a reliever on April 24, 1943 against the Pirates. His first start of the season came on April 28, 1943, with a shutout victory against St. Louis. He ended the season with another shutout victory against the Boston Braves. Hiram received one vote for the league’s MVP award that season. In 1944, at age 28, he went into the U.S. Military during World War II, and spent the next two seasons in military service.

His comeback in 1946 began with a 4-2 win against the Cincinnati Reds, but he pitched mostly in relief with sporadic success. His last win as a starter came on July 27, 1946 in a 9-0 shutout at the Philadelphia Phillies’ expense. After the season, he was sold to the Pirates, who released him in spring training. He pitched two innings for the White Sox in 1947, earning his final victory on May 4, 1947 as a reliever against the Phillies before a sore arm ended his Major League career. His major league career pitching record was 34 wins and 31 losses in 509 innings pitched. His seven shutouts in 1943 are still the most for a Puerto Rican pitcher in the majors in a single season.

Hiram was an outstanding athlete. He represented Puerto Rico in the 1935 Central American and Caribbean Games playing basketball and volleyball. Hiram’s minor league career began in 1936 when he was recommended by Ted Norbett, an american baseball player that played in Puerto Rico during the winter. Hiram signed his first contract with the Norfolk Tars, winning 16 games and losing 9. The next season with Norfolk he won 10 games and only lost once, then promoted to Binghamton where he won 7 and lost 8 games. In 1938 he again split the season between Norfolk (0-0) and Binghamton where he finished with a 5-2 record. In 1939 he went to the Pacific Coast League and played in Oakland finishing with 13 wins and 14 losses. In 1940 and 1941 he played for the Hollywood Stars where he finished with records of 10-17 and 17-15. While playing in the Pacific Coast League he was called the “Tropical Hurricane”. Before his death, he was working as an umpire in the Pioneer League.

During winter ball, Hiram managed the baseball team in San Juan, at the age of 22, and continuing in that job for parts of four seasons and one full season. Hiram played four seasons in the Puerto Rican winter league, where he had a career pitching record of eight wins and ten losses pitching for the San Juan Senadores team.

His Death

Hiram died in Ciudad Victoria, Mexico on December 29, 1951 at the age of 35, while in route to visit his mother, Maria Bithorn, for the holidays.

He died under mysterious circumstances when he was allegedly shot by a policeman who had stopped him and asked for the car’s registration papers, a tourist card, and other documentation. The policeman, Ambrosio Castillo Cano, said that someone told him that an American was trying to sell his car and when he asked for the documentation, Hiram told him that he did not have the papers, so they were in route to the police station when he stated that Hiram struck him and tried to get out of the car. The policeman said that he fired his pistol, the bullet striking Hiram in the stomach. A hotel manager said that Hiram had stayed at his hotel the night before and that Hiram did not have any money to pay for the room.

There were many holes in the policeman’s story, in a statement he said that Hiram just before he died told him that he was a communist in an important mission. After receiving pressure from the Bithorn family, the FBI, the U.S. Ambassador and the Governor of Puerto Rico Luis Munoz Marin, Mexican authorities ordered a full investigation of the senseless murder. Later that year, Castillo Cano was charged and convicted to eight years in prison for the death of Hiram.

The Bithorn family struggled for a few days to get Hiram’s remains out of Mexico. His remains finally made it to Puerto Rico on January 12, 1952. A crowd of 500 people were at the airport to receive the body of our native hero. The body was taken the next morning to the Sixto Escobar Stadium, where he played before going to the major leagues. Hundreds of people went to the stadium to pay their respects to the Bithorn family.

Hiram was buried in San Juan, Puerto Rico on January 13, 1952. He left behind, his wife Virginia and 7 month old Hiram Jr.

His Legacy

Hiram Bithorn led the way for more than 200 Puerto Ricans to this date, achieve the dream of becoming a major league baseball player. Many of these include the great Roberto Clemente, Luis Olmo, Orlando Cepeda, Vic Power, Juan Gonzalez, Roberto Alomar, Bernie Williams, Sandy Alomar, and today stars Ivan Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado and others owe a great deal to Hiram, when he paved the way.

In 1962, the largest baseball stadium in Puerto Rico was built and named Estadio Hiram Bithorn (Hiram Bithorn Stadium) in his honor. The stadium hosted the Montreal Expos two years for several MLB regular season series games. On September 9, 2003, the Expos hosted the Chicago Cubs, making it the first time in Cubs history that they played a game in a stadium named after an ex-Cub player. The stadium has also hosted two World Baseball Classics. The Florida Marlins and New York Mets also played a regular season series in 2010.

Back to top