I’m a little late on reporting on this but sad news came earlier this month when it was reported that former Mets minor league pitcher Luz Portobanco was killed in a car accident in his native Nicaragua. he was 28.
I remember Luz when he pitched for the Brooklyn Cyclones in 2001 – he was the starting pitcher for the first ever Cyclones game against Jamestown. Considering the weight of history that moment had, Luz handled it very well. He was one of the leaders of that team, both on and off the field.
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My fondest memory of Luz was in September of that year. The Cyclones had just beaten the Staten Island Yankees in the first round and were set to move on to play Williamsport in the Championship series. The Cha–Cha Slide was all the rage that year and Luz was with his teammates on the field dancing the steps for the crowd (#24 in the picture). It was fun, raucous, and joyful – and seeing Luz and the other players enjoy it so much just increased our enjoyment.
Two days later the towers fell.
That one night at Keyspan will always represent the last moment of pure innocence to me and Luz dancing on the field will be the image I prefer to remember from those days.
