From the Press Box: The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum at Giants FanFest ’25
Amaury Pi-González
A beautiful San Francisco day for the 2025 Giants FanFest at Oracle Oracle Park, around 10,000 to 15,000 people breathing the air of the Bay which already had the smell of baseball, yes, baseball is in the air, with about three weeks from the beginning of the regular season here in San Francisco’s Oracle Park, in my opinion the most beautiful baseball park in the world. Thousands of fans with their favorite Giants bobble heads, mingle with their favorite players while enjoying lunch. Many families descended onto the field to enjoy the day, fathers with their sons playing catch was fun for everybody.
For this year’s FanFest The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame was located at the third-floor Clubhouse Level. We met countless fans, and hundreds signed up for our museum list for the latest news and updates. It is always an enjoyable event, and the Museum has been a part of this experience with the Giants for over twenty years.
The president and founder of the museum, Mr.Tito Avila Jr., and yours truly, vice president and co-founder, and Museum staff members Michael Friedman and Michael Gama, welcome fans, many Spanish-speaking, proud to talk about their heroes. I love to meet fans and talk baseball. Many of these fans I have known for years, including our President Tito Avila Jr. In 2000, I called the first game ever at this place on Spanish radio when it was called Pacific Bell Park. It will always have a special place in my baseball broadcasting career. Without these fans, and the energy they bring, this park would be just another beautiful place in a beautiful city. With these enthusiastic and knowledgeable fans, the FanFest is always a memorable event.
The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame, which has been a traveling museum for years, feels closer than ever to having its first permanent location, steps away from Oracle Park at the Mission Rock project. We know the Giants would be proud to have our museum as a permanent location in their neighborhood. It would be great for baseball, for the Giants, and the Hispanic community, especially San Francisco and the Bay Area. Over 33 percent of all major league players today are Hispanics/Latinos, and much higher in the minor leagues.
HE HHBMHOF IS COMMITTED TO PRESERVING THE HISTORY AND PROFOUND INFLUENCE THAT HISPANIC PLAYERS HAVE HAD ON AMERICA’S FAVORITE PASTIME
