Remembering Carlos Lezcano: A Life Dedicated to Baseball
Carlos Lezcano, a former Chicago Cubs outfielder who built a lasting legacy as a minor league manager and mentor, has passed away at age 69 after a prolonged battle with cancer. The Puerto Rican baseball community and organizations across the sport have expressed their condolences, including Leones del Caracas, where he served as a manager and bench coach. His death marks the loss of a dedicated baseball figure who touched countless lives throughout his extensive career in the sport.
Born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Lezcano’s journey in baseball began at Florida State University before reaching the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs in 1980. Baseball ran in his family, as his cousin Sixto Lezcano had debuted with the Milwaukee Brewers six years earlier. Despite winning the Opening Day center fielder position as a rookie, Carlos struggled at the plate while playing all three outfield positions, batting .205 with a .294 on-base percentage and a .385 slugging percentage across 42 games. Most of that season was spent with the Cubs’ Double-A affiliate, and the following year, he appeared in just seven major league games, which would be his last in the big leagues. After stints in Double-A and Triple-A without another major league promotion, his playing career concluded in 1984 following brief periods with Oakland’s and Detroit’s minor league affiliates.
While his playing career was brief, Lezcano found his true calling as a coach and manager. After serving in various coaching positions throughout the minor leagues, he secured his first managing role in 1992 with the Mariners’ Arizona Summer League team, working with newly drafted players and those just arriving from the Dominican Republic. Unlike many in similar positions who aspire to manage at higher levels, Lezcano seemed to find purpose in mentoring young professionals at the entry level of their careers. This dedication to player development became his hallmark, as he guided numerous future stars through their formative professional years, including a young Alex Rodriguez with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in the Midwest League.
Throughout the 1990s, Lezcano managed various Class-A teams, including the San Jose Giants, and briefly led the Giants’ Double-A affiliate in 1997—the highest level he would manage in a 20-year span. His connection to Puerto Rico remained strong throughout his career. After the 1998-99 Puerto Rico Winter League season, he was named the league’s Manager of the Year with Leones Ponce, adding to his earlier accomplishment as the league’s Rookie of the Year in the 1977-78 season. This rare double achievement made him one of only five individuals in the league’s history to win both awards, cementing his special place in Puerto Rican baseball lore.
Lezcano’s final position in affiliated baseball came with the Lake Elsinore Storm, an advanced Class-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres, where he managed from 2007 to 2011. In the years that followed, he continued to share his baseball knowledge and leadership skills in independent leagues and the Puerto Rican Winter League, never straying far from the game he loved. His career embodied a dedication to baseball’s grassroots development, choosing to focus on nurturing young talent rather than pursuing higher-profile positions at the major league level.
The legacy Carlos Lezcano leaves behind extends far beyond his brief major league playing career. Through decades of coaching and managing, he shaped the careers of countless players while remaining humble and committed to the fundamentals of the game. His work exemplified the often unheralded but essential role that minor league managers play in the baseball ecosystem—developing not just players’ skills but also their character and understanding of professional baseball. As the baseball world mourns his passing, Lezcano is remembered not for statistics or championships, but for his lifelong commitment to the game and the positive influence he had on generations of players who passed through his clubhouses.
