We Mourn our Baseball Queen, our Matriarch, Vera Clemente

She was our baseball queen, our matriarch, and now we mourn her passing.

Vera Clemente, the widow of Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, is now with her beloved Great One. She leaves a humanitarian legacy as large as the one left by the iconic Pittsburgh Pirates legend who preceded her in death on an ill-fated relief mission on New Year’s Eve 1972.

From San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Pittsburgh and all over the contiguous United States, across the Carribbean and throughout Latin America, the baseball world has been in mourning since Vera Clemente died Saturday.

Vera Clemente was as strong as The Great One, and just as caring. They were married for only eight years, from 1964 until Roberto Clemente’s cargo plane crashed into the ocean shortly after leaving San Juan with relief supplies for earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

She never remarried. She instead focused on her three young children while continuing and expanding Roberto Clemente’s humanitarian mission. If Roberto Clemente is the Patron Saint of the Latino ballplayer, Cristina Vera Zabala Clemente was the ultimate matriarch of the Latino ballplayer.

She was a beloved fixture at the Pirates’ PNC Park.

“Vera epitomized grace, dignity and strength in the wake of heartbreaking tragedy and loss,” Pirates owner Bob Nutting said in a statement. “Following Roberto’s passing, Vera raised their three sons into outstanding men, while also working tirelessly to ensure her and her husband’s shared vision of compassion, service and love of others lived on forever.

“Vera was an amazing ambassador for the Pirates organization, our city, the game of baseball and their beloved Puerto Rico. It is with very heavy hearts that we send our condolences to Roberto Jr., Luis, Enrique and the entire Clemente family. May they find comfort in knowing that Vera and Roberto are together once again.”

Vera Clemente was also a fixture at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., each July during induction weekend. As a Goodwill Ambassador for MLB, she also traveled throughout her native Puerto Rico and around the majors promoting the Roberto Clemente Award, which is Major League Baseball’s most prestigious humanitarian award.

“As a Goodwill Ambassador for MLB, Vera impacted countless children and extended her family’s humanitarian legacy of helping those in need,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said. “With grace and strength, she led the way in welcoming players to the fraternity of Roberto Clemente Award winners, the single most prestigious off-the-field honor in our game.

“Vera’s baseball family will miss her greatly. We send our deepest condolences to Roberto Jr., Luis, Enrique, the entire Clemente family, the fans of Pittsburgh and Puerto Rico, and her many admirers across our game.”

The Pirates announced on Nov. 1 that Vera Clemente, 78, had fallen ill. A week earlier, Luis Clemente paid tribute to his mother while answering a question during a press conference to present the 2019 Roberto Clemente Award to the Cleveland Indians’ Carlos “Cookie” Carrasco.

“Actually, my favorite saying is: ‘I’m very proud to be Roberto’s son, but I feel extremely fortunate to be Vera’s son, as well,” Luis said. “And I think that in the Latino family, the wives of the players have to go through so many sacrifices that it’s so important for – to have Karri (Carrasco) be that pillar for Carlos during his situation, but also the way they’ve been raising their children, they have five children.”

All 30 teams in the majors honor their Roberto Clemente Award nominees during an on-field presentation. Vera and her sons attended as many of those on-field presentations as the schedule would allow.

She also had presented the Roberto Clemente Award annually at the World Series until being noticeably absent this year while Luis made the presentation along with commissioner Manfred.

Several past Roberto Clemente Award winners expressed their condolences on social media.

“Rest in peace, Vera,” Mets manager Carlos Beltran, who won the Clemente Award in 2013, said on Instagram. “Thank you for sharing with all of us all the great memories and the legacy of our beloved Roberto Clemente. My condolences to her family, especially to her three sons.”

Vera and Roberto are together again. They devoted their lives to helping others, making the world a better place and leaving their mark far beyond Carolina, P.R., and Pittsburgh.

Some of the greatest names in baseball history – Hall of Famers such a Rod Carew, Edgar Martinez and Craig Biggio, to name a few – prominently display their Roberto Clemente Awards and consider it their greatest trophy.

Roberto Clemente spoke up for Latinos at a time when it was rare, speaking against the way Latino players were portrayed or treated by the media and American society.

He used his baseball platform to affect change and help others. He died on a relief mission, leaving a young bride and three little boys.

Vera Clemente proved just as strong as the greatest Latino right fielder of all time. He had one of the strongest arms in baseball and 3,000 hits to his name.

Vera had Roberto’s heart. Equally important, she had shoulders strong enough to carry on as a single mother who raised three boys and served as the loving, nurturing matriarch of Latino players everywhere.

“Doña Vera is in heaven, reunited with Roberto,” former Pirate Manny Sanguillén wrote on Twitter. “Vera and Roberto dedicated their lives to helping others, now we must do as they taught us. Encircle their family with love, prayers, support and guidance. God blessed us with Roberto & Vera, we will follow their lead & bless others.”

We mourn our queen, our matriarch, the woman who devoted her life to blessing the world with her and Roberto Clemente’s humanitarian spirit.

Featured Image: Jean Fruth