Pancho Coimbre

Francisco "Pancho" Coimbre Atiles (29 January 1909 – 4 November 1989), more commonly known as Pancho Coimbre, was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player.

He was born in the municipality of Coamo and moved to Ponce early in his life.

It was in Ponce where he would begin to actively participate in sports, both in sprinting and baseball.

Coimbre played thirteen seasons in the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League (LBPPR), with the Leones de Ponce.

During this period the team won five league championships.

In 1922, he moved to Ponce along his mother, in order to live closer to his sister, Angela Coimbre.

There he began playing baseball under the training and supervision of Miguel Caratini and Antonio Gordan, two hall of famers in the local league.

His first accomplishments in sports were in track and field, where he competed in the 50-yard dash, eventually developing his skills in other aspects of the sport.

He continued practicing this sport while attending high school.

Later he was transferred to another educational institution in Caguas, Puerto Rico, but when he tried to participate in an athletic competition he was denied permission because he was classified in a different division on the records of Puerto Rico's Instruction Department.

This event led to a court case which marked the first time in Puerto Rico that a court hearing was scheduled for a case involving sports.

He subsequently transferred to Ponce High School, where the Instruction Department tried to have him removed of the athleticism team based on allegations that he had received payment as a student-athlete.

Judge Roberto Tood Jr. determined that the evidence against Coimbre was insufficient during the hearing and the case was dropped.

In high school, Coimbre played at the positions of pitcher and second baseman, and he was recommended by a member of the Leones de Ponce to team officials.

Leones de Ponce, the local team of the Puerto Rican amateur league, was about to play a series against the San Juan Athletics.

Leones de Ponce needed additional players, and Coimbre was selected by team owner Pipo Maldonado.

He debuted in a game at Ponce, starting as the right fielder, and recorded four hits in five at bats.

Coimbre's first performance outside Puerto Rico was in the Dominican Republic, where he played for Sandino in Santiago de los Caballeros in 1927.

He was accompanied by several Puerto Rican players during this stay.

Coimbre remained with the team and in 1928 participated in a championship series against Guayama, which Ponce won in six games.

In the last game of the series, Coimbre pitched and won with a final score of 5–3, in a game which the team almost lost following an error.

In 1929, he played in Venezuela for the "Magallanes", with appearances as a pitcher and outfielder.

Four of his teammates, who now had homes in Caracas, had played with him in the Puerto Rican league.

After a solid performance in the 1930 season of the amateur league, Coimbre was recruited by the Tigres del Licey team to play in the Dominican Republic; the Tigres were coached by Charles Dore.

Following that season, he continued alternating between both leagues, playing with Santo Domingo in 1931.

After the Puerto Rican league season came to an end in 1932, Coimbre went to work as a security guard in a penal institution and only played with a semi-professional team.

Shortly after, he was offered a contract to play in La Guaira, with the Santa Marta club.

The season concluded with Buchipluma, a second team owned by Santa Marta's proprietor, winning the league's championship.

He finished his career with an average of .337, and had an average of 2.2 strikeouts per season, this included four consecutive seasons from 1939 to 1942, without any strikeouts.

Coimbre also won two LBPPR batting titles and the league's Most Valuable Player Award in 1943.

Coimbre traveled to New York City, after completing his first professional season in Puerto Rico, where he joined the Porto Rico Stars baseball team of the Negro leagues.

He was contracted by the New York Cubans while playing with the Porto Rico Stars.

He joined the NY Cubans and played several seasons for them.

Coimbre's batting average remained over the .300 mark, including two seasons in which he batted over .400.

While playing in the Negro leagues he was selected to play in the league's East–West All-Star games twice, where he played with several players who in the future would be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

He also played with teams established in Colombia, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and Mexico.

Following his retirement, Coimbre worked as a coach and manager of teams in both the professional and amateur leagues of Puerto Rico.

Coimbre, who was eighty years old, died due to a fire at his home.

Francisco Coimbre was born in Coamo, Puerto Rico, to Guillermo Coimbre and Zoila Atiles.

Upon his birth, he was inscribed as a resident of Arroyo in his birth certificate, following a common practice at the time.