Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico is slated to host the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins in April of next season. And while baseball itself is the least of the concerns for the United States territory, it could very well be impacted moving forward.
Hurricane Maria swept through the island metropolis on Wednesday with 140 mile-per-hour winds. This comes after Hurricane Irma did extensive damage to Puerto Rico. As of Thursday morning, the entire commonwealth was without power. And could be for months.
Unfortunately, Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan was not spared from damage. In fact, a statue of the stadium’s namesake was destroyed by the violent storm.
https://twitter.com/yamairamuniz/status/910579985320116224
“From SJ: Serious wreckage at Hiram Bithorn Stadium after El Paso from Hurricane Maria,” a translation from ESPN Deportes Yamaira Muñiz read.
This is just sad on so many levels. Baseball itself is a pastime in Puerto Rico. And Hiram Bithorn — named after a former Cubs and White Sox pitcher — is the most iconic venue in the territory.
The totality of the damage in Puerto Rico will not be known for some time. But our thoughts go out to everyone who has had to deal with the fury of what has been a most difficult hurricane season.