The Chicago White Sox are taking Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio's No. 11 out of retirement for newly acquired 11-time Gold Glove winner Omar Vizquel.
A Venezuelan like Aparicio, Vizquel will wear the number as a tribute to his countryman.
"For me, it's like a huge celebration, trying to keep his name alive and trying to spread the word of Venezuelan shortstops," Vizquel said Monday during a conference call. "I think every kid now — the new generation of shortstops in Venezuela — has to know about Luis Aparicio and everything that he means to us in this game."
Aparicio said if there's one player he'd like to see wear his number, it's Vizquel, the leader among shortstops in games (2,681) and a three-time American League all-star.
"I have known Omar for a long time," the 10-time all-star shortstop and nine-time Gold Glove winner said in a statement. "Along with being an outstanding player, he is a good and decent man."
The 1956 AL rookie of the year with the White Sox, Aparicio was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1984 — the same year his number was retired.
This is not the first time the White Sox have taken a number out of retirement. They gave Harold Baines his old No. 3 when he returned to the team in 1996 and did it again in 2000 when he came back for his third and final stint as a player. It was initially retired in 1989.
Vizquel has worn 13, but in Chicago, that number belongs to manager Ozzie Guillen. And he wasn't about to relinquish it.
"Ever since I signed with the White Sox, the first thing Ozzie Guillen said is, 'You can forget about 13, that's going to be my number,"' Vizquel said. "He knows that's my number and I really would love to wear it.
"But I think what Ozzie Guillen has done for the Chicago White Sox, winning them a championship and all the years that he played there, No. 13 already has a name. As long as a Venezuelan is wearing it, I'm pretty happy with it."
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