| Petaca Rodríguez | |
| Position: | Pitcher |
| Birth Date: | December 23, 1915 |
| Birth Place: | Cartagena, Colombia |
| Death Place: | Cartagena, Colombia |
| Bats: | Right |
| Throws: | Right |
Carlos "Petaca" Rodríguez Araújo (December 23, 1915 - November 15, 1990) was a Colombian baseball pitcher. He is considered one of the greatest Colombian baseball players of all time.[1] [2]
Rodríguez began playing in Colombia's amateur leagues as an outfielder, before transitioning to pitching in Barranquilla. He debuted with the Colombia national baseball team at 23 years old, at the 1938 Bolivarian Games. He also appeared in three Amateur World Series (AWS) tournaments in 1944, 1945, and 1947, as well as the 1946 Central American and Caribbean Games.[3] At the 1946 games, he led the tournament earned run average (0.00) over 29 innings pitched (second only to Diomedes Olivo's 36.1 IP).[4] He was offered a contract by Monterrey of the Mexican League, but did not sign.[5]
Rodríguez led the Colombian team to its first world championship at the 1947 Amateur World Series, held in Cartagena. In the run-up to the series, he petitioned the national government to build a new stadium in Cartagena, which would become the Estadio Once de Noviembre.[6] His participation in the tournament was controversial; Cuba withdrew from the tournament, alleging that Rodríguez had forfeited his amateur status after playing in Panama's professional league.[7]
Rodríguez played with several teams in the Colombian Professional Baseball League, including Indios de Cartagena, Torices de Cartagena, and Vanytor de Barranquilla, before retiring in 1952. He died at the Hospital Universitario in Cartagena on November 15, 1990.