GRAMMY-nominated Fonsi visits loanDepot park for special game

MIAMI – There’s no Puerto Rico without its love of béisbol.

GRAMMY-nominated artist Luis Fonsi was on hand for the Marlins’ Puerto Rican Heritage Celebration on Saturday afternoon at loanDepot park. He threw out a ceremonial first pitch and led a karaoke singalong of “Despacito,” his 2017 smash hit with Daddy Yankee.

Fonsi, who was born Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero in San Juan, moved to Orlando, Fla., when he was 11 years old. Like every _Boricua_, baseball is in his blood. Fonsi’s father and grandfather reached the Double-A level. His dream was to become a Major League catcher like Hall of Famer Iván Rodríguez, whom Fonsi now calls a friend.

But Fonsi stopped playing in ninth grade because of how competitive the high school team was and stuck to chorus class. He calls it a blessing and a curse.

“Puerto Rico is life,” Fonsi said. “I was born and raised there. My two hobbies were baseball and music. I stayed playing baseball and doing music until I realized that I was better at music than baseball. All my classmates, they kept on getting taller and taller, throwing the ball faster, hitting the ball farther, and I was like, ‘You know what, I'm just going to sing.’”

Though Fonsi no longer plays baseball, his passion hasn’t wavered. He enjoys hearing stories from his professional baseball-playing friends and cheers on Puerto Rican Major Leaguers like Francisco Lindor and Javier Báez.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Marlins’ 2003 World Series championship club, and Fonsi attended every home game of that run in Rodríguez’s suite. This spring, Fonsi caught World Baseball Classic action in Miami.

“[The atmosphere was] like I've never seen it before,” Fonsi said. “It was really special to see everybody come out. I was standing up here in one of the suites and just looking at the lineup -- whether it was Mexico, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, obviously U.S. -- you're looking at the real All-Star team. It was really special.”