Nobody expected the San Francisco Giants to contend this year in the competitive National League West division. After all, the team has suffered through four consecutive losing seasons. Oddly however, we’re already in June and the historic club that once employed Willie Mays and Barry Bonds are battling toe to toe with the World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers and the pesky San Diego Padres. It’s true that veterans like Evan Longoria and Buster Posey are hitting the cover off the ball. But the Giants are winning games mostly because of solid pitching and defense. And in the latter category, an obscure young player from Honduras has been the glue that has thus far held this team together.
Mauricio Dubon, 27, is the Giant’s versatile “Señor Everything.” Filling a role all good teams need to have, the lanky athlete is a shortstop by trade, but also plays second base, center field and anywhere else a hole needs to be plugged. Entering his fourth year in the big leagues, Dubon has only made five errors in all those positions combined, and is frequently featured in the highlight plays on ESPN’s Sports Center and the MLB Channel. How Mauricio even made it to “The Show” in the first place is a story in itself.
Dubon was born in San Pedro Sula, a hot and humid crime-ridden city of about 1,500,000 residents where futbol is king because a ball is all you need to participate. Baseball is way too expensive for most kids to contemplate, but Mauricio’s older Danilo was addicted to the game and the pair spent countless summer days on a bumpy, sandlot field. One day when Mauricio was 15, a missionary group from northern California visited the area and offered the youngster an opportunity to attend high school in Sacramento as a foreign exchange student, stay with a foster family, fine tune his baseball skills and grow spiritually. It was a perfect fit and to this day, a key Bible verse on Dubon’s Twitter account reads, “James 4:7. I play for him.”
Young Mauricio already had a high baseball IQ when he became a star in his two years at Capital Christian High School in Sacramento, and his numbers were good enough to get drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 26th round of the 2013 amateur draft. Despite his slim 6-0, 150 pound frame, Dubon hit for surprising power throughout his stint in Boston’s minor league system, but received extra high marks on defense. Then in 2016, things started moving quickly. Mauricio became a key chip in a trade between Boston and the Milwaukee Brewers, where he would eventually make his major league debut. But in a stroke of luck, Dubon found himself in another swap that would send him to the Giants in 2019, and was assigned to the team’s AAA affiliate in Sacramento. When it became official, Mauricio immediately called his foster parents with the news.
“Please get my room ready,” he announced. “I’m coming home!”
Home is also Honduras, where Mauricio returns every winter to visit family and friends. As the first MLB player born and raised in the republic, he loads up with quality used equipment that kids there could never even dream of owning. Then Mauricio and Danilo distribute all the goods to smiling faces from San Pedro to Tegucigalpa.
“It’s a blessing and something I take pride in,” he says. “Hopefully these kids can learn that anybody can do good coming from Honduras.”
When Dubon was still in the Brewers organization (only six days before he was traded to the Giants) and playing shortstop for the San Antonio Missions, a family from Houston reached out to him on social media. Apparently Jake Schornick and wife Tess had adopted a Honduran boy named Josiah, and the six year old was nuts about baseball. Schornick had been looking for a cultural role model for his son, and Dubon agreed to meet them at the stadium. It wasn’t long before Josiah found himself on the playing field doing pre-game stretches with the entire team. Mauricio hit one out of the park that night and after the game, he signed the bat and gave it to the boy. The pair are best buds now, and the family visited the Giants spring training complex this season in Arizona to have a reunion of sorts. Dubon even shared his fondness for baleadas, a traditional Honduran staple that consists of a tortilla stuffed with beans, cheese, eggs and sour cream. Ironically, that is now Josiah’s favorite dish.
Dubon’s idol as a teen was Giant’s shortstop Brandon Crawford, so upon arriving in San Francisco, he made it a point to approach the veteran and learn every trick of the trade he was willing to share. Now the pair frequently work as double play partners up the middle. Crawford is also having a banner year at the plate because Mauricio is able to give him occasional days off when needed and the defense doesn’t skip a beat. For the Giants, things couldn’t have worked out more perfectly. The only problem is that Dubon is also the team’s best center fielder, running like a deer to flag down fly balls. And he enjoys that role too.
“I’ll play whatever position they need me to play,” says Dubon. I’m always ready to help the team.”
To say Mauricio Dubon is living the dream would be an understatement. Last November, Mauricio married Nancy Herrera, 24, a savvy Honduran businesswoman, and the couple own a home in Miami. Yes, life is good and Dubon loves San Francisco. But this is a kid who has worked hard, appreciates his loyal group of fans at Oracle Park, has become a team leader and has never forgotten his roots. The breaks Mauricio has received along the road to success isn’t hard to explain. Obviously, God is on his side.
