Venezuelan connection a strong bond in Tigers’ clubhouse

11:02 AM ET

Before a recent game in Minneapolis, Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera walked into the clubhouse, plucked a plastic grocery bag brimming with stocked Tupperware out of his locker room stall and sauntered over to a card game among teammates a few feet away. The star slugger said nothing but made eye contact with Victor Martinez and dangled the goods before the table, beaming and gloating.

Home-cooked food had arrived.

Pitcher Mike Pelfrey, sitting across from Martinez, turned to Cabrera and, with raised eyebrows, jokingly asked, “Gringos?,” hoping he might be included in the culinary spoils.

Cabrera laughed and playfully wagged a finger.

Of all the things he misses about his homeland — the people, the stunning vistas, the vibrant culture — Cabrera is grateful that Venezuelan food is something he can enjoy stateside. He knows it is a comfort to his countrymen, such as Martinez, as well.

The Tigers, one of four major league teams that still have a baseball academy in Venezuela (most clubs have moved their operations to the Dominican Republic), are a microcosm of the greater influx of Venezuelan talent throughout Major League Baseball.

The club has arguably the strongest Venezuelan contingent of any team — not just by virtue of numbers but also by the sheer accomplishments among them. There is Cabrera, one of the most prolific hitters of all time, a former Triple Crown winner and two-time AL MVP with four batting titles in the past five years. There is Martinez, a five-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner. On the pitching staff, there is Anibal Sanchez, who led the American League with the lowest ERA (2.57) of all starters in 2013, and closer Francisco Rodriguez, MLB’s active saves leader (393), acquired this offseason in a trade from the Milwaukee Brewers. Then, of course, there is Omar Vizquel, one of the all-time great Venezuelan shortstops, who serves as the club’s first-base coach.

Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez share a special bond as natives of Venezuela. Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

Some of these players knew one another before joining forces in Detroit. Cabrera and Sanchez, who both hail from Maracay, a city on the northern coast, have known each other since they were kids. Cabrera goes way back with Rodriguez, a native of the nearby capital city Caracas, as well. The two played Little League against each other growing up. Martinez was raised in the south in a city called Ciudad Bolivar, an area much more agricultural than the industrial metropolises to the north. Geographical differences mean little to the men, though, because of all that they share: a love for their country, a love for baseball and a mutual understanding of the intersection between both.

It is not by any means an inviolable inner sanctum or an automatic alliance, but it a strong brotherhood and a special kinship that is hard to replicate.

“People here don’t have a clue where we come from. To us, that makes it special, always special,” Cabrera told ESPN.com. “Because a lot of people see you in the uniform and say, ‘OK, you can pay baseball,’ but they have no idea where we come from.”

Having teammates who understand helps, especially for those, such as Rodriguez, who are new to a team.

“There’s a familiarity with everything that makes it a lot easier,” Rodriguez said. “Even if you haven’t met [a teammate], and you know he’s Venezuelan, you know what he wants, what he likes … The chemistry is easy for some reason.”

Sanchez said he has known Martinez for only a few years but immediately felt close to him because of the mutual reference points.

“You can share a story from when you’re a kid, [that’s] common for both of us,” Sanchez said. “I met Victor for the first time in [2012], when he was coming up from the [disabled list]. He’s a great guy, we’re from the same country, we have a lot of conversation. We talk a lot on anything, and that makes it [nice]. At the end of the day, you spend more time over here than with your family.”

This bond is evident within the Tigers’ clubhouse, whether it’s displayed in the everyday …

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