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- When Miguel was invited to the Futures Games in 2001, he became the youngest player to get the nod. The record holder before him was Rafael Furcal, who was six weeks shy of his 19th birthday in the 1999 contest.
- Miguel is just the third player since 1900 to hit a game-winning home run in his big-league debut. The other two were Josh Bard in 2002 and Billy Parker in 1971.
- At 20 years and 63 days, Miguel became the second-youngest Marlin in franchise history, behind Felix Heredia (20 years, 52 days).
- Miguel’s four-hit performance against the San Francisco Giants in the 2003 NLDS matched the record for hits by a rookie in a post-season game. The others to accomplish this feat were Derek Jeter (1996 ), Chad Fonville (1995), Joe Garagiola (1946) and Freddie Lindstrom (1924)
- Miguel still has bobblehead dolls of Jeff Conine and Craig Counsell from Florida’s 1997 championship team.
- When Miguel tapes his wrists, he writes the “sangre” on the tape. Sangre means blood in Spanish, and that’s what Miguel says he plays for.
- Miguel has given himself a crash course in English since arriving in the majors, and can now hold his own without a translator.
- Miguel and Rosangel renewed their vows after the World Series in what amounted to a royal wedding for Venezuelans. A Maracay newspaper ran a picture of him with Dave Concepcion and captioned it, “King David and Prince Miguel.”
- Miguel’s favorite restaurant back home in Venezuela is Weekend Burger.
- Miguel and his wife, Rosangel, have a Yorkshire terrier named La Cosita, which means “Little Thing.” The dog has at least 12 shirts in its wardrobe.
- Miguel’s new digs in Maracay are just five minutes away from his boyhood home.
- When he was a kid, Miguel’s favorite stuffed animal was Winnie the Pooh.
- Miguel likes to watch soap operas back in Venezuela. His favorite is “Cosita Rica” (Little Rich Thing).
Rafael Furcal, 2002
Topps Heritage
Joe Garagiola book