Leo Najo

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Leo Najo

Leo Najo was born Leonardo Alanís on February 17, 1899, in La Lajilla, Nuevo León, Mexico. When he was 10, his family moved to Mission, Texas, where he grew up and spent most of his life. He played baseball on the Texas-Mexico border and became known for his speed. Fans gave him the nickname “Najo,” short for conejo, the Spanish word for rabbit.

In 1924, the San Antonio Bears of the Texas League signed him. He played his first pro game on April 16, 1924, becoming one of the first Mexicans to play U.S. professional baseball and likely the first Mexican to play in the Texas League. He spent part of 1924 on loan to the Tyler Trojans, helping them win a league championship.

Najo’s standout season came in 1925 with the Okmulgee Drillers, where he hit .381 with 34 home runs in 142 games. His success helped him become one of the first Mexican players drafted by a Major League team when the Chicago White Sox picked him in 1925. He played in spring training with the White Sox in 1926, but was released to San Antonio on the final day of spring training.

A serious leg injury in July 1926 during a game with the Houston Buffaloes ended his chances of returning to the majors. He continued to play in the minors, performing well with San Antonio and later Omaha. In 1932, he was with the Tulsa Oilers, a team historians call one of the top 100 minor league teams of all time, finishing that season with a .323 average.

During the Great Depression, low pay and long separations from home led Najo to step back from major league hopes. He returned to Mission to run his family’s tavern and manage other properties. He did come back to baseball briefly in 1938 with the McAllen Packers in Texas, then served as a player-manager in the Mexican League with Alijadores de Tampico (1939) and Diablos Rojos del México (1940).

In 1939, Leo Najo became the first player elected to the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame, and he was inducted in 1973 when the hall opened a building in Monterrey. He spent many years promoting and teaching baseball in South Texas and northern Mexico, working as a player, manager, coach, and umpire in semi-pro and youth leagues.

Leo Najo died on April 25, 1978, in Mission, Texas, at age 79. His legacy lives on in Mission, where a street is named Leo Najo Street and the local high school baseball stadium bears his name. Each October, Mission hosts a Leo Najo Day to celebrate his impact on baseball in the region.