José Oquendo
A Cardinals institution whose defensive versatility and fundamental genius earned him the lasting nickname 'the Secret Weapon'.
Born 1963 (age 63)·Puerto Rican baseball player and coach·Birthday: July 4·Baby Boomers
Biography
José Oquendo pitched in an MLB emergency with a deceptive sidearm delivery, one of many positions he mastered as a St. Louis Cardinals utility man in the 1980s and 90s. For 18 seasons as the Cardinals' third-base coach, his stoic, precise signals connected the Whitey Herzog era to modern playoff runs. The soft-spoken Puerto Rican became the organization's institutional memory, teaching fundamentals of defensive crispness and smart baserunning — the Cardinal Way — on backfields and in clubhouses.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
José was born in 1963, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When José Was Born
The biggest hits of 1963
#1 Movie
Cleopatra
Best Picture
Tom Jones
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
José's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1963Born
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1968Started school
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1976Became a teenager
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1979Could drive
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1981Could vote
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1984Turned 21
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1993Turned 30
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 40
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 50
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 60
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 63 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Played every single defensive position (including pitcher) for the St. Louis Cardinals during the 1988 season.
- Served as the Cardinals' third-base coach for 18 consecutive seasons (2000-2017), guiding runners during two World Series championships.
- Managed the Puerto Rico national baseball team in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics.
- Held a career .988 fielding percentage across over 900 major league games at multiple infield and outfield positions.
Did You Know?
He earned his nickname 'the Secret Weapon' from Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog for his ability to play anywhere effectively.
Oquendo once played an entire inning at all nine defensive positions in a spring training game.
As an emergency pitcher in 1988, he threw 3.1 scoreless innings against the Atlanta Braves.
He was known for having one of the strongest infield arms in baseball during his playing days.
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