Ruddy Lugo was a teenager when he pitched in front of 3,500 fans at Point Stadium 22 years ago.
At age 16, playing against Johnstown’s Principle Development and the home crowd, Lugo entered the game in the seventh inning with his team trailing by five runs. He kept Brooklyn in the game long enough for the Youth Service League team to earn a comeback victory.
Lugo said the AAABA Tournament experience helped him prepare for a career that took him through the minors and into the major leagues as a pitcher for two seasons.
Lugo will join his older brother Julio Lugo in the Class of 2018 during the AAABA Hall of Fame banquet held on Aug. 4 at the Pasquerilla Conference Center. Julio Lugo was MVP on the 1994 Brooklyn team that won the AAABA championship. Also in the class is Johnstown’s Maurice Berry, who pitched in four tournaments from 1990-94.
A link to The Tribune-Demcorat story on Ruddy Lugo follows: