Even as legends pass away, Miami Dade College’s baseball legacy lives on
The three coaches who first made the Miami Dade College baseball program nationally famous – Demie Mainieri, Charlie Greene and Steve Hertz – have now all passed away.
Mainieri died in 2019; Greene died in 2024; and MDC lost Hertz in December.
Even so, MDC’s legacy lives on, and that was evident this past Saturday as nearly two dozen current and former pro baseball players gathered for the program’s fifth annual alumni game.
Most of those players who showed up are Miami Dade College graduates, but some never played for MDC.
The players in that latter category include Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto, who was a first-round pick in 2022; outfielder MJ Melendez, who is currently a free agent but was the Kansas City Royals’ second-rounder in 2017; and infielder Luis Guillorme, who in 2025 played his eighth MLB season and is also a free agent.
Melendez, the son of former FIU coach Mervyl Melendez, said he came in support of current MDC coach Lazaro Llanes.
“He has always been great to our family,” Melendez said of Llanes. “Everyone in the baseball world knows who he is. He’s a super human being.”
Melendez, by the way, has mostly played right and left field in the majors. But this past winter in Puerto Rico, he trained in center field in hopes that MLB teams will see his versatility.
“I know I’m fast enough, I have a good arm, and I can read the ball off the bat,” said Melendez, who has hit 52 major-league homers. “Coming from the corner outfield with different angles … center field is a bit easier. I felt comfortable in center.”
Among the MDC graduates/active pro baseball players who attended Saturday’s event were infielder Santiago Espinal, who has six years of MLB experience but is currently a free agent; right-hander Orlando Ribalta, who made his MLB debut in 2024 with the Washington Nationals; and D’Angelo Ortiz, who is in the minors with the Red Sox and is the son of former World Series MVP David “Big Papi” Ortiz.
“It’s awesome to be back, seeing some familiar faces,” said Espinal, 31. “It makes me happy to be here. The field, the lights, the fences … everything looks brand new.”
Current MDC pitching coach Andrew Cabezas, who pitched for the University of Miami and then in the minors for five years, said he feels the pull of history due to his current post.
“People from different parts of the country and the world have come here to play baseball for MDC,” Cabezas said. “I get e-mails from (prospective players) as far away as Australia and South Korea.
“This is a prestigious program. I’m grateful to be here, and the alumni game shows how many people have such love for MDC.”
Indeed, Llanes said the alumni game is an important annual tradition.
“Miami Dade College is such a big part of our community,” he said. “It’s a blessing to see these former athletes come back, specifically in honor of Coach Hertz.
“Growing up watching MDC, these coaches (Mainieri, Greene and Hertz) meant so much to me. It’s a blessing to be coaching MDC while trying to follow their legacy.”