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Two Puerto Rican baseball stars trying to help Hurricane Maria relief efforts

The Hurricane Harvey relief efforts and fund-raising by Houston Texas star J.J. Watt showed us just how much of an impact pro athletes can have as humanitarians. Now that Puerto Rico has been — as news reports say — “absolutely obliterated” by Hurricane Maria, two famous Puerto Rican baseball players are stepping up to raise money to help their homeland.

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St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina and former New York Yankees great Jorge Posada have each set up fundraising sites aimed at helping Puerto Rico. NBA player J.J. Barea, who is also from Puerto Rico, has launched an effort as well.

Baseball and Puerto Rico are pretty closely intertwined. It’s the land of Roberto Clemente, after all. And it birthed some of this generation’s most exciting young players in Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor and Javier Baez. This was the scene Wednesday at Hiram Bithorn Stadium, the site of MLB’s Puerto Rican series in 2018.

The problems in Puerto Rico extend far beyond baseball right now, however. The hurricane has left more than three million people completely without power. Officials are afraid it might take months to restore. Meanwhile, most phone services are down as well.

In the early going, the fund-raising efforts by both MLB players are gaining traction and donations. Posada’s effort has raised more than $65,000 so far, with a goal of $100,000. Molina’s fund just launched Thursday morning with a $1 million goal. At the time of this post, it had raised close to $5,000.

Yadier Molina and team Puerto Rico during the 2017 World Baseball Classic. (AP)
Yadier Molina and team Puerto Rico during the 2017 World Baseball Classic. (AP)

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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!