Editing Roberto Clemente (section)

== Early life ==
Clemente was born on August 18, 1934, in Barrio San Antón in [[Carolina, Puerto Rico]], to Luisa Walker and Melchor Clemente. He was the youngest of seven siblings (three were from his mother's previous marriage). During Clemente's childhood, his father worked as a foreman for [[sugar cane]] crops located in the municipality in the northeastern part of the island. Because the family's resources were limited, Clemente and his brothers worked alongside his father in the fields, loading and unloading trucks.<ref>{{cite web |title=Roberto Clemente (SABR BioProject) |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/roberto-clemente/ |publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]] |quote=Roberto Clemente Walker was born on August 18, 1934, to Melchor Clemente and Luisa Walker de Clemente in Carolina, which is slightly east of the Puerto Rican capital of San Juan. Roberto was the youngest of Luisa's seven children (three of whom were from a previous marriage).}}</ref>

Clemente had first shown interest in baseball early in life and often played against neighboring [[barrio]]s. When he was fourteen, he was recruited by Roberto Marín to play [[softball]] with the Sello Rojo team after he was seen playing baseball in barrio San Antón. He was with the team two years as a [[shortstop]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Roberto Clemente (SABR BioProject) |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/roberto-clemente/ |publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]] |quote=When he was 14 years old Roberto joined a softball team organized by Roberto Marín, who became very influential in Clemente’s life. Marín noticed Roberto’s strong throwing arm and began using him at shortstop. He eventually moved him to the outfield.}}</ref>

Clemente's interest in baseball grew as he would watch games in Puerto Rico's winter baseball league as a kid. San Juan was a popular destination for [[Barnstorming (sports)|barnstorming]] teams and players who wanted to continue playing in the winter months. Watching the games, Clemente was inspired by [[Monte Irvin]], a right fielder for the [[Negro leagues]]' [[Newark Eagles|Newark Eagles.]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=The HOFer who inspired a young Clemente |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/roberto-clemente-inspired-by-negro-leaguer-monte-irvin |access-date=2025-03-13 |website=MLB.com |language=en}}</ref> 

He attended [[Julio Vizcarrondo#Later years and legacy|Julio Vizcarrondo High School]] in Carolina where he was a track and field star, participating in the high jump and javelin throw. Clemente was considered good enough to represent Puerto Rico at the [[Olympics]]. He later stated that throwing the javelin helped in strengthening his arm and with his footwork and release.<ref>{{cite web |title=Roberto Clemente (SABR BioProject) |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/roberto-clemente/ |publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]] |quote=Throwing the javelin strengthened his arm and helped him in other ways, according to one of his biographers, Bruce Markusen: "The footwork, release, and general dynamics employed in throwing the javelin coincided with the skills needed to throw a baseball properly. The more that Clemente threw the javelin, the better and stronger his throwing from the outfield became."}}</ref> Despite his all-around athletic skill, however, Clemente decided to focus on baseball and went on to join Puerto Rico's amateur league, playing for the Ferdinand Juncos team, which represented the municipality of [[Juncos, Puerto Rico|Juncos]].<ref>[[#Maraniss|Maraniss]], pp. 25-26.</ref>