César Tovar

César Leonardo Tovar was born on July 3, 1940 in Venezuela.

The Cincinnati Reds reluctantly signed him as an amateur free agent in 1959. Their scouts had limited interest in Tovar. They were simply trying to sweeten the pot to help sign Gus Gil, his best friend. Gil eventually signed with the Reds as well, and had a four year Major League career.

Tovar temporarily came to the Minnesota Twins during the 1963 minor league season. The Reds had too many second baseman at various levels of their system to give Tovar playing time, so he was sent to the Twins system where he could get some more at-bats. He hit .297 for the Dallas Rangers, then the Triple-A affiliate for Minnesota, then was sent back the Reds system in 1964. While playing in the Twins organization, minor league coach and future big league manager Billy Martin took a strong liking to Tovar. Minnesota traded for him after the 1964 season concluded.

He made his Major League debut for the Twins in 1965, but only appeared in 18 games. Tovar became a full time big league player the following season, batting .260 with 41 RBI and 16 stolen bases. He logged heavy amounts of playing time at second base, shortstop and center field. Tovar hit .269 with 94 RBI and 54 stolen bases between the 1967 and 1968 seasons, adding third base and corner outfield to his mix of positions. Minnesota beat writer Max Nichols created a small controversy in 1967 when he spoiled the opportunity for Boston Red Sox slugger Carl Yastrzemski to win the MVP unanimously. His first place vote went to Tovar, who finished seventh overall. Harmon Killebrew was the MVP runner-up that year. 

Martin took over as Twins manager in 1969, and Tovar took another leap forward while playing for his old minor league coach. He hit .288 with career highs in home runs (11) and stolen bases (45). Minnesota won the AL West crown that season, but Tovar went 1-for-13 in the ALCS as they were swept by the Baltimore Orioles. This ended the short managerial tenure of Billy Martin with the Twins. It was the first of four managerial stints for Martin that didn't reach a second season.

Tovar continued to play well under new manager Bill Rigney. He hit .300 with 54 RBI during the 1970 campaign, leading the American League with 36 doubles and 13 triples. Minnesota once again won the AL West, and they were once again swept by the Orioles in the ALCS. From a personal statistical standpoint, Tovar did have a better postseason that fall. He was 5-for-13 with a triple and an RBI.

He put up a career best .311 batting average in 1971, leading the American League with 204 hits. Tovar regressed a bit the following season, batting .265 with an OPS below .700 for the first time since 1968. They traded him to the Philadelphia Phillies after the season.

The next four seasons saw Tovar become a journeyman utility player. He spent time with four big league clubs between 1973 and 1976. His time with the Texas Rangers (1974-75) and New York Yankees (1976) allowed him to play for Billy Martin again. In fact, Texas released Tovar shortly after firing Martin midway through the 1975 campaign. The organization saw them as some sort of package deal.

Tovar continued to play professionally in Venezuela through 1986. He managed the Venezuelan national team to a last place finish at the 1990 Baseball World Cup, going 1-7 in tournament play. Tovar passed away in 1994 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. 

• Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame
• Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame
• 1968 Calvin R. Griffith Award
  • Twins MVP
• 1966 Bill Boni Award
  • Twins most outstanding rookie
• 1966 AL sacrifice flies leader (7)
• 1970 AL doubles leader (36)
• 1970 AL triples leader (13)
• 1971 AL hits leader (204)
• 1974 AL hit by pitch leader (14)

Career ranks among Venezuelan born players (as of 2025)
Hits - 15th (1,546)
Doubles - 25th (253)
Triples - 6th (55)
Home runs - 66th (46)
RBI - 45th (435)
Steals - 7th (226)
bWAR - 19th (28.20)