TAMPA — The first time Norma Ortiz tried to watch her son pitch in a major league game, the Mexican mother’s trip to the United States required years of paperwork and zero payoff.
The mom of Yankees reliever Victor González began applying for a Visa in 2021. However, many applications were backed up as a result of the pandemic, and Ortiz did not get the OK to visit the U.S. until last season.
With González pitching for the Dodgers at the time, Ortiz headed to Los Angeles in early July. But the day after she arrived, the Dodgers demoted her son to the minors.
“It was definitely a sad moment for me,” González told the Daily News. “Even today, it’s hard to find words to put into context what you feel after all that and having the moment so close, but you’re so far. But that’s how it happens sometimes in baseball. We’ve got to roll with it and keep going.”
Fortunately for Ortiz, she now has another chance to see her son pitch. It will come in their home country.
The Yankees begin a two-game exhibition series against the Diablos Rojos del México in Mexico City on Sunday. González, a native of Tuxpan — a riverbank city in the state of Veracruz — is scheduled to appear in the first game at Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium.
The southpaw’s mom, brother and grandfather will be among 15 family members in attendance.
“She’s gonna be very excited,” González said. “I actually told her to wait until I’m pitching in the Bronx for the Yankees, but she said, ‘No, I can’t wait anymore. I’m gonna go see you here in Mexico.’
“It’s a bit ironic because she’s not the biggest baseball fan. And even when I was little, she didn’t watch me much. My dad, on the other hand, was still the person there with me. So it means a lot that she’s finally going to get an opportunity.”
González added that he lost his father 13 years ago — and that he’s about to become one himself.
His wife, Carolina Romero, is five months pregnant. Neither she nor González know their baby’s gender yet, but they will find out when the husband makes it to Mexico.
“That’s another special part of this trip,” González said. “I’m expecting a baby with my wife and have an opportunity to find out if it’s gonna be a girl or a boy. I think she has one of those devices that you twist and pop [to reveal the gender].
“We’ll have some cake to celebrate.”
Romero already has a son from a previous marriage, so González is hoping to balance the scales with a girl. However, he’ll be happy either way. If another boy joins the family, González said he will teach him how to throw lefty.
“I might tie the right hand behind the back,” he joked.
González also said that he has five uncles who played professional baseball, including two who enjoyed long careers in Mexico. So while some may see this as a mere pitstop before the Yankees begin their series in Houston on March 28, it’s a true family affair that spans multiple generations for González.
The 28-year-old has pitched in Mexico before, but never for a big league team.
“Getting to play baseball in Mexico again for him is like a dream,” said Caleb Ferguson, a past and present teammate with Los Angeles and New York. “To do it with a franchise like the Yankees is probably even better.
“I know the importance of family for Victor.”
González has made it no secret that this will be a meaningful experience for him, and he can’t wait to finally throw in front of his kin. His mom isn’t the only one about to see him pitch for the first time as a big leaguer, though, so he found himself feeling a little anxious before the Yankees packed their bags on Saturday afternoon.
“For this opportunity to come around and to be able to pitch and for them to see me over there, especially with the Yankees, it’s very exciting,” González said. “I’m actually very nervous. I can’t wait until I’m out there pitching.”
