Led behind a historic pitching performance by Mr. Macias, the undersized team from Mexico went on to win the championship game, 4-0, in perfect fashion over La Mesa (Calif.) Little League. Normally an ambidextrous pitcher, Mr. Macias chose to only use his right arm that day, retiring all 18 batters in order with 11 strikeouts to record the first ever perfect game in the Little League World Series final, and it remains the only one to occur in the championship game.
“In the championship, I was concentrating so much on trying to win that I did not realize that I was pitching a perfect game,” said Mr. Macias said in a previous interview. “At the end of the game, I remember most of all César Faz and Pepe González celebrating the triumph with us. That was the most important thing.”
After Little League, Mr. Macias went on to sign with the Los Angeles Angels where he played as an outfielder in their farm system for two years before returning to Mexico to play 12 years in the Mexican League.
Being a part of the first Mexican team to play in and subsequently win the Little League World Series put Mr. Macias in a spot where he could help take the growth of youth baseball in Mexico to new heights. He and his teammate from that championship team, Jose “Pepe” Maiz Garcia, were active volunteers in promoting and helping the Monterrey Little League. Mr. Macias was also the director of the Mexican Baseball Academy until his retirement.
Mr. Macias will join Mr. Maiz (Class of 2005) as the second player from that 1957 Monterrey team to be inducted into the Little League Hall of Excellence. The enshrinement ceremony for Mr. Macias will take place on Wednesday, August 23, the anniversary of the date that Mr. Macias threw his perfect game, at the 2017 Little League Baseball World Series in South Williamsport, Pa. He will be joining fellow 2017 enshrinees, Sydney Leroux and Champ Pederson.