The buses left Amber Cove port in the Dominican Republic on the fifth day of the St. Louis Cardinals official cruise. All cruises have shore excursions, but the group that paid as much as $1,675 a head to socialize on this high-society trip wasn't headed for souvenir shops, waterfalls or scenic beaches.
Not on this day, anyway. These buses took off for a part of the Dominican Republic most tourists never see, with a tour guide most others would never meet.
This was Carlos Martinez's day, and this group was headed for Martinez's hometown. The 25-year-old Cardinals pitcher is a hero now in Puerto Plata, but not long ago he was just another kid growing up in the toughest neighborhood in the worst part of a rough town, a kid who found a way out through a local seminary and because he could throw a baseball harder than anyone else.