Luis Aparicio Sr.

In addition, the 2012–13 Venezuelan Professional Baseball League tournament was played in honour of the centenary of his birthday.

The Estadio Luis Aparicio El Grande is named after him in his birthplace Maracaibo. Then, in 2005 he was enshrined into the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum as part of its second class.

"What made the old shortstop had no comparison", Carrasquel explained in a 1971 interview to Diario Panorama. "He was a genius in that position, always advised every rookie, and they corrected the mistakes quickly. That gave rise to cheer and excel in equal measure as I did", he added.

Aparicio died in 1971 at the age of 58, after suffering a heart attack. Through the years, he has been honored various times for his numerous contributions to Venezuelan baseball.

Retired from active play, Aparicio coached for Gavilanes and later founded the Rapiños de Occidente club in 1957, following a disagreement with his brother Ernesto, which forced him leave the family organization. From there he departed not from his son, and went to his side with the Tiburones de La Guaira and the Águilas del Zulia, serving as the Águilas' manager for their inaugural 1969–70 season.

Following his recovery, Aparicio joined the Navegantes del Magallanes club to become a founding member of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League in its inaugural season. The first game of the new league took place on Saturday 12 January 1946 at Cervecería Caracas Stadium, as Magallanes defeated the Patriotas de Venezuela, 5–2, behind a strong pitching performance by big leaguer Alejandro Carrasquel. The first batter in that game was Aparicio, who promptly lined a solid base hit into right field and later scored the first run, becoming the first player to collect both the first hit and run scored in Venezuelan League history.

Aparicio became part of the Sabios de Vargas for the next six campaigns, hitting a career-high .322 average in the 1946–47 season, while leading his team to the Championship title. He retired from active play with Gavilanes in 1953. In a symbolic gesture during the team's home opener, he led off as the first hitter of the game. Aparicio turned to face Howie Fox of the Lácteos de Pastora, then, after taking the first pitch, had Aparicio Jr. take his place at bat. This was the first professional appearance of Aparicio Jr., who previously had served as batboy for his father's team.

Although he never appeared in a Major League game, Aparicio received an offer to play for the Washington Senators in 1938 that he could not achieve. At the time, he was walking in the aftermath of a hernia surgery and subsequent operations needed to address complications from previous hernia surgeries.

In between, Aparicio was signed by the Tigres del Licey club of the now extinct Dominican Republic Summer League in 1934, becoming the first Venezuelan ballplayer to play professionally outside of his country. He also gained international exposure as a member of the Venezuela national baseball team during the 1942 Baseball World Cup tournament played in Havana, Cuba.

Engaged in any sport activities as a teenager, Aparicio Sr. was introduced to the soccer environment in the late 1920s, playing as a forward for several First Division clubs of Caracas and Maracaibo, but ended devoted himself to baseball when he was hired to play in the National Baseball Series tournament, where he performed for seven different teams in eleven seasons spanning 1931–1945. A few years before, in 1928, he had founded with his brother Ernesto the baseball team Los Muchachos (The Boys), which was later renamed Gavilanes de Maracaibo. Over time, the Gavilanes (Sparrowhawks) would become the most successful team in Zulian Professional Baseball annals, winning 15 of 20 summer tournaments held between 1932 and 1957.

Luis Aparicio Ortega (August 28, 1912 – January 1, 1971) was a Venezuelan professional baseball personality for 40 years, serving as a player, coach, field manager, and club organizer. Aparicio was the father of Baseball Hall of Fame member Luis Aparicio.