Puerto Rico currently has the fourth-most active players in Major League Baseball (MLB) among Latin American jurisdictions, behind the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba. More than three hundred players from the archipelago have played in the major leagues since . This includes players who were born in either one of the archipelago's islands and those of Puerto Rican heritage. Only those players who have worked in the major leagues are listed, not those active in the minor leagues, nor negro independent leagues. For years, it was considered that the first player from Puerto Rico to play in the major leagues was Hiram Bithorn. But this changed on December 16, 2020, when seven negro baseball leagues were finally classified as major or big leagues, only for the periods between 1920 and 1948. Thus, the first Puerto Rican to play baseball on the major leagues was Jose "Gacho" Torres. Then, after the baseball color line was abandoned following Jackie Robinson's debut in the National League of the MLB, more players from the island signed contracts. This led to an improvement in their performance, and some of them were selected to participate in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. Including their names in the Major League Baseball draft is a requisite for first-year players born in Puerto Rico, because the league recognizes the island as a jurisdiction within the United States. Following the implementation of this measure, Puerto Rico's government requested exclusion from the draft and help to develop players, in order to reduce the impact of the change in the format of talent development. Historical performance and regulations Baseball was introduced to Puerto Rico by immigrants during the nineteenth century. The first sanctioned baseball game in the island was played on January 9, 1898, in Santurce, Puerto Rico, where two teams composed of Puerto Rican, American and Cuban players participated. After this game, baseball became a widespread sport and professional and amateur leagues were organized. During this time period, the Puerto Rico national teams experienced success on international competition and Afro-Puerto Rican players began to participate in the Negro leagues. Hiram Bithorn debuted as a pitcher with the Chicago Cubs on April 15, 1942, but before him, there were about 10 other players who worked on the negro leagues, now considered as major leagues. About 17 other Puerto Rican players in the negro leagues were active right before the introduction of African