Cabrera told German that he saw glimpses of Martinez in him. He told German that he had tons of talent but needed to make sure his focus was on baseball. He also told German that he needed to ramp up his aggressiveness on the mound, a trait Cabrera lacked when he pitched.

More than anything, Cabrera told German about his failures.

“If I could redo my career, I would have left many things behind,” Cabrera said. “Things that had nothing to do with baseball. My career could have been different. I told him: ‘Don’t let what happened to me happen to you. I wish I could’ve found someone back then to tell me what I’m telling you now.’”

Because he came from humble beginnings, Cabrera said, he enjoyed life in the major leagues too much. After a poor performance, he tried to forget about it by going out and having fun — ignoring advice from his brothers.

“The real workhorse pitchers, when they have a bad game, they’re at the field first thing, working so that the next game doesn’t go the same way,” Cabrera said.

Cabrera said German was different because he was willing to follow the counsel of an elder. So when German asked Cabrera this year about helping him find an apartment to buy in the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, Cabrera told German to wait.

“I bought an apartment on the beach when I was having a good season,” Cabrera said. “So when I was playing, I thought a lot, ‘Man, how great would it be to be in the Dominican at my apartment?’ So my mind was on the Dominican when it should have been on baseball.”