Alfredo Amézaga

Alfredo Amézaga Delgado (/əˈmɛzəɡə/; Spanish pronunciation: [alˈfɾeðo aˈmesaɣa]; born January 16, 1978) is a Mexican former professional baseball player and current coach for the AA Mississippi Braves. In his career, he played 265 games in the outfield (most of them in center field), 115 games at shortstop, 71 games at third base, 60 games at second base and 6 games at first base. The only positions he did not play were pitcher and catcher.

Alfredo Amézaga
Amézaga, with the Marlins in June 2007
Center fielder / Infielder
Born: (1978-01-16) January 16, 1978
Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, Mexico
Batted: Switch Threw: Right
MLB debut
May 24, 2002, for the Anaheim Angels
Last MLB appearance
September 4, 2011, for the Florida Marlins
MLB statistics
Batting average.247
Home runs12
Runs batted in110
Teams

Amézaga graduated from Miami High School and St. Petersburg College. While in college, he played for the Keene Swamp Bats of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. He played for Yaquis de Obregón in the Mexican Pacific League between MLB seasons for several years and appeared for the Mexican team in both the 2006 World Baseball Classic and 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Professional career

Anaheim Angels

He was drafted one spot ahead of Albert Pujols at 401st overall in the 1999 Draft by the Anaheim Angels. In his first professional season with the Class-A Boise Hawks he hit .322 and was named to the Northwest League All-Star team. In 2000 with the Lake Elsinore Storm he hit .279, was an honorable mention selection to the California League All-star team and was second in the league with 73 stolen bases. In 2001 with the Double-A Arkansas Travelers he hit .312 in 70 games and was named to both the mid-season and postseason Texas League All-Star teams. He also was a member of the "World Team" at the All-Star Futures Game and was named the Angels Minor League Defensive Player of the Year. In 2003, he was named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team, while leading all Angels minor leaguers with a .347 average for the AAA Salt Lake Stingers.

Amézaga made his Major League debut on May 24, 2002, against the Minnesota Twins as a shortstop. He was hitless in three at-bats that day. He recorded his first Major League hit two days later, a double to left center against Twins pitcher Eric Milton. His first home run did not come until August 19, 2003, against Jon Garland of the Chicago White Sox. In three seasons with the Angels, he played in 122 games and hit .209. He also appeared in two games for the Angels in the 2004 American League Division Series against the Boston Red Sox, and was hitless in two at-bats.

Colorado Rockies

Amézaga was designated for assignment by the Angels after the 2004 season and selected off waivers by the Colorado Rockies. He made the opening day roster with the Rockies, his first such achievement in the big leagues. He only appeared in two games for the Rockies and was one for three before the Rockies designated him for assignment on April 20.

Pittsburgh Pirates

He was claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates and was 0 for 3 in three appearances with the Pirates. He spent the remainder of the season in AAA with the Indianapolis Indians, where he hit .341 in 64 games.

Florida Marlins

He signed as a free agent with the Florida Marlins prior to the 2006 season and appeared in a career high 132 games, hitting .260. He appeared in 417 games with the Marlins over four years, hitting .259 during that span. However, he underwent microfracture surgery on his left knee in July, 2009 and missed the rest of the season while recovering. The Marlins chose to release him after the season.

Los Angeles Dodgers

He was signed to a minor league contract by the Los Angeles Dodgers on February 2, 2010. Still recovering from his injury, he did not play in any spring training games. Amézaga made his season debut on May 17 for the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts. He only had four at-bats before returning to the disabled list for the remainder of the season, after which he became a free agent.

Return to Colorado

Amezaga signed a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring training with the Colorado Rockies on January 26, 2011,[1] but failed to make the team and was sent down to Triple-A Colorado Springs.[2] He had his contract purchased on April 29.[3] He was designated for assignment on May 29.[4]

Return to Florida

On August 6, 2011, Amézaga was re-acquired by the Florida Marlins from the Rockies in exchange for minor league shortstop Jesus Merchan.[5] He played 20 games for the Fish, batting .136 in 49 plate appearances.

Chicago Cubs

He signed as a minor league free agent with the Chicago Cubs on January 13, 2012. He spent the season in AAA with the Iowa Cubs and hit .274 in 113 games.

Los Angeles Dodgers

He signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers on January 5, 2013, and was assigned to the AAA Albuquerque Isotopes. After hitting .339 in 37 games for the Isotopes, he was released on June 2.

Tigres de Quintana Roo

On June 5, 2013, Amézaga signed with the Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican Baseball League.

Toros de Tijuana

On April 10, 2017, Amézaga signed with the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican Baseball League. He was released on February 27, 2018. Amézaga announced his retirement as an active player (in both the Mexican Pacific League and the Mexican Baseball League) following his participation in the 2018 Caribbean Series.

Coaching career

Amézaga was named as a coach for the AA Mississippi Braves in the Atlanta Braves organization for the 2019 season.

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References
  1. Rockies Sign Alfredo Amezaga, MLBTradeRumors.com, January 26, 2011.
  2. Rockies cut two from camp
  3. Rockies purchase contract of infielder Alfredo Amezaga Archived 2011-05-02 at the Wayback Machine, MLB.com, April 29, 2011.
  4. Foster, Steve. "Rockies recall Nelson, designate Amezaga for assignment". insidetherockies.com. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
  5. Archived 2012-10-09 at the Wayback Machine, RotoWorld, August 6, 2011.
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