Tag Archives: Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona Diamondback Outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. Becomes U.S. Citizen

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Lourdes Gurriel Jr. has missed his latest game… with good reason.

The 29-year-old Cuban professional baseball left fielder for the Arizona Diamondback was not in the starting lineup against the Miami Marlins on Monday night because he was late arriving to the ballpark.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr.,The 29-year-old had a good excuse, though. He was becoming a U.S. citizen.

“It’s a pretty amazing accomplishment for him,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “Certainly proud of him. We excused him from all the pregame activity to take care of that today.”

Lourdes Gurriel Jr.,Lovullo said Gurriel would be available off the bench against the Marlins.

Gurriel was born in Cuba and defected to the U.S. with his older brother Yuli in 2016. Both players have had successful MLB careers since their arrival in the states.

Yuli Gurriel happened to be in town for his brother’s special occasion because he plays for the Marlins. He had several successful seasons with the Houston Astros before going to Miami in the offseason. He was batting third for the Marlins in Monday night’s game.

Lourdes Gurriel played his first five seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays before moving to the D-backs in an offseason trade. He has fit in well with his new team, batting .310 with five homers and 19 RBIs in 30 games.

David Peralta Signs One-Year, $6.5 Million Contract with Los Angeles Dodgers

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David Peralta is heading to the City of Angels…

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the 35-year-old Venezuelan professional baseball outfielder  have agreed to terms on a one-year, $6.5 million contract, according to ESPN.

David PeraltaThe deal, which is pending the completion of a physical examination, carries incentives that could increase the value to as much as $8 million.

Peralta gives the Dodgers an experienced left-handed hitter who can split time with the right-handed-hitting Chris Taylor and Trayce Thompson in left and center field. Peralta has some experience in center field but has spent the vast majority of his nine-year career in left.

A longtime member of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Peralta batted .286/.342/.463 from 2014 to 2021, accumulating 98 home runs, 32 stolen bases and 14.4 Baseball-Reference wins above replacement. With the D-backs and the Tampa Bay Rays in 2022, he batted .251/.316/.415 with 12 home runs in 134 games.

The Dodgers have made only modest upgrades this winter on the heels of a franchise-record-setting 111-win season. All told, they have spent a combined $44.5 million on one-year contracts for Peralta, designated hitter J.D. Martinez, starting pitchers Clayton Kershaw and Noah Syndergaard and reliever Shelby Miller, while also absorbing $5 million in a trade for utility infielder Miguel Rojas.

Arizona Diamondbacks Sign Evan Longoria to One-Year Deal

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Evan Longoria has landed a diamond deal…

The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed the 37-year-old half-Mexican American baseball player, a three-time MLB All-Star third baseman, to a one-year deal.

Evan Longoria,The team announced the signing on Thursday.

Longoria is a 15-year veteran, spending his first 10 seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays and the past five with the San Francisco Giants.

Longoria — a three-time Gold Glove winner — brings some experience to what’s expected to be a young lineup in 2023.

He also adds right-handed power to a team that already has a lot of left-handed hitting. He has 331 career homers.

Longoria has battled injuries over the past few seasons but has been productive when healthy.

He hit .244 with 14 homers and 42 RBIs in 89 games last season.

To make room for Longoria on the 40-man roster, the D-backs designated right-handed pitcher Edwin Uceta for assignment.

Jean Segura Agrees to Two-Year, $17 Million Deal with Miami Marlins 

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Jean Segura is heading to the Sunshine State.

The 32-year-old Dominican veteran professional baseball shortstop and second baseman and the Miami Marlins have agreed to a two-year, $17 million deal, according to multiple reports.

Jean SeguraIt’s the first free agent move of the offseason for the Marlins, who are coming off a 69-93 season — their 12th losing record in the past 13 years. And they’ve watched NL East rivals Atlanta, Philadelphia and the New York Mets make no shortage of moves to try and improve their loaded rosters; the Braves were World Series champions in 2021 and the Phillies won the NL pennant this year before falling to Houston in the World Series.

Segura spent the past four seasons with the Phillies, but they declined his $17 million option last month, and he instead received a $1 million buyout. In 98 games this season — he missed about two months with a fractured right index finger — Segura hit .277 with 10 home runs, 33 RBIs and 45 runs. He also appeared in the postseason for the first time in his 11-year career and delivered a key hit in Philly’s Game 3 NLCS win against the San Diego Padres.

A two-time MLB All-Star, Segura also has played full seasons for the Milwaukee Brewers, Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. He’s a career .285 hitter with 107 home runs, 712 runs scored and 492 RBIs.

He primarily played second base for Philadelphia but also saw time at shortstop and third. Marlins All-Star second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. was limited to just 60 games in 2022 due to injury.

Z101 Digital first reported news of the agreement between Segura and the Marlins.

Yonny Hernández Acquired by the Los Angeles Dodgers

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Yonny Hernández is heading to Southern California…

The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired the 24-year-old Venezuelan professional baseball infielder from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for cash.

Yonny HernándezHernandez, a switch-hitter, played in 12 games for the Arizona Diamondbacks last season after being traded by the Texas Rangers in April.

Hernández was claimed by Oakland last month and was designated for assignment this week.

He played 10 games at third base and two at second base for the Diamondbacks.

Hernández has hit .198 with 13 stolen bases while playing shortstop, second base and third base in 55 career major league games with the Rangers and D-backs.

Hernández spent seven seasons in the minors, mostly with the Rangers’ organization, hitting .262 with 21 triples and 184 stolen bases in 532 games.

The Dodgers’ 40-man roster now stands at 39.

Miguel Castro Agrees to One-Year Contract with Arizona Diamondbacks

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Miguel Castro is shining bright like a Diamond(back)…

The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed the 27-year-old Dominican professional baseball hard-throwing reliever to a one-year contract.

Miguel CastroCastro, who turns 28 this month, has already spent eight years in the big leagues, most recently with the New York Yankees. He was 5-0 with a 4.03 ERA in 34 appearances last season.

The 6-foot-7 right-hander has averaged more than a strikeout per inning over the past three seasons. The bullpen was a weak spot for Arizona this year and general manager Mike Hazen said upgrading that area — particularly with power arms — was a priority.

The Diamondbacks finished 74-88 last season, a 22-win improvement over a dreadful 2021.

Arizona also claimed catcher Ali Sánchez off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates. He’s appeared in seven major league games with the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals over the past two seasons.

Albert Pujols Homers Twice to Move Up to Second on MLB’s Career List for Total Bases

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Albert Pujols has moved up a spot…

The 42-year-old Dominican–American professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter for the St. Louis Cardinals hit two more home runs on Saturday night, boosting his total to 692 and moving him past Stan Musial into second place on the career list for total bases.

Albert Pujols,Pujols connected for solo homers in the second and fourth innings against Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Madison Bumgarner to help St. Louis win 16-7.

Pujols nearly hit a third homer, scorching a single off the base of the left field wall in the fifth. He capped his 4-for-4 night with a ground ball single through the left side of the infield in the seventh.

Pujols needs four more home runs to tie Alex Rodriguez for the No. 4 spot all-time.

“Listen to the names that we’re talking about, man,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “It’s unbelievable.”

Pujols could have had five hits, but Marmol elected to pinch hit rookie Nolan Gorman in the ninth. Nobody was cheering louder than Pujols when Gorman singled.

“That’s what you’re supposed to do in baseball, have fun,” Pujols said. “When you don’t have fun, you put too much stress on yourself. It’s a great group of guys here, so it’s pretty awesome.”

With his first homer of the game, Pujols passed Musial. The future MLB Hall of Famer now sits at 6,143 career total bases; Hank Aaron holds the record with 6,856.

Pujols has been on a roll over the past month, batting .386 with five homers over his past 16 games coming into Saturday.

The 11-time MLB All-Star drew a standing ovation before his first at-bat, and the cheers grew even louder from both Cardinals and Diamondbacks fans as the three-time MVP rounded the bases.

The slugger says this is his last season. Just a few weeks ago, 700 career homers looked out of reach, but the way he’s swinging the bat, it appears very much in play.

“That’s the hard work I put in day in and day out,” Pujols said. “Nothing surprises me.”

Jhoulys Chacín Agrees to One-Year, Guaranteed $1.25 Million Contract with Colorado Rockies

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The Rockies times will continue for Jhoulys Chacín…

The 33-year-old Venezuelan professional baseball right-handed pitcher has agreed to a guaranteed $1.25 million, one-year contract with the Colorado Rockies that allows him to earn an additional $500,000 in performance bonuses.

Chacin was 3-2 with a 4.34 ERA in a career-high 45 relief appearances and one start for Colorado, which signed him on April 1 after he was released from a minor league contract by the New York Yankees near the end of spring training.

He became a free agent after the World Series.

Chacín is 81-89 with a 4.06 ERA in 227 starts and 76 relief appearances in 13 seasons with Colorado (2009-14, 2021), the Arizona Diamondbacks (2015), Atlanta Braves (2016), the Los Angeles Angels (2016), San Diego Padres (2017), Milwaukee Brewers (2018-19), Boston Red Sox (2019) and Atlanta (2020).

Chacín would earn $125,000 for making five starts and for each additional five through 20 and $125,000 for 30 pitching appearances and each additional 10 through 60. His total bonuses are capped at $500,000.

San Diego Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. Hits Two Homers in Return from Injured List

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Fernando Tatis Jr. is back in the game with a bang…

The 22-year-old Dominican professional baseball player, known as “El Niño“, wasted no time making his mark in his return from the San Diego Padres’ injured list on Sunday, hitting his 32nd and 33rd homers in an 8-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks while playing right field for the first time as a professional.

Fernando Tatis Jr.

Tatis had one thought running through his mind as he returned to San Diego’s lineup.

“Make them remember why they missed you,” he said grinning.

The MLB All-Star — batting leadoff — ripped a double down the left-field line in his first at-bat but was stranded at third in the first inning. He added a solo homer in the third on a towering fly ball that landed in the left-field stands and another solo shot in the fifth that easily cleared the wall in approximately the same spot.

“Fernando being Fernando,” Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer said. “It never ceases to amaze any of us.”

It was Tatis’ fifth multi-homer game this season and No. 8 for his career. He added a bases-loaded single in the eighth that brought home Victor Caratini and Trent Grisham.

Tatis also caught David Peralta‘s fly to right for the final out of the bottom of the first.

Tatis had been on the injured list since July 31 after partially dislocating his left shoulder for the third time this season.

The electrifying star usually plays shortstop, but the Padres decided to move him to the outfield for the time being. The hope is there’s less chance he’ll get hurt, allowing him to stay in the lineup for the rest of the season.

He wasn’t challenged much in the outfield on Sunday, but he made a few routine catches.

“It was pretty chill,” Tatis said.

Tatis suffered a partially dislocated left shoulder on a violent swing April 5 against the San Francisco Giants and went on the 10-day injured list. He reinjured the shoulder diving for a ball and left a game against the Cincinnati Reds on June 19 but missed only one game.

He left a spring training game after hurting the shoulder while making a throw but was back two days later. He revealed then that he had been dealing with shoulder discomfort since his minor league days. Tatis also missed eight games in mid-May after testing positive for COVID-19.

He became the first Padres player voted to start an All-Star Game since Tony Gwynn in 1999.

The return of Tatis is a huge boost for the Padres, who have 15 players on the injured list and have taken a nosedive in the National League West standings. They still occupy the second NL wild-card spot in the playoff race but are feeling pressure from the charging Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves.

Fernando Tatis Jr. to Make First Career Start in Outfield During Sunday’s San Diego Padres Game

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Fernando Tatis Jr. is in… but he’s out(field)…

The San Diego Padres are welcoming back the 22-year-old Dominican professional baseball player, a familiar face in an unusual place.

Fernando Tatis Jr.

Tatis Jr. is back in the lineup, but instead of playing his customary shortstop position, he’ll make his first career start in right field for Sunday’s series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Tatis has been on the injured list since July 30 with left shoulder inflammation after partially dislocating his shoulder while sliding into third base. He has left three games this season because he partially dislocated his shoulder, with offseason surgery a possibility.

While recovering from this latest injury, Tatis started shagging fly balls in center field, leading to questions about where on the field he might play upon his return. Instead he’ll play in right field, with Gold Glove winner Trent Grisham staying in center and Tommy Pham in left field as the Padres look to bounce back a day after being no-hit by Arizona’s Tyler Gilbert in his first major league start. Jake Cronenworth will continue to play at shortstop.

San Diego will gladly welcome Tatis back at any position as, despite his injury absence, he still leads the National League in home runs (31) and stolen bases (23).