Freddy Guzmán

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Freddy Guzmán
Outfielder
Born: (1981-01-20) January 20, 1981 (age 43)
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Batted: Switch
Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 17, 2004, for the San Diego Padres
Last MLB appearance
September 18, 2013, for the Tampa Bay Rays
MLB statistics
Batting average.211
Home runs1
Runs batted in7
Teams

Freddy Antonio Guzmán (born January 20, 1981) is a Dominican former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, and Tampa Bay Rays in five seasons between 2004 and 2013.

Career

San Diego Padres

Guzmán was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the San Diego Padres on April 17, 2000. In 2004, he led all minor leaguers in stolen bases, with 90.[1]

Guzmán made his major league debut on August 17, 2004, going 1–for-5 with a walk. He got a hit in his first six games in the majors. He missed all of the 2005 season following Tommy John surgery.

Texas Rangers

On May 11, 2006, the Padres traded Guzmán and César Rojas to the Texas Rangers for Vince Sinisi and John Hudgins.[2]

In 2007, Guzmán came to spring training to compete with Kenny Lofton, Marlon Byrd, and Jerry Hairston Jr. for playing time in center field, but Guzmán did not make the Opening Day roster and played the entire season with the Triple-A Oklahoma Redhawks. Guzmán hit his first MLB home run on September 11, 2007, at Comerica Park (Detroit Tigers) off left-handed pitcher Clay Rapada.

Detroit Tigers

On December 5, 2007, Guzmán was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Chris Shelton.[3] Just before the end of spring training, he was sent outright to the minor leagues.

Seattle, Boston, and Baltimore

Guzmán became a free agent at the end of the season, and signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners. On May 11, 2009, Guzmán was released by the Mariners.

On May 16, 2009, Guzmán was signed by the Boston Red Sox and assigned to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox. On July 29, 2009, he was released by the Red Sox. On August 7, Guzmán signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles.[4]

New York Yankees

On August 31, 2009, the deadline for him to be eligible to appear in the postseason, the Orioles traded Guzmán to the New York Yankees for cash considerations.[5] The Yankees assigned him to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees and he stole seven bases in seven attempts in six games. On September 14, the Yankees promoted Guzmán to the major leagues.[6] The Yankees considered adding him to their roster for the 2009 American League Division Series, but opted to add another pitcher instead.[7] The Yankees included Guzmán on their roster for the 2009 American League Championship Series.[8] He was removed from the roster for the 2009 World Series

Philadelphia Phillies

In February 2010, Guzmán signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.[9]

Tampa Bay Rays

Guzmán played in the Mexican League during the 2011, 2012, and 2013 seasons. The Tampa Bay Rays signed Guzmán to a minor league contract on August 30, 2013. His contract was purchased by the Rays on September 17.[10] He appeared in one game for Tampa Bay, pinch-running for Matt Joyce in the bottom of the 11th down 3-2. Guzmán stole second, then scored the tying run on David DeJesus's RBI single to tie the game, which they won the next inning 4-3. He was outrighted off the roster on October 30, 2013.

Mexican League

On April 15, 2016, Guzman was released by the Vaqueros Laguna of the Mexican League. On April 23, 2016, Guzmán signed with the Toros de Tijuana, and was released on May 2. On April 21, 2017, Guzmán signed with the Tigres de Quintana Roo. He was released on June 16, 2017.

Coaching career

After retiring, Guzmán became the hitting coach for the Dominican Summer League Nationals.[11]

References

  1. ^ http://minors.baseball-reference.com/bat_leaders.cgi?yid=2003&lvl=&lid=&sort=SB[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ "Rangers, Padres swap minor leaguers - MLB". ESPN. May 11, 2006. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  3. ^ "Rangers trade Guzman to Tigers for Shelton". Mrt.com. December 4, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  4. ^ "International League News & Notes". July 30, 2009.
  5. ^ "Yankees View Speedsters on Bench as Valuable Assets for Postseason - The New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  6. ^ Curry, Jack (September 14, 2009). "New Yankee Could Be October Weapon - The New York Times". Bats.blogs.nytimes.com. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  7. ^ "NY Yankees notes: In final roster decisions, NY Yankees manager Joe Girardi opted for pitching first". nj.com. October 7, 2009. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  8. ^ "Yankees Subtract Hinske and Add Speed - The New York Times". Nytimes.com. October 16, 2009. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  9. ^ "Phillies add veteran outfielder Guzman | phillies.com: News". Archived from the original on February 7, 2010.
  10. ^ Mooney, Roger (September 17, 2013). "Rays notes: Guzman adds speed off the bench". The Tampa Tribune. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
  11. ^ "Nationals announce minor league player development staff - Blog". Masnsports.com. January 18, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.

External links