José G. Constanza (born September 1, 1983) is a Dominican former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

Baseball career

Cleveland Indians

Constanza was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

on June 13, 2003. After two years and one 2004 League MVP in the

Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League (DSL) is a branch of affiliated Minor League Baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. After the demise of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2015 season, it is the only ...

, he came to America in 2005 with the Single-A

Lake County Captains The Lake County Captains are a Minor League Baseball team in Eastlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, that plays in the Midwest League as the High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. The Captains joined the Class A Midwest League following ...

. After batting only .236 in 26 games, he was demoted to Short-Season

Mahoning Valley The Youngstown–Warren, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area, typically known as the Mahoning Valley, is a metropolitan area in Northeast Ohio with Youngstown, Ohio, at its center. According to the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau, ...

. He started the 2006 season with Lake County and with a .395

On-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...

, earned a promotion to A-Advanced Kinston. He spent 2007 with Kinston, and 2008, as well as 2009, with the Double-A

Akron Aeros The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,63 ...

. In what proved to be his last season in the Indians organization, he reached the highest level, Triple-A, with the

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

Atlanta Braves

On November 29, 2010, Constanza signed a minor league deal with the

. He made spring training with the club, batting .222 before being assigned to Triple-A Gwinnett. He was batting .312 and was an All-Star before his first call-up. On July 29, 2011, Constanza was called up to the majors when

Nate McLouth Nathan Richard McLouth (born October 28, 1981) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals. He was pri ...

was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a lower abdominal strain. Placed in the leadoff spot in the Braves' lineup in his debut game, he got his first career hit in the bottom of the eighth inning off

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

pitcher (and former Braves pitcher) Mike Dunn, an RBI single that extended the Braves' lead to 4–0. Two batters later, Braves first-baseman

Freddie Freeman Frederick Charles Freeman (born September 12, 1989) is a Canadian and American professional baseball first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Freeman made his MLB debut with the Atlanta Braves in 2010 and played ...

hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Constanza, netting him his first career run scored. On Sunday, August 7, 2011, Constanza hit his first home run in the top of the 5th inning against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

. He was subsequently recognized for his odd habit of licking the hot spot of the bat after foul-tipping the ball. Constanza was called up once again on July 13, 2013, due to many injuries to the Braves' regular outfielders. Constanza was designated for assignment on January 28, 2015.

Cincinnati Reds

He was signed by Cincinnati to a minor league contract on May 10, 2015, and was released on July 16, 2015.

York Revolution

On July 26, 2015, Constanza signed with the

York Revolution The York Revolution is an American professional minor-league baseball team based in York, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent "partner league" of Major League Basebal ...

of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

. In 31 games he hit .324/.379/.374 with 0 home runs, 13 RBIs and 21 stolen bases.

Tampa Bay Rays

On August 31, 2015, Constanza signed a minor league contract with the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

Leones de Yucatán

On March 29, 2016, Constanza signed with the Leones de Yucatán of the

Mexican Baseball League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. He was released on April 30. In 9 games he went 15-37 (.405) with 0 home runs, 3 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

Broncos de Reynosa

On May 24, 2016, Constanza signed with the

Broncos de Reynosa Los Broncos de Reynosa (English: Reynosa Broncos) were a Mexican team that played in the Adolfo Lopez Mateos stadium in the city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas. The Broncos de Reynosa played in the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol and it was part of the Zona ...

of the

. He was released on June 28. In 27 games he struggled hitting .228/.278/.257 with 0 home runs, 6 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

York Revolution (second stint)

On March 8, 2017, Constanza signed with the

of the

. This marks his second stint with the team as he played with them in 2015. He was released on May 27, 2017. In 25 games he slashed .235/.284/.255 with 0 home runs and 6 RBIs.

Minor League awards

* 2×

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

All-Star (2010, 2011) *

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

All-Star (2005) *

DSL Digital subscriber line (DSL; originally digital subscriber loop) is a family of technologies that are used to transmit digital data over telephone lines. In telecommunications marketing, the term DSL is widely understood to mean asymmetric di ...

MVP (2004)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Constanza, Jose 1983 births Living people Águilas Cibaeñas players Akron Aeros players Atlanta Braves players Azucareros del Este players Broncos de Reynosa players Columbus Clippers players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Durham Bulls players Gwinnett Braves players Kinston Indians players Lake County Captains players Leones de Yucatán players Louisville Bats players Mahoning Valley Scrappers players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Mexican League baseball center fielders Mexican League baseball left fielders Baseball players from Santo Domingo Toros del Este players York Revolution players