Alcides Escobar () (born December 16, 1986) is a

Venezuelan Venezuelans (Spanish language, Spanish: ''venezolanos'') are the Citizenship, citizens identified with the country of Venezuela. This connection may be through citizenship, descent or cultural. For most Venezuelans, many or all of these connect ...

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 ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

who is a free agent. He has previously 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) with the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

and

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

, and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the

Tokyo Yakult Swallows The Tokyo Yakult Swallows () are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams in Tokyo, the other being the Yomiuri G ...

Early and personal life

Escobar was born in La Sabana, Venezuela. Escobar is cousin to pitchers Edwin Escobar and Kelvim Escobar, infielders Maikel García and Luisangel Acuña and outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. He is also the nephew of shortstop José Escobar. Escobar began playing baseball when he was four years old, stating how he idolized fellow Venezuelan shortstop

Omar Vizquel Omar Enrique Vizquel González (; born April 24, 1967), nicknamed "Little O", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball shortstop. During his 24-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Vizquel played for the Seattle Mariners, Cleveland Indi ...

Baseball career

Milwaukee Brewers

On July 9, 2003 (at age 16), Escobar signed with the

as an international free agent for $35,000. Escobar made his professional debut in 2004 with the rookie-level

Helena Brewers The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwaukee ...

. In 2005, he played for the Single-A

West Virginia Power The Charleston Dirty Birds are an United States, American professional baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a MLB Partner League, partner league ...

, batting .271/.305/.362 with 2 home runs and 36 RBI. The following season, Escobar slashed .257/.296/.306 in 87 games for the High-A

Brevard County Manatees The Brevard County Manatees were a minor league baseball team of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League from 1994 to 2016. They were based in Viera, Florida, Viera, Florida, and played their home games at Space Coast Stadium. The team left Brev ...

. In 2007, he split time between Single-A and Double-A, playing 63 games for Brevard County in the

Class A-Advanced High-A, officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing, is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A and D ...

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

and 62 games for the Double-A Huntsville Stars of the Southern League. He batted a combined .306 with one

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

and 53

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

. In 2008, Escobar played mostly for Huntsville. On September 1, 2008 (when rosters expanded), Escobar was called up to the Majors for the first time, and made his debut two days later as a defensive replacement at

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

. He picked up his first career hit in his first

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

in the same game, a single against pitcher Scott Schoeneweis of 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 ...

. Before the 2009 season, ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...

'' rated Escobar the 19th best prospect in baseball. In 2009, Escobar appeared in the

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League- ...

as the starting shortstop for the World team. During the game, he went 2-for-4 and scored the go-ahead run. On August 12, Escobar was called up to the Brewers from the Triple-A

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

to replace J. J. Hardy, who had been optioned down. He made his first major league appearance of the season that night, pinch running for

Prince Fielder Prince Semien Fielder (born May 9, 1984) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers, and Texas Rangers. He was selected in ...

in the bottom of the 9th inning against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

. Escobar stole second base, his first stolen base of his career. After the end of the 2009 season, the Brewers traded Hardy to the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

, making Escobar the starting

for the Brewers in 2010. Prior to the 2010 season, ''

'' rated Escobar as the best prospect in baseball.

Kansas City Royals

On December 18, 2010, the Brewers traded Escobar, Lorenzo Cain, Jeremy Jeffress and Jake Odorizzi to the

for

Zack Greinke Donald Zackary Greinke ( ; born October 21, 1983) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. Greinke last played for the Kansas City Royals, with whom he played across two stints, from his 2004 debut to 2010, and from 202 ...

and Yuniesky Betancourt. In 2011 he batted .254/.290/.343 with 4 home runs and 46 RBI in 158 games. On March 15, 2012, Escobar signed a four-year, $10 million extension through 2015 with club options for 2016 and 2017 with the Royals. If both options were exercised, Escobar could earn $21.75 million. Escobar, who was slated to earn $519,500 in 2012, would instead earn $1 million in 2012 and $3 million a year from 2013 to 2015. His 2016 option was worth $5.25 million and had a $500,000

buyout In finance, a buyout is an investment transaction by which the ownership equity, or a controlling interest of a company, or a majority share of the capital stock of the company is acquired. The acquirer thereby "buys out" the present equity holde ...

. His 2017 option was worth $6.5 million and had a $500,000 buyout. The extension covered his final pre-arbitration season and his three arbitration-eligible seasons. The club options covered his first year of free agency. In 2013, Escobar batted .234/.259/.300, and his .259 on base percentage was the lowest of all qualified MLB batters. His .300 slugging percentage was also the lowest among all qualified batters in MLB. In 2014, Escobar (along with

Evan Longoria Evan Michael Longoria (born October 7, 1985), nicknamed "Longo", is an American former professional baseball third baseman who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, San Francisco Giants, and Arizona Diamondbac ...

, Hunter Pence and

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 ...

) was one of the only players in the MLB to start in all 162 regular season games for their respective teams. He finished the season hitting .285, with 74 runs scored, 50 RBIs, and 31 stolen bases. In 2015, Escobar batted .257/.293/.320. He led the majors in with 11

sacrifice hit In baseball, a sacrifice bunt (also called a sacrifice hit) is a batter's act of deliberately bunting the ball, before there are two outs, in a manner that allows a baserunner to advance to another base. The batter is almost always put out, a ...

s. His .320

slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, an ...

was the lowest of all qualified major league batters. He also had the lowest

ISO The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ; ; ) is an independent, non-governmental, international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Me ...

(isolated power) of all MLB players in 2015, at .064. During the 2015 ALCS, Escobar set a postseason record by getting a lead-off hit in four consecutive games. He was selected as the 2015 ALCS MVP as he batted .478 in the series. In Game 1 of the 2015 World Series, Escobar hit an

inside-the-park home run In baseball, an inside-the-park home run is a rare play in which a Batter (baseball), batter rounds all four bases for a home run without the baseball leaving the baseball field, field of play. It is also known as an "inside-the-parker", "in-the-p ...

on the first pitch thrown by

pitcher Matt Harvey. It was the first time a player had hit an inside-the-park home run in a World Series game since 1929. Escobar followed that with driving in two runs, and scoring once on two hits in Game 2. In Game 5, Escobar hit a double in the 12th inning, allowing Christian Colon to score and help the Royals defeat the Mets 7–2 in 12 innings, making the 2015 Kansas City Royals World Series Champions. In the 2015 postseason, Escobar hit .329 in 70 at bats. He had 23 hits including four doubles and three triples, 13 runs scored and 9 RBI. He received the 2015 AL Rawlings

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

for shortstops. In 2016, he batted .261/.292/.350. He again led the majors in sacrifice hits, with 10. On June 3, Escobar got his 1000th career Major League hit against

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 ...

pitcher Danny Salazar. On October 10, 2016, the Royals exercised Escobar's 2017 option. The Royals paid him $6.5 million in 2017. He batted .250/.272/.357 in 599 at bats, and shared the major league lead with 7 sacrifice hits. His .272 on base percentage was the lowest, and his .357 slugging percentage was the third-lowest, among all qualified batters in MLB. He stole four bases, but was caught seven times. On January 29, 2018, Escobar re-signed with the Royals with a one-year, $2.5 million deal. In 2018, he batted .231 (a career low)/.279/.313. His .313 slugging percentage was the second-lowest among all qualified batters in MLB. On February 16, 2019, Escobar signed a minor-league contract with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

which included an invitation to

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

. On March 20, 2019, Escobar was granted his outright release from the Orioles.

Chicago White Sox

On March 22, 2019, Escobar signed a minor league deal with the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field ...

to begin the year. After hitting .286/.343/.444 with 10 home runs and 70 RBI, Escobar was released by the organization on August 2.

Tokyo Yakult Swallows

On October 30, 2019, Escobar signed with the

(NPB). On January 31, 2020, he held a press conference with Gabriel Ynoa and Matt Koch. On June 19, he made his NPB debut. On July 15, Escobar hit his first career NPB home run off

Hanshin Tigers The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, next to their main stadium, Hanshin Koshien Stadium. The Tigers are owned by Hanshin Electric Railway Co., ...

pitcher Onelki García. In 104 games with Yakult, Escobar slashed .273/.312/.329 with 1 home run and 30 RBI. On November 23, 2020, he became a free agent.

Kansas City Royals (second stint)

On May 4, 2021, Escobar signed a minor league contract with the

organization and was assigned to the Triple-A

Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, Nebraska, Omah ...

. In 35 games with Omaha, Escobar posted a .274/.311/.452 slash with 5 home runs and 16 RBI.

Washington Nationals

On July 2, 2021, Escobar was traded to the

in exchange for cash considerations. He was selected to the active roster on July 3. On July 18, Escobar hit his first major-league home run since the 2018 season against the

to pull the Nationals within one run in the eighth inning, and hit a walk-off single in the ninth to lead them to an 8–7 victory. Escobar finished out the

2021 season 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

with the Nationals batting .288/.340/.404, his best totals since 2012. He then signed a one-year contract extension through the 2022 season on October 5, 2021. In 2021, he had the lowest average exit velocity of all major league batters, at 81.7 mph. Escobar made his pitching debut against the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

, tossing a scoreless inning in the bottom of the 8th on July 5, 2022. On August 3, 2022, Escobar was placed on unconditional release waivers. He had appeared in 40 games for Washington, slashing .218/.260/.282 with no home runs and 8 RBI.

Leones de Yucatán

On March 1, 2023, Escobar signed with the

Leones de Yucatán The Leones de Yucatán (English: Yucatán Lions) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League. The team plays its home games at Parque Kukulcán Alamo in Mérida, Yucatán. The Leones have won the Mexican League title five times in 1957 ...

of the

Mexican 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 ...

. In 55 games, he batted .240/.296/.299 with 1 home run and 17 RBIs. Escobar was waived on July 3.

Acereros de Monclova

On July 9, 2023, Escobar signed with the

Acereros de Monclova The Acereros de Monclova (English: Monclova Steelers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports l ...

of the

. In 26 games for Monclova, he batted .330/.368/.523 with 5 home runs and 17 RBI.

Tigres de Quintana Roo

On February 15, 2024, Escobar signed with the

Tigres de Quintana Roo The Tigres de Quintana Roo (English: Quintana Roo Tigers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico. The team is part of the Southern Division (). The team has won twelve championships to date: ...

of the

. In 77 games for the Tigres, he batted .271/.320/.387 with five home runs, 32 RBI, and four stolen bases. Escobar was released by Quintana Roo on December 9.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Escobar, Alcides 1986 births Living people American League All-Stars American League Championship Series MVPs Brevard County Manatees players Cardenales de Lara players Charlotte Knights players Alcides Helena Brewers players Huntsville Stars players Kansas City Royals players Leones de Yucatán players Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Major League Baseball shortstops Milwaukee Brewers players Nashville Sounds players Nippon Professional Baseball shortstops Peoria Javelinas players Rochester Red Wings players Baseball players from Vargas (state) Tigres de Quintana Roo players Tokyo Yakult Swallows players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Japan Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Mexico Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Washington Nationals players West Virginia Power players World Baseball Classic players of Venezuela 2017 World Baseball Classic players

Early and personal life

Baseball career

Milwaukee Brewers

Kansas City Royals

Chicago White Sox

Tokyo Yakult Swallows

Kansas City Royals (second stint)

Washington Nationals

Leones de Yucatán

Acereros de Monclova

Tigres de Quintana Roo

See also

References

External links