David Alexander Villar (born January 27, 1997) is an American 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 ...

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

in 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 ...

organization. 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) for the

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

. He played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

at the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States, and other campuses in St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg and Sarasota, ...

. Villar was drafted by the Giants in the 11th round of the

2018 MLB draft The 2018 Major League Baseball draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In addition, compensation pi ...

, and made his MLB debut with them in 2022. He was awarded the 2022

Pacific Coast League Most Valuable Player Award The Pacific Coast League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual award given to the best player in Minor League Baseball's Pacific Coast League based on their regular-season performance as voted on by league managers. From 1932 to 1947, the ...

Early life

Villar was born in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

and grew up in

Pembroke Pines, Florida Pembroke Pines is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located 22 miles (35 km) north of Miami. It is a suburb of and the fourth-most populous city in the Miami metropolitan area. The population of Pembroke ...

. His parents are Lazaro and Mirta, and he has a sister, Natalie.

High school

Villar attended American Heritage High School in

Plantation, Florida Plantation is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a part of the South Florida metropolitan area. The city's name comes from the previous part-owner of the land, the Everglades Plantation Company, and their unsuccessful attem ...

. He played for the high school baseball team, starting in eighth grade. As a sophomore, he batted .346. As a junior, he batted .444 and was named First Team All-County by the ''

Sun Sentinel The ''Sun Sentinel'' (also known as the ''South Florida Sun Sentinel'', known until 2008 as the ''Sun-Sentinel'', and stylized on its Nameplate (publishing), masthead as ''SunSentinel'') is the main daily newspaper of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ...

'' and ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...

''. As a senior and team captain, he was a Preseason

Under Armour Under Armour, Inc. is an American sportswear company that manufactures footwear and clothing, apparel headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. History 20th century Under Armour was founded on September 25, 1996, by Kevin Plank, a ...

All-American, batted .324, and was again named First Team All-County by the ''Sun Sentinel'' and ''Miami Herald''.

College

Villar played

at the

. In his sophomore year in 2017, he batted .290/.417(10th in the

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (AAC), also known as The American, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States, featuring 13 full member universities and 6 affiliate member universities that compete in t ...

)/.449 with 7

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 ( ...

s, 45 RBIs (9th), 41 walks (2nd), and 62

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

(6th) in 214

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, ...

s, playing

third base A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

. In the summer of 2017, he played for the

La Crosse Loggers The La Crosse Loggers are a La Crosse, Wisconsin based baseball team playing in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. Since the team's inaugural season in 2003, they have played at Copeland Park. The ballpark is nicknamed ...

in the collegiate summer wood bat

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not ...

, batting .312/.399/.546(10th in the league) with 13 home runs (2nd), 49 RBIs (9th), 14

hit by pitch In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provide ...

(3rd), 5

sacrifice flies In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d): "Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...

, and three intentional walks (leading the league), and 56 strikeouts (5th) in 231 at bats. He played 51 games at third base and five games at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

. Playing in 2018 as a junior for South Florida, Villar led the league with 24

double Double, The Double or Dubble may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Multiplication by 2 * Double precision, a floating-point representation of numbers that is typically 64 bits in length * A double number of the form x+yj, where j^2=+1 * A ...

s (9th-most in the country, and a Conference record) and 8 sacrifice flies. He also batted .374(2nd in the Conference)/.463(2nd)/.648(2nd) with 53 runs (4th), 12 home runs (7th), 58 RBIs (2nd), and 15 hit by pitch (2nd) in 219 at bats, playing third base. He was named an All-American by ''

Collegiate Baseball Newspaper ''Collegiate Baseball Newspaper'' (also known as ''Collegiate Baseball Magazine'' and ''Collegiate Baseball'') was an American publication based in Arizona that considered itself the "voice of amateur baseball" and was published for over 40 yea ...

'' and College Sports Madness, and 2018 All-American Athletic Conference First Team.

Professional career

San Francisco Giants

2018-21: Minor leagues

Villar was drafted by the

in the 11th round, with the 316th overall selection, of the

2018 Major League Baseball draft The 2018 Major League Baseball draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In addition, compensation pi ...

. He signed for a

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

of $125,000. Villar spent that summer with the rookie-level

Arizona League Giants The Arizona Complex League Giants are a professional baseball team competing as a Rookie-level affiliate of the San Francisco Giants in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Scottsdale Stadium in Sc ...

and Low-A

Salem-Keizer Volcanoes The Salem-Keizer Volcanoes are a baseball team located in Keizer, Oregon, who are charter members of the Mavericks Independent Baseball League, a four-team league entirely based in the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area and playing all their ...

, batting a combined .282/.342/.535 in 245 at-bats, playing third base. With Salem-Keizer, he was 3rd in doubles in the

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseba ...

with 22, 3rd in home runs with 13, 3rd in RBI with 42, 6th in

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 ...

at .549, 8th in strikeouts (67), and 9th in runs with 36, in 226 at-bats. He was named a 2018 MiLB Organization All Star. Villar spent the 2019 campaign with the High-A

San Jose Giants The San Jose Giants are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Located in San Jose, California, the Giants play their home games at Excite Ballpark. Games San Jose Giants g ...

, batting .262/.334/.421 with 68 runs (9th in the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leagu ...

), 9 hit by pitch (9th), 144 strikeouts (5th), and 7 sacrifice flies (4th) in 423 at-bats, playing 97 games at third base and 12 games at first base. Villar did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Villar played for the Double-A

Richmond Flying Squirrels The Richmond Flying Squirrels are a Minor League Baseball team based in Richmond, Virginia. The team, which is a part of the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major league club, and plays at The Diamond. Th ...

in 2021. He batted .275/.374/.506 with 70 runs (3rd in the

Northeast League The Northeast League was a professional independent baseball league that operated in the Northeastern United States from 1995 until 1998 and from 2003 until 2004. Between 1999 and 2002, the league was part of the Northern League after the two le ...

), 29 doubles (4th), 20 home runs (7th; a single-season franchise record), 58 RBI, 46 walks (5th), 112 strikeouts (6th), 15 hit by pitch (leading the league) in 385 at-bats, playing 92 games at third base and 13 games at first base. Villar was also named a 2021 MiLB Organization All-Star.

2022: MLB debut

Villar started 2022 with the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...

. At the time of his July 4, 2022, callup, Villar was leading the

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

with 21 home runs and batting .284/.409/.633 (5th) with 53 runs (3rd), 63 RBI (2nd), 44 walks (2nd), 76 strikeouts (2nd), and 6 hit by pitch (7th) in 229 at-bats. On July 4, 2022, the Giants selected Villar's contract and promoted him to the major leagues. His first Major League hit came that day on the first pitch in his first at-bat, a double in the second inning against

Madison Bumgarner Madison Kyle Bumgarner (born August 1, 1989), nicknamed "MadBum", is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. Previously, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants (2009–19) and Arizona Diamon ...

of the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

. On July 8, Villar hit his first career home run, a solo shot off of

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. ...

starter

Blake Snell Blake Ashton Snell (born December 4, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants ...

. On September 7, Villar enjoyed his first career multi-homer game against the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

, with a two-run homer off of starter

Clayton Kershaw Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...

, and a solo shot off of reliever Justin Bruihl. In 2022 with Sacramento, Villar batted .275/.404/.617 in 298 at-bats, with 67 runs, 27 home runs (6th), 82 RBI (tied for 8th), 55 walks, 93 strikeouts, and 11 hit by pitch (8th), while playing 51 games at third base, 16 games at first base, and 15 games at

second base In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the infield, between second and first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must ...

, and five at DH. After the season, he was chosen for the

, and named third baseman on the post-season PCL All Star team. With the Giants in 2022, Villar batted .231/.332/.455 in 156 at-bats, with nine home runs, 24 RBI, and 58 strikeouts, while playing 27 games at third base, 11 at first base, 10 at DH, and 6 at second base.

2023

On April 3, 2023, in a game against 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 ...

, Villar hit two home runs off of Michael Kopech, with the second homer being his first career

grand slam Grand Slam or Grand slam may refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category terminology originating in contract bridge and other whist card games Athletics * Grand Slam Track, professional track and field league Auto racing * ...

. In 46 games for the Giants in 2023, Villar batted .145/.236/.315 with five home runs and 12 RBI.

2024

Villar was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento to begin the 2024 season. He played in 11 games for San Francisco during the season, slashing .257/.270/.457 with one home run and four RBI.

2025

Villar was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

by the Giants on March 25, 2025. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Sacramento on March 29. On April 19, the Giants selected Villar's contract, adding him back to their active roster. In 9 games for San Francisco, he went 4-for-20 (.200) with one RBI and four walks. Villar was designated for assignment by the Giants on May 19. He cleared waivers and elected free agency on May 22.

New York Mets

On May 27, 2025, Villar signed a minor league contract with the

References

External links

USF Bulls bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villar, David 1997 births Living people Baseball players from Atlanta Major League Baseball third basemen San Francisco Giants players South Florida Bulls baseball players Danbury Westerners players Arizona League Giants players Salem-Keizer Volcanoes players San Jose Giants players Richmond Flying Squirrels players Sacramento River Cats players Syracuse Mets players La Crosse Loggers players American Heritage School (Florida) alumni