Antonio Enrique Álvarez Cisneros (; born 9 May 1979) is a Dominican political operative of the government of Luis Abinader and a former professional baseball player. Born in

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

, he played professionally under the name Tony Álvarez. Furthermore, he is commonly known as El Potro Álvarez, a moniker that he has been using since starting his baseball career at a young age.

Baseball career

Álvarez batted and threw right-handed. He was signed by Pittsburgh at the age of 16 while attending high school in Venezuela. After graduating, he joined the

Gulf Coast League Pirates The Florida Complex League Pirates are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Pirates. The team plays its hom ...

rookie level in 1998 and gained five promotions in the next three years.Minor League Baseball statistics
''Baseball Reference''. Álvarez was a highly touted as a five-tool

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 ...

prospect. In addition to his playing in the 2002 All-Star Futures Game and the

2006 World Baseball Classic The 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was the inaugural tournament between national baseball teams that included players from Major League Baseball. It was held from March 3 to 20 in stadiums in or around Tokyo, Japan, and the American cities o ...

, he usually hit

line drive In the sports of baseball and softball, a batted ball is a pitch that has been contacted by the batter's bat. Batted balls are either fair or foul, and can be characterized as a fly ball, pop-up, line drive, or ground ball. In baseball, a fou ...

s into the

infield Infield is a sports term whose definition depends on the sport in whose context it is used. Baseball In baseball, the baseball field, diamond, as well as the area immediately beyond it, has both grass and dirt, in contrast to the more distant, ...

or deep into the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In bat and ball games ...

, ran the bases aggressively, and crashed into walls in pursuit of fly balls. "People come out to the ballpark and pay money to watch the game", Álvarez explained in an interview. "I'm an aggressive player and it's hard for me to change. If I lose my aggressiveness, I won't be the same player", he added. Additionally, during the same period, Álvarez found time to develop a successful but not remarkable musical career, ventured into politics and even married three times, each one of his wives being former beauty queens, which led him to achieve celebrity status in his country. (Spanish) At age 25, Álvarez was ranked by ''

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 ...

'' as one of the top ten prospects in the

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

organization, but was never able to fulfill the potential that he showed in the

Minor Leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

. Álvarez collected a .474

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

in the 2002 spring training and impressed the Pittsburgh organization as much with his enthusiasm and magnetic personality. "He's a high-energy guy", Pirates farm director Brian Graham said. "He plays the game hard and has the kind of attitude you want to see in a young player." His breakout season came this year, when he slashed a line of .318/.361/.483 with 15

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, 59 RBI and 29

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...

s in 125 games for Double-A

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of ...

, emerging as a

leadoff hitter In baseball, a leadoff hitter is a batter who bats first in the batting order (baseball), lineup. It can also refer to any batter who bats first in any inning. Strategy Traditionally, the leadoff hitter has been utilized as a contact-oriented ...

and playing for the World team in the Futures Game. Álvarez succeeded despite suffering personal adversity, missing the last month of the 2002 season at Altoona to return home to Venezuela to be with his father, who was battling leukemia. Once his father showed signs of recovery, Álvarez got the call to join the big club in late October. He played at the three outfield positions in eight games with the Pirates, including seven starts, and was used in pinch-hit roles seven times. He hit an average of .308 (8-for-26) with one home run and a .500

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 ...

, driving in two runs and scoring six times, while stealing one base. In 2003, Álvarez batted .298/.361/.470 with nine homers and 53 RBI, while stealing 22 bases in 106 games for 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 ...

, significant numbers as he spent two stints on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...

. He opened 2004 at Nashville, batting .290/.365/.457 with 14 homers, 59 runs, 48 RBI, 19 steals in 99 games. Álvarez was recalled by Pittsburgh during the 2004 midseason, but was used sparingly in 24 games. He hit a paltry .211 average with one homer and eight RBI but did not steal one base. He was released at the end of the season. Overall, he hit .250 and slugged 406 in 38 games for the Pirates, including 11 runs, 10 RBI and one stolen base. He then was signed by 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 ...

as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

before the 2005 season, but failed to make the big club. After that, he played in 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 ...

minor league system in 2006, as well as for the

Brother Elephants A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly ...

of the

Chinese Professional Baseball League The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 20 ...

in 2007. Over his nine-season Minor League career, Álvarez posted a .295 average and slugged .452 in 746 games appearances, batting 13 home runs with 387 RBI, while scoring 420 runs and stealing 217 stolen bases. In between, Álvarez played winter ball with the

Leones del Caracas The Caracas Base Ball Club C.A., better known by its commercial name as the Leones del Caracas, is a professional baseball team of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVPB). The owner and sole shareholder of the sports club is Ricardo C ...

Navegantes del Magallanes Navegantes del Magallanes B.B.C., commonly known as Navegantes del Magallanes (; ''Strait of Magellan, Magellan Navigators''), or simply Magallanes, are a professional baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP), based in ...

Tiburones de La Guaira The Tiburones de La Guaira () are a baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP). Though they nominally represent La Guaira (playing at the Estadio Jorge Luis García Carneiro), they also play home games at the Estadio Un ...

Caribes de Anzoátegui The Caribes de Anzoátegui (; ''Anzoátegui Caribs'') is a baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League based in Puerto la Cruz, in the eastern state of Anzoátegui. Franchise history In January 1987, a local businessmen group ba ...

Águilas del Zulia The Águilas del Zulia () is a Venezuelan professional baseball team based in Maracaibo which plays in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. History The team was founded in 1969 and debuted in the 1969–70 season. The franchise began in 19 ...

and

Tigres de Aragua The Tigres de Aragua () is a baseball team that plays in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League and represents the state of Aragua. Founded in 1965, the Tigres plays its home games at the Estadio José Pérez Colmenares in Maracay. The team ...

clubs of the

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (, or LVBP) is the top-level professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Background and predecessors Baseball had been play ...

in a 15-season career spanning 1996–2014. He compiled a slash line of .282/.318/.463 with 46 home runs and 192 RBI in 466 games, scoring 228 runs scored and 46 stolen bases. Additionally, he served as a playoff reinforcement for the Pastora de Los Llanos and

Cardenales de Lara The Cardenales de Lara () is a baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP). Founded in 1942 and based in Barquisimeto, the Cardenales have won seven domestic titles, including back-to-back in 1998 and 1999, 2019, 2020 and ...

, making him one of few players to wear all uniforms in the eight-team league.

Musical career

Starting 2009, Álvarez engaged on a musical career as a

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...

artist. Usually using the stage name ''El Potro Alvarez'', he collaborated with various artists in a bunch of

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

s taking elements from their styles in order to develop an original style. These music videos were usually directed by Venezuelan Daniel Durán and Dominican Marlon Peña (aka Marlon P).

List of music videos (Credited as El Potro Álvarez)

Political career

Starting his political career in 2013, Álvarez ran as a

United Socialist Party of Venezuela The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (, PSUV, ) is a Socialism, socialist political party which has been the ruling party of Venezuela since 2007. It was formed from a merger of some of the political and social forces that support the Bolivar ...

(PSUV in Spanish) candidate for

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of the Sucre Municipality, but was defeated by Carlos Ocariz. Then, in September 2014 Venezuelan President

Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...

announced a reshuffle of his Cabinet and appointed Álvarez as the new Minister of Youth and Sports. The minister, during his statements, explained that sport in Venezuela had been deepened as a state policy during the last 15 years of revolution. In April 2015, President Maduro announced that Álvarez had been relieved of his ministerial duties. Álvarez was released from office due to his bid for the PSUV primary elections ahead of parliamentary elections.

Personal life

From 2002 to May 2005, Álvarez was married to Miss World Venezuela 1984 and Miss World 1984 Astrid Carolina Herrera. After they divorced, he married in December 2005 to Miss Venezuela 2002 winner and actress

Mariángel Ruiz Mariángel Ruiz Torrealba (born 7 January 1980) is a Venezuelan actress, tv host, singer, fashion model and beauty pageant titleholder. Winning Miss Venezuela 2002 as Miss Aragua, she then placed 1st runner-up at Miss Universe 2003. Pageant ...

, with whom he had a daughter named Mariángel Victoria. Álvarez and Ruiz divorced in 2008. Then in 2013 he married

Dayana Colmenares Dayana Carolina Colmenares Bocchieri (born December 28, 1984) is a Venezuelan tv host and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss Venezuela International 2007, and television personality. She competed in Miss International 2008 on November 8 in ...

, a model and winner of Miss Venezuela International 2007,La boda del "Potro" Álvarez con Dayana Colmenares
(Spanish) and this couple have a daughter, Mia Dayana, who was born in 2014.Segunda hija de "El Potro" Álvarez nació este lunes en Caracas
. (Spanish)

Sources

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvarez, El Potro 1979 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players Altoona Curve players Bowie Baysox players Brother Elephants players Caribes de Anzoátegui players Charlotte Knights players Government ministers of Venezuela Gulf Coast Pirates players Hickory Crawdads players Leones del Caracas players Lynchburg Hillcats players Major League Baseball players from Venezuela Nashville Sounds players Navegantes del Magallanes players Ottawa Lynx players Pittsburgh Pirates players Reggaeton musicians Baseball players from Caracas Tiburones de La Guaira players Tigres de Aragua players United Socialist Party of Venezuela politicians Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Canada Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Taiwan Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Williamsport Crosscutters players World Baseball Classic players of Venezuela 2006 World Baseball Classic players