Miguel Ángel Socolovich (born July 24, 1986) is a Venezuelan 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 ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. 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

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 ...

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

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

, and

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 ...

, 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

Hiroshima Toyo Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Matsuda ...

Career

Boston Red Sox

Socolovich signed with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

as an international

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 ...

in 2004. He appears to have played for the Venezuelan Summer League Red Sox in 2004, although statistics for the season are lacking. Socolovich did not play in 2005, after undergoing

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...

on his right elbow. He played in 2006 for the

Gulf Coast League Red Sox The Florida Complex League Red Sox are a professional baseball team competing in the rookie-level Florida Complex League (FCL) of Minor League Baseball. The team is owned and operated by the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Prior ...

. Socolovich moved up to Class A the following year, playing for the

Lowell Spinners The Lowell Spinners were a baseball team based in Lowell, Massachusetts. From 1996 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL) as the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. With Major Leagu ...

and later the

Greenville Drive The Greenville Drive are a Minor League Baseball team based in Greenville, South Carolina. They are the High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox and are a member of the South Atlantic League. They play their home games at Fluor Field at the West E ...

Chicago White Sox

On January 28, 2008, the Red Sox traded Socolovich and fellow pitching prospect Willy Mota to 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 ...

in exchange for

David Aardsma David Allan Aardsma (; born December 27, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, currently serving in the Toronto Blue Jays front office as a coordinator of player development. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 200 ...

. Socolovich spent the next four seasons playing in the White Sox organization, taking the field for the Single-A

Kannapolis Intimidators Kannapolis () is a city in Cabarrus and Rowan Counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord and northeast of Charlotte, and is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The city of Kannapolis was incorporated in 1984. ...

and

Winston-Salem Dash The Winston-Salem Dash are a Minor League Baseball team in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They are a High-A team in the South Atlantic League and have been a farm team of the Chicago White Sox since 1997. The Dash began playing their home games ...

, Double-A

Birmingham Barons The Birmingham Barons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox and plays at Regions Field in downtown Birmingham. The Baron ...

, and 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 ...

during that time.

Baltimore Orioles

Socolovich became a free agent and on January 30, 2012, he signed a minor league contract with the

organization.

Major League debut (2012)

He began the 2012 season playing in Triple-A with the

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

before earning his first call-up to the major leagues on July 14,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

. At the time of his call-up, he had a 1.95

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) in 24 games with Norfolk. He made six appearances with the Orioles before being

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 ...

on August 14. He recorded a 6.97 ERA in innings during his time in Baltimore. With Norfolk that year, he held a 4−0 win−loss record (W−L) with a 1.90 ERA in 28 appearances and 52

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

(IP),

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish television legal drama television series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017, based on ''The Good Wife'' by Robert King (writer), Robert and Michelle King. Prod ...

52 and walking 14 while holding opponents to a .179

batting average against In baseball statistics, batting average against (denoted by BAA or AVG), also known as opponents' batting average (denoted by OBA), is a statistic that measures a pitcher's ability to prevent hits during official at bats. It can alternatively be ...

.Alt URL

Chicago Cubs

On August 23, 2012, Socolovich was claimed off waivers by the

, who optioned him to the

Iowa Cubs The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. T ...

, their Triple-A affiliate in 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 ...

(PCL).

Hiroshima Toyo Carp

On November 15, 2012, the

agreed to terms with Socolovich to bring him to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

New York Mets

On November 21, 2013, Socolovich signed a minor league contract with 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 ...

St. Louis Cardinals

Socolovich joined the

organization on November 12, 2014, who optioned him to the Triple-A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbird ...

of the PCL. He began the season with a -inning scoreless streak. During that streak, he walked eight, struck out nine, and allowed five hits in fourteen at bats. The Cardinals called Socolovich up for the first time in

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

on April 30. He earned his first major league victory on May 3, 2015, after pitching a scoreless 14th inning against 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 ...

. He earned his second victory the following night, against the

, who would finish two games and three games, respectively, behind first-place St. Louis in the

National League Central The National League Central is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was created in 1994, by moving two teams from the National League West (the Cincinnati Reds and the Houston Astros) and three teams from the National Le ...

division. The Cardinals optioned him back to Memphis, where he posted a 2.48 ERA and an .165 opponent average and 0.92 WHIP in IP for the season, and recalled him September 2. At the major league level in 2015, he finished with a 1.82 ERA and 4−1 record. Beginning the

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

season at Memphis, Socolovich authored an 11-inning scoreless streak over nine appearances through June 21. The Cardinals recalled him to St. Louis on July 19 after

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 ...

Jhonny Peralta Jhonny Antonio Peralta (born May 28, 1982) is a Dominican former professional baseball shortstop who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). The Cleveland Guardians, Cleveland Indians signed him as an amateur free agent in his native ...

went on the disabled list. His pitch arsenal includes a fastball, changeup, and slider. At Memphis, Socolovich was 2−5 with a 2.79 ERA in 35 games, inducing 40 strikeouts in IP. Socolovich was

on May 27, 2017. He was 0–1 with one save in 15 appearances, striking out 14 in innings. He elected free agency following the season on November 6.

Atlanta Braves

On January 26, 2018, Socolovich was invited to spring training with the

. His contract was purchased by the Braves on March 30, 2018. He was later designated for assignment on April 2 in order to make room for

Aníbal Sánchez Aníbal Alejandro Sánchez Jr. (; born February 27, 1984) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 2006 with the Miami Marlins, Florida Marlins and also played for the Detroit Tigers, ...

on the active roster. Socolovich cleared waivers and was outrighted to the

Gwinnett Stripers The Gwinnett Stripers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They play their home games at Coolray Field in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia ...

. He had his contract purchased again on April 21. He was outrighted to the

for the second time on April 26. He was again called up the Braves on May 30, and outrighted for the third time on June 3. He elected free agency on October 2, 2018.

Guerreros de Oaxaca

On January 30, 2019, Socolovich signed with the

Guerreros de Oaxaca The Guerreros de Oaxaca (English: Oaxaca Warriors) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico. Their home field is Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos. History In October 1995, a group of businessmen, ...

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 ...

for the 2019 season. He was released on December 19, 2019.

Retirement

On January 21, 2024, Socolovich officially announced his retirement from pitching via an

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post.

Coaching Career

In 2025, Socolivich was named as a pitching coach for the FCL Rays the rookie level affiliate of 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 ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Socolovich, Miguel 1986 births Living people Atlanta Braves players Baltimore Orioles players Birmingham Barons players Charlotte Knights players Chicago Cubs players Greenville Drive players Guerreros de Oaxaca players Gulf Coast Red Sox players Hiroshima Toyo Carp players Iowa Cubs players Kannapolis Intimidators players Las Vegas 51s players Leones del Caracas players Lowell Spinners players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Memphis Redbirds players Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Norfolk Tides players Baseball players from Caracas St. Louis Cardinals players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Japan Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Mexico Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Venezuelan Summer League Ciudad Alianza players Venezuelan people of Serbian descent Winston-Salem Dash players