Yoán Manuel Moncada Olivera (born May 27, 1995) is a Cuban 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 ...

for the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

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). He has previously played in MLB for 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 ...

and

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 made his MLB debut with the Red Sox in 2016, and was traded to the White Sox during the 2016–2017 offseason. He is one of the first active MLB players to represent the Cuban national team in international competition.

Professional career

Elefantes de Cienfuegos

Moncada made his debut for

Cienfuegos Cienfuegos (), capital of Cienfuegos Province, is a city on the southern coast of Cuba. It is located about from Havana and has a population of 178,368 in 2022. Since the late 1960s, Cienfuegos has become one of Cuba's main industrial centers, ...

of the

Cuban National Series The Cuban National Series (, or SNB) is a domestic baseball competition in Cuba. Formed after the dissolution of the Cuban League in the wake of the Cuban Revolution, the National Series is a part of the Cuban baseball league system. For most ...

in 2012. In his two years with Cienfuegos he hit .277/.388/.380 with four

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

and 21

stolen bases 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 a ...

. Moncada left Cuba in June 2014. Before signing with the

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) East Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ch ...

, Moncada was a highly sought after Cuban free agent. He was seen as a generational, five-tool talent, being compared to the likes of

Robinson Canó Robinson José Canó Mercedes (; born October 22, 1982) is a Dominican-American professional baseball second baseman for the Diablos Rojos del México of the Mexican League; he also captains the Estrellas Orientales of the Dominican Professio ...

Boston Red Sox

Minor leagues

On February 23, 2015, the

reportedly agreed to terms with Moncada, for a signing bonus of $31.5 million. The contract was finalized on March 12. He made his professional debut with 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 ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

on May 18. In the winter of 2015, he was consistently cited as one of the top prospects in the Red Sox system. Entering the 2016 season, MLB.com, ''

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 ...

'', and

Baseball Prospectus Baseball Prospectus (BP) is an organization that publishes a website, BaseballProspectus.com, devoted to the sabermetric analysis of baseball. BP has a staff of regular columnists and provides advanced statistics as well as player and team perf ...

ranked Moncada as one of the seven best prospects in Major League Baseball.

Major leagues

Moncada was called up and made his major league debut on September 2, 2016, against the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

. In his first plate appearance, he

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...

ed and subsequently scored a run. He recorded his first major league hit the following day. Moncada finished the 2016 MLB season with a .211 batting average (4-for-19) with one RBI.

Chicago White Sox

On December 6, 2016, the Red Sox traded Moncada, Michael Kopech,

Luis Alexander Basabe Luis Alexander Basabe (born August 26, 1996) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants. Listed at 6' 0" , 160 lb. , he is a switch hitter and throws righ ...

, and Victor Diaz to the

for

Chris Sale Christopher Allen Sale (born March 30, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox. He throws left-handed ...

. Moncada began the 2017 season with the

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 ...

of the Triple-A

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 ...

. On July 19, 2017, he was called up after the trade of

Todd Frazier Todd Brian Frazier (born February 12, 1986), nicknamed "The Toddfather", is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Texas Ran ...

to the

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

. Later that day, he made his White Sox debut 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 ...

. He worked a walk in his first at bat, against

Kenta Maeda is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Detroit Tigers, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) fo ...

. On July 26, 2017, Moncada hit his first career major league home run off of

Jake Arrieta Jacob Joseph Arrieta (born March 6, 1986) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, and San Diego Padres. Arrieta played college ...

of the

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 ...

. On August 25, he was placed on the 10-day

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 ...

due to shin issues. He played 54 games in 2017, finishing year with a .231 batting average, 8 home runs, and 22 RBIs. In 2018, Moncada played 149 games, finishing with a .235 batting average, 32 doubles, 17 home runs, 61 RBI, and struck out an MLB-leading 217 times. He had the lowest fielding percentage among major league second basemen, at .963. In the 2019 campaign, Moncada set career highs in numerous batting areas, such as hits (161), doubles (34), home runs (25), RBI (79), and batting average (.315), among others, with his batting average ranking third in the American League. Overall, in

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, Moncada batted .225 with six home runs and 24 RBI in 52 games. In 2021, Moncada batted .263 with 14 home runs and 61 RBI across 144 games for Chicago. Moncada began the 2022 season on the injured list with an oblique strain. On May 9, Moncada was activated off the IL and made his season debut that day against the

Cleveland Guardians 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) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

, going 1-for-4. In 104 total games, he batted .212/.273/.353 with 12 home runs and 51 RBI. Moncada made 92 appearances for the White Sox in 2023, slashing .260/.305/.425 with 11 home runs and 40 RBI. On April 10, 2024, Moncada suffered a strained adductor while running to first base, and was ruled out for 3-to-6 months. He was activated from the injured list on September 16. In 12 total games for the White Sox, Moncada batted .275/.356/.400 with one stolen base. The White Sox declined his team option for 2025 on November 1, making him a free agent.

Los Angeles Angels

On February 16, 2025, Moncada signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the

International career

Moncada was named to the Cuban national team for

2023 World Baseball Classic The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball tournament and the fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. It began on March 8, 2023, and ran until March 21. It was originally scheduled to take place in ...

. Along with White Sox teammate Luis Robert Jr., he became the first active MLB player to play for the Cuban national team. In the tournament, Moncada batted .435/.519/.739, with a team-leading 10 hits in 23 at-bats.

Musical career

In 2021, Moncada recorded "Desastre Personal" with artists El Chacal and Lenier.

References

External links

Joan Manuel Moncada, a prospect of Cienfuegos Baseball
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moncada, Yoán 1995 births Living people Arizona Complex League White Sox players Boston Red Sox players Charlotte Knights players Chicago White Sox players Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Elefantes de Cienfuegos players Greenville Drive players Inland Empire 66ers players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball infielders Major League Baseball players from Cuba 21st-century Cuban sportsmen People from Abreus, Cuba Baseball players from Cienfuegos Province Portland Sea Dogs players Salem Red Sox players Surprise Saguaros players 2023 World Baseball Classic players