Edwin Escobar

Summary

Edwin José Escobar (born April 22, 1992) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters and Yokohama DeNA BayStars.

Edwin Escobar
Escobar with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars
Chicago Cubs
Pitcher
Born: (1992-04-22) April 22, 1992 (age 31)
La Sabana, Venezuela
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Professional debut
MLB: August 27, 2014, for the Boston Red Sox
NPB: April 2, 2017, for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
MLB statistics
(through 2016 season)
Win–loss record1–2
Earned run average7.01
Strikeouts19
NPB statistics
(through 2023 season)
Win–loss record22-23
Earned run average3.17
Strikeouts383
Teams

Career edit

Texas Rangers edit

The Texas Rangers signed Escobar as an international free agent in 2008.[1] He made his professional debut with the AZL Rangers in 2009, logging a 2–5 record and 5.00 ERA in 13 games.

San Francisco Giants edit

On April 1, 2010, Escobar was traded to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for minor leaguer Ben Snyder.[2] He spent the season with the Low-A Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, pitching to a 2–4 record and 4.86 ERA in 14 games. The next year, Escobar split the season between the AZL Giants and the Single-A Augusta GreenJackets, accumulating a 3–7 record and 6.58 ERA in 52.0 innings of work. In 2012, he returned to Augusta, pitching to a 7–8 record and 2.96 ERA with 122 strikeouts in 130.2 innings pitched.[3]

The Giants added Escobar to their 40-man roster after the 2012 season.[4] He split the 2013 season between the High-A San Jose Giants and the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels, posting a 8–8 record and 2.80 ERA in 26 appearances between the two teams. He began the 2014 season with the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, and logged a 3–8 record and 5.11 ERA in 20 games.[5][6]

Boston Red Sox edit

The Giants traded Escobar and Heath Hembree to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Jake Peavy on July 26, 2014.[7] He was called up to the Red Sox on August 10,[8] and returned to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox the next day. Escobar was recalled on August 27, 2014,[9] and pitched a scoreless 8th inning in his Major League debut in Toronto against the Toronto Blue Jays. He finished his rookie season with a 4.50 ERA in 2 appearances. In 2015, Escobar spent the majority of the season in Triple-A Pawtucket, also playing in 1 game for the Single-A Greenville Drive, and pitched to a 3–3 record and 4.97 ERA in 20 games. He was assigned to Pawtucket to begin the 2016 season. Escobar was designated for assignment on April 20, 2016, to make room on the active roster for William Cuevas.[10]

Arizona Diamondbacks edit

On April 29, 2016, Escobar was claimed off waivers by the Arizona Diamondbacks and optioned to the Triple-A Reno Aces.[11] The Diamondbacks promoted Escobar to the major leagues to make his first major league start on May 30, 2016.[12] In 25 games for Arizona, Escobar recorded a 7.23 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 23.2 innings pitched.

Cleveland Indians edit

On November 18, 2016, the Cleveland Indians claimed Escobar off waivers. Escobar was designated for assignment on January 5, 2017, to make room on the 40-man roster for Edwin Encarnación.[13] He was released on January 10, to pursue a pitching opportunity in Japan.[14]

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters edit

On January 11, 2017, Escobar signed a one-year, $775,000 with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball.[15][16] In 14 games for the Fighters, Escobar registered a 5.64 ERA in 22.1 innings of work.

Yokohama DeNA BayStars edit

On July 7, 2017, Escobar was traded to the Yokohama DeNA BayStars for catcher Toshiki Kurobane. The BayStars re-signed him in the offseason to a one-year deal worth roughly $500,000.[17] He finished the 2017 season with a 3.44 ERA in 27 games for the BayStars. In 2018, Escobar pitched in 53 games for the team, posting a 4–3 record and 3.57 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 53.0 innings pitched. Escobar agreed to another 1-year contract with the BayStars for the 2019 season worth roughly $854,000. That season, Escobar pitched to a 5–4 record and 2.51 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 74 appearances. On November 18, 2019, Escobar signed a 1-year extension, worth roughly $1.5 million, to remain with the BayStars.[18] In 2020, Escobar logged a 1–4 record and 2.33 ERA with 58 strikeouts in 54.0 innings pitched across 56 games.

On November 7, 2023, following the regular season, the BayStars announced that Escobar was no longer under contract with the team and that they would begin negotiations regarding a new contract. In 7 seasons in NPB, he had registered a 22-23 record and 3.17 ERA with 383 strikeouts across 392+13 innings pitched.[19]

Chicago Cubs edit

On November 20, 2023, Escobar signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs.[20]

Personal life edit

Escobar is son of shortstop José Escobar, as well as cousin of shortstop Alcides Escobar, and pitchers Kelvim Escobar and Vicente Campos.[21]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Giants never lost sight of top prospect Escobar". CSN Bay Area. Archived from the original on June 30, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  2. ^ "Giants trade LHP Ben Snyder to Texas for LHP Edwin Escobar". San Francisco Giants. Archived from the original on April 28, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  3. ^ "Edwin Escobar Minor, Winter & Japanese Leagues Statistics & History".
  4. ^ "Giants put pitcher Chris Heston, four others on 40-man roster | MLB.com: News". Mlb.mlb.com. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  5. ^ "Fresno Grizzlies' prized pitcher Edwin Escobar flashes skills". Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  6. ^ Bruce Jenkins (March 1, 2014). "Good day for Giants prospects Edwin Escobar, Gary Brown". SFGate. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  7. ^ "Report: Giants to acquire Jake Peavy from Red Sox". NBC Sports. July 26, 2014.
  8. ^ "Red Sox Call Up Lefty Edwin Escobar". Boston Globe. August 10, 2014.
  9. ^ Ross, Jamie (August 27, 2014). "With bullpen taxed, Escobar earns promotion". MLB.com. Retrieved August 27, 2014.
  10. ^ MiLB.com
  11. ^ "D-backs claim Edwin Escobar from Boston; designate Matt Buschmann for assignment". MLB.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  12. ^ "Diamondbacks, Edwin Escobar see positives in debut loss".
  13. ^ Bastian, Jordan (January 5, 2017). "Indians sign free agent Edwin Encarnación to a three-year contract". mlb.com. Archived from the original on January 5, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  14. ^ Todd, Jeff (January 10, 2017). "Indians Release Edwin Escobar To Pursue Opportunity In Japan". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  15. ^ "[1/11/2017] Nippon Ham Fighters reach agreement with Edwin Escobar". yakyudb.com. January 11, 2017. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
  16. ^ "Fighters acquire lefty Escobar". japantimes.co.jp. January 11, 2017. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
  17. ^ "Yokohama Bay Stars sign Edwin Escobar". yakyudb.com. November 16, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  18. ^ "2020年度 E.エスコバー選手契約について". 横浜DeNAベイスターズ 公式サイト (in Japanese). November 18, 2019. Retrieved December 8, 2019.
  19. ^ "[DeNA] Escobar's free contract will continue negotiations to remain Ambagi will be decided to leave". news.yahoo.co.jp. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  20. ^ https://www.nbcsportschicago.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-free-agency/cubs-reportedly-sign-free-agent-pitcher-edwin-escobar/520284/
  21. ^ Pelota Binaria website

External links edit

  • Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
  • Edwin Escobar エドウィン エスコバー on Instagram