Guillermo Heredia (baseball)

Summary

Guillermo Heredia Molina Jr. (born 31 January 1991) is a Cuban professional baseball outfielder for the SSG Landers of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). He made his MLB debut in 2016. He previously played for the Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. He bats right-handed and throws left-handed.

Guillermo Heredia
Heredia with the Braves in 2022
SSG Landers – No. 27
Outfielder
Born: (1991-01-31) 31 January 1991 (age 33)
Matanzas, Cuba
Bats: Right
Throws: Left
Professional debut
MLB: 29 July, 2016, for the Seattle Mariners
KBO: 1 April, 2023, for the SSG Landers
MLB statistics
(through 2022 season)
Batting average.231
Home runs27
Runs batted in114
KBO statistics
(through 2023 season)
Batting average.323
Home runs12
Runs batted in76
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Professional career edit

Heredia played for the Cuba national baseball team at the 2013 World Baseball Classic.[1] He played for Matanzas in the Cuban National Series since 2009. He defected from Cuba in January 2015, to pursue a contract with a Major League Baseball team.[2]

Seattle Mariners edit

 
Heredia with the Mariners in 2017

On 23 February 2016, the Seattle Mariners signed Heredia to a one-year major league contract for $500,000.[3] He made his major league debut on 29 July 2016.[4] He spent most of his time on the Mariners in 2016 as a late-innings defensive replacement. He played in the Arizona Fall League to work on making his swing more compact before the start of the 2017 season.[5]

Tampa Bay Rays edit

On 8 November 2018, Heredia was traded, along with Mike Zunino and Michael Plassmeyer, to the Tampa Bay Rays for Mallex Smith and Jake Fraley.[6] In his first season with the Rays, he hit .225 in 89 games. On 2 December 2019, Heredia was non-tendered by Tampa Bay and became a free agent.[7]

Pittsburgh Pirates edit

On 9 January 2020, Heredia signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates.[8] On 24 August 2020, Heredia was designated for assignment by the Pirates after only playing in 8 games on the year.[9]

New York Mets edit

On 28 August 2020, Heredia was claimed by the New York Mets on waivers.[10]

On 21 September 2020, Heredia made his debut with the Mets. He started the Mets' next game as well, and hit a home run against John Curtiss.[11]

Heredia was designated for assignment on 21 February 2021, after the Mets signed outfielder Kevin Pillar.[12]

Atlanta Braves edit

On 24 February 2021, Heredia was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves.[13] On 18 April, Heredia hit two home runs, one a grand slam, to become the first Braves player to record 6+ RBIs in a game from the No. 8 spot in the lineup since the RBI became an official stat in 1920.[14] As the season went on, Heredia adopted a sword slashing movement as a celebratory gesture, which was picked up by his teammates.[15][16]

In 2021 he batted .220/.311/.354 with 5 home runs and 26 RBIs.[17] On 30 November 2021, the Braves signed Heredia to a one-year, $1 million contract.[18]

On 15 November 2022, Heredia was designated for assignment.[19] Three days later, he was non-tendered and became a free agent.[20]

SSG Landers edit

On 11 December 2022, Heredia signed with the SSG Landers of the Korea Baseball Organization.[21] He played in 122 games for the team in 2023, batting .324/.385/.461 with career–highs in home runs (12), RBI (76), and stolen bases (12).

On 17 December 2023, Heredia re–signed with the Landers on a one–year, $1.5 million contract.[22]

References edit

  1. ^ "World Baseball Classic: Cuba: Team - Cuba". World Baseball Classic. Archived from the original on 12 April 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  2. ^ Badler, Ben (21 January 2015). "Guillermo Heredia Leaves Cuba". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  3. ^ Johns, Greg (23 February 2016). "Source: Mariners ink Cuban center fielder Heredia". MLB.com. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  4. ^ Divish, Ryan (29 July 2016). "Mariners call up Cuban outfielder Guillermo Heredia for big-league debut". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  5. ^ Divish, Ryan (26 February 2017). "A more comfortable Guillermo Heredia is ready to grab a spot on the Mariners' opening day roster". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  6. ^ Johns, Greg (8 November 2018). "Mariners complete Zunino-Mallex deal". MLB.com. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  7. ^ Topkin, Marc (2 December 2019). "Rays non-tender OF Guillermo Heredia, keep reliever Chaz Roe". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  8. ^ Berry, Adam (9 January 2020). "Pirates finalize 1-year deal with OF Heredia". MLB.com. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  9. ^ Adams, Steve (24 August 2020). "Pirates Claim Carson Fulmer, Designate Guillermo Heredia". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  10. ^ "Mets claim OF Guillermo Heredia". MLB.com. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  11. ^ Toscano, Justin (22 September 2020). "Instant analysis: Mets beat Rays as they look to remain alive in postseason hunt". NorthJersey.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  12. ^ Polishuk, Mark (21 February 2021). "Mets Designate Guillermo Heredia For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  13. ^ "Braves claim Guillermo Heredia off waivers from Mets". Associated Press News. 25 February 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2023. Republished by ESPN, NBC Sports, San Diego Union-Tribune
  14. ^ "Guillermo Heredia is the first @Braves player to have 6+ RBIs in a game from the No. 8 spot in the lineup since RBIs became an official stat in 1920". Twitter. 18 April 2021. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  15. ^ Clair, Michael (19 October 2021). "Where did Heredia's pink swords come from?". MLB.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  16. ^ O'Brien, David (20 October 2021). "Guillermo Heredia and his swords have become an integral part of Braves' season". The Athletic. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  17. ^ "Guillermo Heredia Stats". Baseball-Reference.com.
  18. ^ Bowman, Mark (30 November 2021). "Braves complete deals with Arcia, Heredia". MLB.com. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  19. ^ Ladson, Bill (15 November 2022). "Braves protect trio ahead of Rule 5 Draft". MLB.com.
  20. ^ "These players have been non-tendered". MLB.com. 18 November 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  21. ^ @MyKBO (11 December 2022). "Earlier today SSG announced that they signed Guillermo Heredia for $1 million ($900K salary, $100K incentives)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  22. ^ "3 KBO clubs bring back, newly acquire foreign players". m-en.yna.co.kr. Retrieved 20 December 2023.

External links edit

  • Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet