José Pirela

José Pirela
Pirela with the New York Yankees
San Diego Padres – No. 2
Second baseman / Outfielder
Born: (1989-11-21) November 21, 1989
Valera, Trujillo, Venezuela
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 22, 2014, for the New York Yankees
MLB statistics
(through September 24, 2018)
Batting average .261
Home runs 15
Runs batted in 79
Teams

José Manuel Pirela (born November 21, 1989) is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman and outfielder for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the New York Yankees.

Professional career

Minor Leagues

Pirela signed with the New York Yankees as an international free agent, receiving a $300,000 signing bonus.[1] He made his professional debut with the Yankees in 2007 for the Dominican Summer League Yankees 1. He reached Triple-A for the first time in 2013. After the season, he played for the Aguilas del Zulia of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.[2][3][4][5]

Pirela batting for the Trenton Thunder in 2013

Pirela began the 2014 season with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders of the Class AAA International League.[6] He ended the International League season with a .303 batting average, 10 home runs, and 60 runs batted in (RBIs). He was named a postseason All-Star.

New York Yankees

On September 16, 2014, the Yankees promoted Pirela to the major leagues.[7] He made his major league debut on September 22, hitting a triple in his first at-bat, and a single later in the game.[8] In seven games with the Yankees in 2014, he batted .333 with two triples and three RBIs. He was pinch-run for by Antoan Richardson on September 25. Richardson then scored the game winning run on a walk-off single by Derek Jeter in the Yankee captain's last at-bat at Yankee Stadium.

Pirela suffered a concussion on March 22, 2015, in a spring training game against the New York Mets while playing center field. He ran into the outfield wall while chasing a ball hit by Juan Lagares.[9] On April 2, 2015, he was placed on the 7-day disabled list to begin the season due to his concussion. A week later, he was transferred to the 15-day disabled list. He was activated on May 6. On June 7, he hit his first major league home run against the Los Angeles Angels.[10] He batted .256 with 1 RBI in 18 games before he was optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on June 10.[11]

San Diego Padres

On November 11, 2015, the Yankees traded Pirela to the San Diego Padres for minor league pitcher Ronald Herrera.[12] He began the 2016 season with the El Paso Chihuahuas of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League, and was promoted to the Padres on April 22.[13] Pirela played in 15 games with the Padres in 2016, making nine starts at second base and one in right field, before being optioned to El Paso when Yangervis Solarte was activated from the disabled list on May 21.[14] Pirela was shut down in June with an Achilles injury after playing in only 35 minor league games on the season.[15] He had originally hurt the Achilles in the spring and it affected his performance all season.[16] Pirela was non-tendered in the 2016 offseason, and became a free agent. He signed a minor league contract with the Padres on December 13, 2016.[17]

Pirela began the 2017 season with El Paso[18], where he batted .331 with 13 home runs. The Padres promoted Pirela to the Major Leagues on June 6.[19] Pirela was slotted into left field and impressed with his bat, securing the number three spot in the batting order by August and holding onto the left field position after Opening Day left fielder Travis Jankowski came off the disabled list.[20] Pirela saw his season ended in mid-September with a sprained finger, but he led the Padres regulars in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage, and was the Padres nominee for the Hank Aaron Award.[21][16] He finished 2017 with a .288/.347/.490 batting line with 10 home runs in 83 games.

See also

References

  1. ↑ John DeMarzo (July 25, 2014). "Offensively challenged Yanks could turn to utilityman Pirela | New York Post". Nypost.com. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Fill Account: Jose Pirela's passion". Ultimasnoticias.com.ve. Archived from the original on January 22, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Jose Pirela, no chance to win the MVP". Laverdad.com. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Jose Pirela: "What I want is to be in the lineup". Laverdad.com. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  5. ↑ Pedro Moreira. "Jose Pirela puts his bat to order for the Caribbean Series". El-nacional.com. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  6. ↑ "The next in line?". Timesleader.com. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  7. ↑ Kuty, Brendan (September 16, 2014). "Yankees' Martin Prado done for year, Jose Pirela called up". NJ.com. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Pirela gets two hits, RBI in big league debut". New York Yankees. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  9. ↑ Jamal Collier (March 22, 2015). "Pirela suffers concussion in collision with center-field wall". MLB.com. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Yankees' Jose Pirela hits first career home run in win". Daily News. New York. June 7, 2015.
  11. ↑ "New York Yankees". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Los Yanquis cambiaron a José Pirela a los Padres de San Diego". El Universal (in Spanish). November 11, 2015. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  13. ↑ Lin, Dennis (April 22, 2016). "Padres recall Pirela, option Campos". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  14. ↑ Lin, Dennis (May 21, 2016). "Yangervis Solarte returns for Padres". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  15. ↑ Sanders, Jeff (June 10, 2017). "First pitch: Pirela impressing in return to Padres". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  16. 1 2 Sanders, Jeff (January 10, 2018). "Padres roster review: Jose Pirela". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  17. ↑ Todd, Jeff (December 14, 2016). "Minor MLB Transactions: 12/14/16". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  18. ↑ Sanders, Jeff (May 23, 2017). "Minors Jose Pirela continues power surge at El Paso". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  19. ↑ Acee, Kevin (June 6, 2017). "Padres place Cosart on disabled list, recall Pirela". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  20. ↑ Cassavell, AJ (August 2, 2017). "Pirela's hard work earning him regular OF time". MLB.com. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  21. ↑ Lin, Dennis (October 9, 2017). "Padres' Jose Pirela nominated for Hank Aaron Award". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
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