Anthony Roger Santander (born October 19, 1994) is a
Venezuelan
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Mod ...
outfielder
An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...
for the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles 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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
of
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB). He made his major league debut in 2017.
Early life
Santander was born on
Margarita Island
Margarita Island (, ) is the largest island in the Venezuelan state of Nueva Esparta, situated off the northeastern coast of the country, in the Caribbean Sea. The capital city of Nueva Esparta, La Asunción, is located on the island.
History
...
, off the Venezuelan coast, but grew up in and feels more connected to the mainland municipality
Agua Blanca, where he returns every winter.
Career
Cleveland Indians
Santander signed with the
Cleveland Indians
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 , they have played at Progressive F ...
as an international
free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player 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 contract at present but who is a ...
in July 2011. He made his professional debut in 2012 for the
Arizona League Indians
The Arizona Complex League Guardians are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Arizona. The team is c ...
. From 2013 to 2015 he played for the
Lake County Captains
The Lake County Captains are a Minor League Baseball team in Eastlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, that plays in the Midwest League as the High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians.
The Captains joined the Class A Midwest League following t ...
. He injured his right elbow in 2013, and missed part of the 2014 season—when he batted .184/.260/.270 for the Captains—with a right elbow strain. He also played in eight games for the
Mahoning Valley Scrappers
The Mahoning Valley Scrappers are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Niles, Ohio, a city in the valley of the Mahoning River, and play their home games at Eastwood Field. From 1999 to 2020, they were a M ...
in 2015. Santander spent 2016 with the
Lynchburg Hillcats
The Lynchburg Hillcats are a Minor League Baseball team in Lynchburg, Virginia that plays in the Carolina League and is the Single-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They were a farm team of the Atlanta Braves from 2011 to 2014, the Cincinna ...
where he posted a .290
batting average
Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic.
Cricket
In cricket, a player's batting average is ...
with 20 home runs and 95 RBIs.
Baltimore Orioles
Santander was selected by the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles 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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
in the 2016
Rule 5 draft. He made his major league debut on August 18, 2017, at
Camden Yards
The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
, Baltimore against the
Los Angeles Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...
. In 30 at bats he batted .267/.258/.367.
Santander became a favorite of over 4,000
scouts
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...
and girl guides from the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
who had followed their trip to the
World Scout Jamboree
The World Scout Jamboree is a Scouting jamboree of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, typically attended by several tens of thousands of Scouts from around the world, aged 14 to 17.
The first World Scout Jamboree was organized by T ...
in
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
by attending the Orioles' 6–5 victory over the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
at
Camden Yards
The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
on
August 4
Events Pre-1600
* 598 – Goguryeo-Sui War: In response to a Goguryeo (Korean) incursion into Liaoxi, Emperor Wéndi of Sui orders his youngest son, Yang Liang (assisted by the co-prime minister Gao Jiong), to conquer Goguryeo during th ...
, 2019. Seated in the left field lower deck right behind him, the scouts boisterously cheered for him whenever he caught a fly ball for almost the entire game after he had thrown a baseball as a souvenir to them early in the contest, and also because they recognised the European bank Santander. The Orioles responded to the exuberance by displaying a message on the center field video board referring to the scouts as the "Official International Anthony Santander Fan Club." He matched teammate
Renato Núñez's achievement from eleven days prior with his own first-ever five-hit game in an 8–3 home win over the
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...
three weeks later on
August 25
Events Pre-1600
* 19 – The Roman general Germanicus dies near Antioch. He was convinced that the mysterious illness that ended in his death was a result of poisoning by the Syrian governor Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, whom he had ordered to ...
. In 93 games, he hit 20 home runs with 59 runs batted in.
In 37 games for the Orioles in 2020, Santander batted .261/.315/.575 with 11
home run
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 i ...
s and 32 RBI. He was awarded the 2020 Louis M. Hatter Most Valuable Oriole Award by members of the local media. On February 5, 2021, Santander lost his arbitration hearing against the Orioles and had his 2021 salary set at $2.1MM instead of $2.475MM.
In mid June 2022, Santander was placed on the restricted list ahead of a series in Toronto against the Blue Jays due to being
unvaccinated against COVID-19. He tied an MLB record set by
Ken Caminiti
Kenneth Gene Caminiti (April 21, 1963 – October 10, 2004) was an American third baseman who spent 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Houston Astros (1987–1994, 1999–2000), San Diego Padres (1995–1998), Texas Rangers ( ...
in 1996 by hitting home runs from both sides of the plate in a game for the fourth time in a single season in a 13–9 loss to 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) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
at
Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
on September 27, 2022. He also became the first
Orioles
Oriole or Orioles may refer to:
Animals
* Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae
* New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae
Music
* The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...
player with three multi-homer games in a four-game span.
In 2022 he led major league batters in pop up percentage (15.8%), and batted .240/.318/.455 in 574 at bats.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santander, Anthony
1994 births
Living people
Arizona League Indians players
Baltimore Orioles players
Bowie Baysox players
Frederick Keys players
Mahoning Valley Scrappers players
Lake County Captains players
Lynchburg Hillcats players
Major League Baseball outfielders
Major League Baseball players from Venezuela
Navegantes del Magallanes players
Norfolk Tides players
Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States
Tigres de Aragua players