Carlos Antonio Morales López (born September 27, 1948) is a retired

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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

player. Nicknamed "Chaflán" in his native

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, López spent seven seasons in professional baseball, including three seasons in

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), ...

with the California Angels (1976),

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

(1977), and 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) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

(1978). Over his major league career, López batted .260 with 61 runs, 130 hits, 24 doubles, one triples, 12 home runs, 54

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

(RBIs), and 23 stolen bases in 237 games played. On the defensive side, López has played 181 games in right field and 49 games in

center field A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

. López began his professional career in 1969 with the minor league Class-A Aguascalientes Tigres of the Mexican Center League. Later that season, he played for the Triple-A Mexico City Tigres of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. López was purchased from the Tigers by the California Angels from the Tigres in 1973. He then played for the Double-A

El Paso Diablos "El Paso Diablos" refers to two different professional baseball teams based in El Paso, Texas, in the United States. The most recent Diablos were a member of the South Division of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, wh ...

(1974–1975) Triple-A

Salt Lake City Gulls Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...

(1975–1976) in the California organization; and the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings (1979) in the Baltimore Orioles organization. Over his minor league career in the United States, López batted .316 with 511 hits, 72 doubles, 31 triples, and 39 home runs. In all but one game where he played first base, López played in the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball a ...

Professional career

Early career

In 1969, López began his professional career in the Mexican Center League. With the non-affiliated Class-A Aguascalientes Tigres, a team based in Aguascalientes, Mexico, he played 116 games. López also played with the non-affiliated Triple-A Mexico City Tigres in the

. He played six games with Mexico City that season. Until 1973, López played with Mexico City, although statistics were not kept.

California Angels

The California Angels purchased López from the Mexico City club from the Mexican League on December 3, 1973. He started his career in the United States with the Double-A

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

in 1974. With the Diablos, López batted .295 with 136 hits, 21 doubles, seven triples, and 14 home runs in 128 games. In 1975, López split the season with the Double-A El Paso Diablos and the Triple-A

. With the Diablos, he batted .327 with 77 runs, 140 hits, 22 doubles, 10 triples, nine home runs, 78

(RBIs), and 11 stolen bases in 112 games. López was first in the Texas League in triples, and fifth in the league in hits. That season, he also played 15 games with the Triple-A Gulls and batted .250 with three runs, 12 hits, two doubles, one home run, five RBIs, and two stolen bases. López spent the 1976 season with the Triple-A Salt Lake City Gulls, and later made the California Angels' roster as a September call-up. With the Gulls, he batted .350 with 95 runs, 157 hits, 19 doubles, 12 triples, nine home runs, 88 RBIs, and 30 stolen bases in 123 games. López was tied for second in the Pacific Coast League in triples, and was third in batting average. López made his major league debut that season against the Minnesota Twins on September 17. In that games, López walked in his one plate appearance. On the season, López went hitless with one run and two stolen bases in nine games in the majors.

Seattle Mariners

López was selected by the

in the

1976 Major League Baseball expansion draft The 1976 MLB Expansion Draft was held November 5, 1976. This expansion draft was conducted by Major League Baseball to stock the major league rosters of the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners, new major league expansion franchises establis ...

. At the age of 26, it was noted by

The Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newsp ...

that López and teammate

Dick Pole Richard Henry Pole (born October 13, 1950) is a former professional baseball player and a former pitching coach. A right-handed pitcher, Pole was tall and weighed during his playing career. Playing career Pole was born in Trout Creek, Michigan ...

were "the old men" on the Mariners' roster. The Associated Press also noted that fellow players and

managers Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

"rave" about López's speed, but also asserted that he had a throwing arm that was as good. He got his first major league hit against the California Angels on April 10. López hit his first major league home run against 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 eigh ...

on May 3. On May 30, López hit two home runs in the same game against the Texas Rangers. On the season, López batted .283 with 39 runs, 84 hits, 18 doubles, one triple, eight home runs, 34 RBIs, and 16 stolen bases in 99 games.

Baltimore Orioles

López was traded along with Tommy Moore from the Mariners to the

for

Mike Parrott Michael Everett Arch Parrott (born December 6, 1954), nicknamed "Bird," is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Parrott graduated from Adolfo Camarillo High School in Camarillo, California in 1973. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in th ...

at the

Winter Meetings Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...

on December 7, 1977. In 1978, López spent the entire season with the Orioles. He batted .238 with 21 runs, 46 hits, six doubles, four home runs, 20 RBIs, five stolen bases, and seven caught stealing in 129 games. López was demoted to the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings in 1979, his final professional season. With the Red Wings, he batted .282 with 38 runs, 66 hits, 10 doubles, two triples, six home runs, 30 RBIs, and 24 stolen bases in 62 games. López led the International League in stolen bases and caught stealing (7).

References

;General references # # ;Inline citations

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez, Carlos 1948 births Baseball players from Sinaloa Baltimore Orioles players California Angels players El Paso Diablos players Living people Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Mexico Mexican expatriate baseball players in the United States Rochester Red Wings players Salt Lake City Gulls players Seattle Mariners players Tigres de Aguascalientes players Broncos de Reynosa players Ganaderos de Tabasco players Leones de Yucatán players Pericos de Puebla players Piratas de Sabinas players Plataneros de Tabasco players Sultanes de Monterrey players Tigres del México players