Hiram Gabriel Bocachica Colón (born March 4, 1976) is a Puerto Rican former

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 ...

. He played 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), ...

(MLB) for the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

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) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

, and

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

. Bocachica also played for the

Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway, wh ...

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB).

Career

Major league career

He was drafted by the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

in the first round (21st overall) of the

1994 Major League Baseball draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1994 Major League Baseball draft. Compensation picks Compensation Picks Other notable players *Troy Glaus, 2nd round, 37th overall by the San Diego Padres, but did not ...

and played for the

, and

before being released in 2005 and signed by

from

free agency 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 ...

. Bocachica impressed scouts with his amazing

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

performance of 2006, and would have been on the MLB roster for that season, had he not suffered from a bone growth in his right hand. He was claimed off waivers by the

on May 31, 2007. He became a free agent at the end of the season.

Nippon Professional Baseball

Bocachica signed with the

on December 3, 2007. Despite playing only 78 games during the 2008 season, he hit 20 home runs, including one in the seventh game of the

Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, :File:2014_JS_logo.png is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series ...

, which the team won.

Atlantic League

On April 12, 2010, Bocachica, along with fellow MLB alums

Brian Barton Brian Deon Barton (born April 25, 1982) is an American former professional outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves. Early life Barton attended Westchester High School in his hometown ...

and

Tike Redman Julian Jawonn "Tike" Redman (born March 10, 1977) is an American professional baseball center fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (2000–01; 2003–05) and the Baltimore Orioles (2007). He is the brother ...

, was signed by the

Bridgeport Bluefish The Bridgeport Bluefish were an American minor league baseball team based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The team was a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Baseba ...

for the 2010 season. Immediately upon arriving in New York, Hiram was called by a friend who was coaching in Mexico. He briefly played with the

Broncos de Reynosa The Reynosa Broncos (''los Broncos de Reynosa'') were a Mexican team that played in the Adolfo Lopez Mateos stadium in the city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas. The Broncos de Reynosa played in the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol and it was part of the Zona Nort ...

in Mexico, but later returned to Bridgeport.

Family

Hiram is married to his wife Jocelyn and has two daughters and a son.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bocachica, Hiram 1976 births Living people Albany Polecats players Albuquerque Dukes players Arizona League Athletics players Bridgeport Bluefish players Broncos de Reynosa players Detroit Tigers players Diablos Rojos del México players Gulf Coast Expos players Harrisburg Senators players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Mexican League baseball outfielders Mexican League baseball third basemen Leones de Yucatán players Los Angeles Dodgers players Oakland Athletics players Ottawa Lynx players Petroleros de Minatitlán players Portland Beavers players Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in Canada Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in Japan Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in Mexico Sacramento River Cats players Saitama Seibu Lions players San Antonio Missions players San Diego Padres players Seattle Mariners players Stockton Ports players Tacoma Rainiers players Toledo Mud Hens players West Palm Beach Expos players 2009 World Baseball Classic players Baseball players from Ponce, Puerto Rico