Juan Miguel Miranda Ramírez (born April 25, 1983) is a

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

former

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

. 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

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

and the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

and in

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) for the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Figh ...

. Listed at 6' 0" , 220 lb. , Miranda bats and throws left handed. He was born in

Consolación del Sur Consolación del Sur is a municipality and town in the Pinar del Río Province of Cuba. Also called the ''Athens of Vueltabajo'', it was founded in 1690. Geography It is located in a major rice-growing area; tobacco is also cultivated as in muc ...

Pinar del Río Province Pinar del Río is one of the provinces of Cuba. It is at the western end of the island of Cuba. Geography The Pinar del Río province is Cuba's westernmost province and contains one of Cuba's three main mountain ranges, the Cordillera de Guanig ...

Baseball career

Cuba

Miranda batted .303 with 27 homers for the

Vegueros de Pinar del Río Vegueros de Pinar del Río (English: Pinar del Río Meadow Growers) is a baseball team in the Cuban National Series. Based in the western city of Pinar del Río, the ''Vegueros'' are historically one of the more successful teams in the Cuban Nat ...

club in Cuba's Serie Nacional from to . In addition, he was included on the Cuban national team. Miranda defected to the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

in early 2004, on his seventh attempt. He established residency in 2005, and was granted citizenship there in 2006.

Professional career

New York Yankees

Miranda signed a four-year contract with the New York Yankees worth $2 million on December 12, . He spent the season with their Single-A affiliate

Tampa Yankees Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

and Double-A

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the ...

. In , he was promoted to Triple-A

Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (often abbreviated to SWB RailRiders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Moosic, Pennsylvania, in the ...

. On September 16, , Miranda was called up by the Yankees for the first time in his career. He made his major league debut on September 18, 2008. His first major league plate appearance resulted in a

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...

. He was called up again briefly in April 2009, as a replacement for David Robertson. Miranda recorded a walk-off game-winning single against the Kansas City Royals on September 29, 2009. He hit his first Major League home run on October 2, 2009 against 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) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

. Miranda returned to the Yankees in , when an injury to Nick Johnson provided him his first opportunity to receive extended major league action, appearing in 33 games over the course of the season.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On November 18, 2010, Miranda was traded to the

for minor leaguer Scott Allen. In 65 games for Arizona, Miranda batted .213/.315/.402 with seven home runs and 23 RBI. On July 15, 2011, Miranda was outrighted off of the roster and assigned to the Triple-A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, which opened in 2009. ...

Tampa Bay Rays

On December 6, 2011, Miranda signed a minor league contract with the

, which included an invitation to spring training. On June 9, 2012, he was released while playing for the Triple-A

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened ...

Vaqueros Laguna

On June 27, 2012, Miranda signed with the

Vaqueros Laguna The ''vaquero'' (; pt, vaqueiro, , ) is a horse-mounted livestock herder of a tradition that has its roots in the Iberian Peninsula and extensively developed in Mexico from a methodology brought to Latin America from Spain. The vaquero became t ...

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 ...

. He hit four home runs with 17 RBI and a torrid batting line of .423/.528/.676 in 20 games. He remained with the club in 2013, playing in 107 games with a batting line of .367/.498/.633 with 26 home runs and 86 RBI.

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

On October 30, 2013, Miranda signed with the

. On the season, Miranda hit for an average of .227 in 116 games with 42 walks and 14 home runs, but struck out 108 times in 427 plate appearances.

Vaqueros Laguna

On April 2, 2015, returned to the

for the 2015 season, and hit 13 home runs with 17 RBI and a batting line of .315/.468/.486 in 101 contests. He was a LMB All-Star in 2015.

Diablos Rojos del México

On January 14, 2016, Miranda was traded to the

Diablos Rojos del México The Diablos Rojos del Mexico (English: Mexico Red Devils) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Mexico City, Mexico. The team was founded in 1940 by Salvador Lutteroth and Ernesto Carmona. The Diablos Rojos play their hom ...

of the

Guerreros de Oaxaca

Miranda was then traded to the

Guerreros de Oaxaca The Guerreros de Oaxaca (English: Oaxaca Warriors) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico. Their home field is Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos. History In October 1995, a group of businessmen, ...

of the

on February 17, 2016. On April 21, 2016, he was released by Oaxaca.

Saraperos de Saltillo

On May 17, 2016, Miranda signed with the

Saraperos de Saltillo The Saraperos de Saltillo (English: Saltillo Serape Wearers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League. Their home ballpark is the Estadio de Béisbol Francisco I. Madero in Saltillo, Coahuila. They have won three championships (19 ...

of the

. He was released on July 15, 2016.

Bravos de León

Miranda signed with the

Bravos de León The Bravos de León (English: León Braves) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in León, Guanajuato, Mexico. History Cachorros de León (1979–80) Mexican League baseball in León began in 1979 when the Alijador ...

of the

on May 30, 2017. He was released on July 1, 2017.

Baseball career

Cuba

Professional career

New York Yankees

Arizona Diamondbacks

Tampa Bay Rays

Vaqueros Laguna

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

Vaqueros Laguna

Diablos Rojos del México

Guerreros de Oaxaca

Saraperos de Saltillo

Bravos de León

See also

References

External links