Luis Ernesto Salazar Garcia (born May 19, 1956) 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 ...

former professional baseball player,

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

and

manager 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 ...

. He played in Major League Baseball from 1980 to 1992 as a third baseman and outfielder for the San Diego Padres (1980–84, 1987, 1989), Chicago White Sox (1985–86),

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 ...

(1988), and the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

(1989–92).

Baseball career

In 1973, he signed with the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

but was released in 1974. He signed with the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

in 1975. On August 5, 1980, Salazar, along with Rick Lancellotti, was traded to the San Diego Padres for a player to be named later and

Kurt Bevacqua Kurt Anthony Bevacqua (; born January 23, 1947) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an infielder from 1971 to 1985. Bevacqua is notable for his performance during the 1984 World Series when h ...

. The Padres later sent Mark Lee to Pittsburgh to complete the trade. After seven minors seasons, finally, he got a chance with San Diego in the 1980 season. An extremely versatile reserve who played every position but catcher in his career, Salazar was the Padres' third baseman between 1981 and 1983. In

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

, they acquired 39-year-old Graig Nettles, who platooned with Salazar at third base. The Padres won the National League pennant, before losing the World Series in five games to the

. Salazar was traded to the White Sox along with Ozzie Guillén (

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

), and returned to the Padres as a free agent (

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

). Then, he signed with Detroit (

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

), before being dealt back to San Diego. Salazar finished his career with the Cubs. In his first stint with the Padres, Salazar hit 29 home runs with 187 runs batted in and 109

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

s in 525 games. In 126 games with the White Sox, he played on third base,

first base 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 ...

, shortstop and outfield (eventually was DH and relief pitcher), batting .245 with 10 homers and 45 RBI. For Detroit, mostly in the outfield, he hit .270, 12, 62. Also, he kept the Tigers in a pennant race by filling in at shortstop for injured

Alan Trammell Alan Stuart Trammell ( ; born February 21, 1958) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, manager and coach and member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a player. His entire 20-year playing career in Major League Baseball ( ...

. On August 31,

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

, a few minutes before the postseason rosters must be filed, the Cubs obtained Salazar from San Diego in a last effort to replace their four slumping third basemen. Salazar gave the club a lift in September, playing a solid third base and batting .325 (26-80) with 12 RBI and a .357

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

. The Cubs won the National League East division title. The next three seasons Salazar played predominantly on third base, batting .243 with 31 homers, 110 RBI, and 78 runs in 316 games. In a 1,302-game career, Salazar batted .261 with 179 home runs, 653 RBI, 438 runs scored, 1070

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

, 144 doubles, 33

triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...

and 117 stolen bases. Salazar was also a valuable pinch-hitter in his career. He went 28-for-91 for a .308 of batting average, with four home runs and 17 runs batted in. He has served as a hitting coach with the

Louisville RiverBats The Louisville Bats are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Louisville, Kentucky, and are named in dual reference to the winged mammal and baseba ...

(1999),

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...

(2000),

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

, Jacksonville Suns (2008) and Chattanooga Lookouts (2009). Salazar was inducted into the

Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

in 2010. Salazar joined the Atlanta Braves organization in 2011 and was poised to serve as the manager of their Class A-Advanced minor league affiliate, the Lynchburg Hillcats of the Carolina League. On March 9, 2011, he was struck in the face by a foul ball hit by Braves catcher Brian McCann during a spring training game between the Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals. He was airlifted to a local hospital to undergo surgery. Salazar had his left eye removed on March 15, 2011, due to the injuries he sustained from the incident. After the injury, Salazar stated that he intended to continue working for the Braves organization, and he was expected to return to manage the Hillcats once medically cleared to return to work. Salazar returned to the Hillcats dugout on April 15, 2011. Salazar was named manager for the A advanced Florida Fire Frogs in the Atlanta Braves organization for the 2018 season.

References

External links

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League career statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salazar, Luis 1956 births Appleton Foxes players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Central American and Caribbean Games bronze medalists for Venezuela Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games Chicago Cubs players Chicago White Sox players Detroit Tigers players Gulf Coast Royals players Hawaii Islanders players Las Vegas Stars (baseball) players Living people Llaneros de Portuguesa players Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela Major League Baseball third basemen Milwaukee Brewers coaches Minor league baseball managers Niagara Falls Pirates players Sportspeople from Barcelona, Venezuela Portland Beavers players Salem Pirates players San Diego Padres players Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Venezuelan baseball coaches Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in baseball

Baseball career

See also

References

External links