Nelson Rodríguez (born June 12, 1994) is an American

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 ...

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 ...

who is a free agent. He was drafted in the 15th round of the

2012 MLB draft The 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto R ...

by 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 ...

Career

Cleveland Indians

Rodríguez attended George Washington High School in

Washington Heights, Manhattan Washington Heights is a neighborhood in the uppermost part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest natural point on Manhattan by Continental Army troops to defen ...

. The

selected Rodríguez in the 15th round of the

. He started the 2013 season with 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 ...

of the Single–A

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

, but struggled, and was demoted to 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 ...

of the Low–A

New York-Penn League New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. He returned to Lake County in 2014. He began the 2015 season 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 ...

of the High–A

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

, and was promoted to the

Akron RubberDucks The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,630 ...

of the Double–A Eastern League during the season. He played for Akron in 2016, earning a non-roster invitation to the Indians' 2017 spring training camp. Rodríguez was rated as the Indians #3 first base prospect entering the 2018 season. He played in 107 games split between Akron and the Triple–A

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, mercha ...

, hitting .228/.308/.416 with 15 home runs and 62 RBI. Rodríguez elected free agency following the season on November 2, 2018. Rodríguez re-signed with the Indians in February 2019. He became a free agent following the 2019 season.

York Revolution

On March 17, 2020, Rodríguez signed with the

York Revolution The York Revolution is an American professional minor-league baseball team based in York, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent baseball league, independent "partner lea ...

of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's ...

. He did not play a game for the team because of the cancellation of the ALPB season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and became a free agent after the year. On February 22, 2021, Rodríguez re-signed with the Revolution for the 2021 season. In 16 games with York, Rodríguez slashed .371/.467/.597 with 3 home runs and 18 RBI.

Toros de Tijuana

On July 4, 2021, Rodríguez signed with the

Toros de Tijuana The Toros de Tijuana (or Tijuana Bulls) are a Mexican Baseball team based in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. They are members of the Mexican Baseball League and play their home games at Estadio Chevron. Team history Original Attempt The fran ...

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 ...

. On July 11, Rodríguez was granted his release by Tijuana after going 4-for-20 in 6 games with the team.

York Revolution (second stint)

On July 16, 2021, Rodríguez re-signed with the

of the

. Rodríguez was named the Revolution player of the year after batting .316 with 25 home runs and 81 RBI in 91 games with the team. He became a free agent following the season. On February 7, 2022, Rodríguez signed with the Revolution for the 2022 season. He played in 124 games for York, slashing .249/.414/.477 with 26 home runs and 82 RBI. On February 7, 2023, Rodríguez re-signed with York for the 2023 season. His 2023 numbers were very similar to those from the previous season: he hit .253/.367/.496 with 24 home runs and 82 RBI in 124 games.

Pericos de Puebla

On October 1, 2023, Rodríguez signed with the

Pericos de Puebla The Pericos de Puebla (English: "Puebla Parrots") are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Puebla, Mexico. History The state of Puebla came upon baseball in the early 1920s when returning Poblanos that had come from militar ...

of the

. In 51 games for Puebla, he batted .262/.357/.429 with four home runs and 16 RBI. Rodríguez was released by the Pericos on July 17, 2024.

Personal life

Rodríguez's father, Nelson, was born in 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 wit ...

and played professional baseball, reaching Double-A 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 ...

' organization.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodríguez, Nellie 1994 births Living people Baseball players from Manhattan Baseball first basemen George Washington Educational Campus alumni Mahoning Valley Scrappers players Lake County Captains players Lynchburg Hillcats players Akron RubberDucks players Columbus Clippers players York Revolution players Pericos de Puebla players