Nelson Javier Velázquez (born December 26, 1998) is a Puerto Rican

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 ...

for 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 ...

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). He made his MLB debut in 2022.

Career

Velázquez was selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the

2017 MLB draft The 2017 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 12, 2017. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first 36 picks, including the first round and compensatory picks, were broadcast on MLB Network on J ...

. He made his professional debut that year, playing in the rookie-level

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

. In 2018, he split time at the

Class A Short Season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

and Class A levels, batting .231 overall for the season; in 103 games, he had 11 home runs and 40 RBIs. In 2019, he mainly played at the Class A level, where he batted .286 with four home runs and 34 RBIs in 72 games. He then played in the

Puerto Rican Winter League Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

in the 2019–20 offseason. Velázquez did not play professionally during 2020, as the minor-league season was cancelled. In 2021, he played 69 games for the

South Bend Cubs The South Bend Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in South Bend, Indiana, and play their home games at Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium. The team was or ...

, a

High-A High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

team, and 34 games for the

Tennessee Smokies The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off Int ...

, a Double-A team. Overall, he batted .270 with 20 home runs and 73 RBIs in 103 game; he also stole 17 bases. After the regular season, he played for the

Mesa Solar Sox The Mesa Solar Sox are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Mesa, Arizona, at Sloan Park, which is also the spring training facility of the Chicago Cubs. The team was established ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...

where he batted .366 with nine home runs and 21 RBIs in 26 games. Velázquez was named MVP of the 2021

season, and was also added to the Cubs' 40-man roster following the 2021 season. Velázquez reached the Triple-A level in 2022 with the

Iowa Cubs The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. The ...

, and was added to Chicago's active roster prior to a doubleheader on May 30. He made his major-league debut the same day, collecting a hit in his first MLB at bat. He played in 77 games for the Cubs in his rookie campaign, hitting .205/.286/.373 with 6 home runs, 26 RBI, and 5 stolen bases. Velázquez was optioned to Triple-A Iowa to begin the 2023 season.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Velázquez, Nelson 1998 births Living people People from Carolina, Puerto Rico Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Major League Baseball outfielders Chicago Cubs players Arizona League Cubs players South Bend Cubs players Eugene Emeralds players Criollos de Caguas players Tennessee Smokies players Mesa Solar Sox players Iowa Cubs players 2023 World Baseball Classic players