Oscar Gregorio Azócar (February 21, 1965 – June 14, 2010) was a

Venezuela 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 ...

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

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), ...

who played for the

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

(1990) 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 ...

(1991-'92). Listed at 6' 1", 170 lb., Azócar batted and threw left-handed. In 202 career games, Azócar recorded a

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .226 and accumulated 10

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, and 36

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

(RBI).

Career

Azócar was born in Soro, Sucre,

. After attending high school in Venezuela, he was signed by the

as an amateur free agent on November 22, 1983. Until 1987 Azócar posted a record of 14–5 with a 2.30

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

as a professional

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

, but then switched to the outfield. Azócar was a classic example of the impatient hitter who would swing at almost anything and usually put it in play. It took him 100 Major League

at-bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

to draw his first

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 ov ...

. He normally obliged the pitchers by hitting whatever they threw, and his

dropped accordingly. In a three-season career, Azócar was a .226 hitter (99-for-439) with five

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 36

in 202 games, including 38

runs scored In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls ...

, 16 doubles, 10

s and 12

base on balls A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Se ...

. Despite his free-swinging style, he had only 36

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in 439 at-bats (one every 12 at-bats). Azócar also used his speed selectively and never was

caught stealing In baseball, a runner is charged, and the fielders involved are credited, with a time caught stealing when the runner attempts to advance or lead off from one base to another without the ball being batted and then is tagged out by a fielder whil ...

. Azócar died in 2010 in

Valencia, Carabobo Valencia () is the capital city of Carabobo State and the third-largest city in Venezuela. The city is an economic hub that contains Venezuela's top industries and manufacturing companies. It is also the largest city in the Valencia-Maracay m ...

, at the age of 45 of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

.Obituary
/ref> The same year, he was inducted in the

Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame The Pabellón de la Fama del Caribe (In English, the ''Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame'') was established in 1996 by Juan Francisco Puello Herrera, commissioner of the Confederación de Béisbol del Caribe (''Caribbean Confederation of Profession ...

for his notable contributions in the

Caribbean Series The Caribbean Series (''Spanish'': ''Serie del Caribe''), also called Caribbean World Series, is the highest tournament for professional baseball teams in Latin America. The tournament location is rotated annually among the countries and is norma ...

References

External links

RetrosheetVenezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azocar, Oscar 1965 births 2010 deaths Albany-Colonie Yankees players Baseball pitchers Caribes de Oriente players Charros de Jalisco players Columbus Clippers players Fort Lauderdale Yankees players Guerreros de Oaxaca players Gulf Coast Yankees players Las Vegas Stars (baseball) players Leones de Yucatán players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela Mayas de Chetumal players Mexican League baseball first basemen Mexican League baseball left fielders Mexican League baseball right fielders Navegantes del Magallanes players New York Yankees players Oneonta Yankees players People from Sucre (state) Petroleros de Poza Rica players Rojos del Águila de Veracruz players San Diego Padres players Tiburones de La Guaira players Tigres de Aragua players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Mexico Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States

Career

See also

References

External links