Rafael Darwing Bautista Rodriguez (born March 8, 1993) is a Dominican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

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 c ...

who is a free agent. He has 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

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

Professional career

Washington Nationals

Bautista signed with the

as an international free agent in January 2012. He began his professional career in 2012 with the rookie-league-level Dominican Summer League Nationals in the

Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League (DSL) is a branch of affiliated Minor League Baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. After the demise of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2015 season, it is the only ...

,Baseball Reference: Rafael Bautista
/ref> where he batted .329 with 25 runs batted in (RBIS) and 47 stolen bases.milb.com Rafael Bautista Retrieved May 8, 2018
/ref> In 2013 he played in the rookie-league-level

Gulf Coast League The Florida Complex League (FCL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in Florida, United States. Before 2021, it was known as the Gulf Coast League (GCL). Together with the Arizona Complex League (ACL), it forms the l ...

for the

Gulf Coast League Nationals The Florida Complex League Nationals are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Washington Nationals, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to the 2021 season, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Nationals. The ...

, who that year finished their regular season with a record of 49–9, giving them the highest

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

(.845) for a full regular season ever achieved by a minor-league baseball team based in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The team then won all three of its playoff games, defeating the

Gulf Coast League Pirates The Florida Complex League Pirates are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Pirates. The team plays its h ...

in a single-game semifinal playoff and sweeping the

Gulf Coast League Red Sox The Florida Complex League Red Sox are a professional baseball team competing in the rookie-level Florida Complex League (FCL) of Minor League Baseball. The team is owned and operated by the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Prior ...

in the best-of-three league championship series, to become the 2013 Gulf Coast League champions. Bautista appeared in 52 games during the championship season,

batting Batting may refer to: * Batting (baseball), the act of attempting to hit a ball thrown by the pitcher with a baseball bat, in order to score runs * Batting (cricket), the act of defending one's wicket with the cricket bat while attempting to score ...

.322 with one home run, 27

RBIs 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 ...

, and 26 stolen bases. Bautista spent 2014 with the Class A

Hagerstown Suns The Hagerstown Suns were a Minor League Baseball team based in Hagerstown, Maryland. They were a member of the South Atlantic League and, from 2007 through 2020, were the Class A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They played their home ga ...

in the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

, hitting .290 with five home runs, 54 RBIs, and 69 stolen bases. He split 2015 between the Class A Advanced

Potomac Nationals The Potomac Nationals were a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League. They were located in Woodbridge, Virginia, and played their home games at Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium. After the 2019 season, the team relocated to F ...

in the

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 ...

, the Class A Short Season

Auburn Doubledays The Auburn Doubledays are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) that is located in Auburn, New York. From 1958 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL ...

in the New York-Penn League, and the Gulf Coast League Nationals, batting a combined .275 for the year with a home run, 14 RBIs, and 26 stolen bases, and over the 2015-2016 offseason played in the

Dominican Winter League Dominican may refer to: * Someone or something from or related to the Dominican Republic ( , stress on the "mi"), on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles, in the Caribbean ** People of the Dominican Republic ** Demographics of the Domi ...

with

Leones del Escogido Leones del Escogido (English: ''Chosen One Lions'' or ''Lions of Chosen One'' or ''Picked Lions'') is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in , Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Wi ...

. He advanced to the Class AA

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team of the Eastern League, and the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, who play their home games at FNB Field on City Island, which opened in 1987 a ...

in the Eastern League for the 2016 season, hitting .282 with four home runs, 39 RBIs, and 56 stolen bases, and after that season the Washington Nationals added him to their 40-man roster. He again played winter ball with Leones del Escogido during the 2016-2017 offseason. Bautista began the 2017 season with the Class AAA

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York * Syracuse, Indiana *Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

in the International League. The Washington Nationals promoted him to the major leagues on April 29, 2017. He made his major league debut on April 30 in a 23–5 Nationals victory over the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

Nationals Park Nationals Park is a baseball stadium along the Anacostia River in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Home to Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals since its completion in 2008, it was the first LEED-certified green major profe ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, batting twice and going 0-for-2 against Mets catcher

Kevin Plawecki Kevin Jeffrey Plawecki (; born February 26, 1991) is an American professional baseball catcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and Texas Ranger ...

, who was making his first-ever major league appearance as a pitcher. On May 6, in a 6–2 Nationals victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at

Citizens Bank Park Citizens Bank Park is a baseball stadium located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the city's South Philadelphia Sports Complex. It is the home playing field of the Philadelphia Phillies, the city's Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise. The ...

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, he made his first career major-league start, playing right field, and got his first career major-league hit, a single through the infield off Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez. The Nationals

optioned In the film industry, an option is a contractual agreement pertaining to film rights between a potential film producer (such as a movie studio, a production company, or an individual) and the author of source material, such as a book, play, or s ...

Bautista back to Syracuse on May 8. The Nationals recalled Bautista on August 27, but optioned him back to Syracuse the next day. They called him back up again on September 7, and he finished the regular season with the Nationals. He completed the season having played in 17 major-league games,

.160 with four hits – all singles – in 25 at-bats, scoring two runs, and with a slugging percentage of .160 and an on-base percentage of .222. In the minor leagues, Bautista played 43 games for Syracuse and 13 for the Gulf Coast League Nationals during 2017. He hit a combined .259 for the two teams, with 14 RBIs and nine stolen bases. Bautista participated in 2018 major-league spring training before the Nationals

him to the Class AAA

on March 14. He was reassigned to the Class AA

on April 2 and began the season with them, but was promoted back to Syracuse on April 12. He had made 45 plate appearances for Syracuse, batting .429 with a .966 on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS)Castillo, Jorge, "Nationals’ outfield depth dealt another blow as Rafael Bautista suffers season-ending injury," washingtonpost.com, May 19, 2018, 12:53 p.m. EDT.
/ref> when, on April 24, the Nationals called him up to the major leagues. He appeared in nine games, usually as a late-game replacement or a pinch-runner, made one start, and went 0-for-6, striking out once and scoring a run before the Nationals optioned him back to Syracuse on May 7 to make room on their 25-man roster when they activated right-handed relief pitcher

Shawn Kelley Shawn Andrew Kelley (born April 26, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners from 2009 to 2012, New York Yankees from 2013 to 2014, San Diego Padres in 2015, Was ...

from the 10-day disabled list. Bautista made another 46 plate appearances for Syracuse, batting .300 with a .749 OPS, before colliding with another player during a game against the Rochester Red Wings at

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

, New York, on May 17, tearing the

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and th ...

, lateral collateral ligament, and

meniscus Meniscus may refer to: *Meniscus (anatomy), crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure that partly divides a joint cavity *Meniscus (liquid) The meniscus (plural: ''menisci'', from the Greek for "crescent") is the curve in the upper surface ...

in his left knee. The injury required season-ending surgery. He ended his season with an overall .303 batting average in the minor leagues, with three doubles, a triple, a home run, seven RBIs, and six stolen bases in the minors for the year. On June 9, the Nationals released Bautista to make room for Adam Eaton on their roster when they activated Eaton from the 60-day disabled list. On June 13, Washington re-signed Bautista to a minor league deal. He spent the remainder of the season in Triple-A Syracuse. In 2019, Bautista played for Double-A Harrisburg, Single-A Hagerstown, and Low-A Auburn, slashing .182/.256/.255 with 2 home runs and 9 RBI across 29 games between the three teams. Bautista did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of 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 identi ...

. On November 2, 2020, he elected free agency. On November 12, 2020, Bautista re-signed with the Nationals on a minor league contract. Bautista was assigned to the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings to begin the 2021 season. He elected free agency on November 7, 2021.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bautista, Rafael 1993 births Living people Auburn Doubledays players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Summer League Nationals players Gigantes del Cibao players Gulf Coast Nationals players Hagerstown Suns players Harrisburg Senators players Leones del Escogido players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Potomac Nationals players Rochester Red Wings players Sportspeople from Santo Domingo Syracuse Chiefs players Washington Nationals players