Rafael Ángel Ortega García (born May 15, 1991) is a Venezuelan

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 leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

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 ...

in the Texas Rangers organization. He previously 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 Colorado Rockies,

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

, Miami Marlins,

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

and Chicago Cubs.

Career

Colorado Rockies

On January 30, 2008, Ortega was signed as an amateur free agent by the Colorado Rockies. He made his professional debut with the

Dominican Summer League Rockies The Dominican Summer League Rockies or DSL Rockies are a Rookie League affiliate of the Colorado Rockies based in the Dominican Republic. They play in the Dominican Summer League. As an independent affiliate, they have been in existence since 19 ...

. In 2009, Ortega remained with the DSL Rockies, slashing .324/.395/.414 in 70 games. In 2010, he played with the rookie ball

Casper Ghosts Casper may refer to: People * Casper (given name) * Casper (surname) * Casper (Maya ruler) (422–487?), ruler of the Mayan city of Palenque * Tok Casper, first known king of Maya city-state Quiriguá in Guatemala, ruling beginning in 426 * Da ...

, batting .358/.426/.510 with 7 home runs and 45 RBI. The next year, Ortega played for the Single-A

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in differe ...

, hitting .294/.335/.438 with 9 home runs and 66 RBI. He began the 2012 season with the High-A

Modesto Nuts The Modesto Nuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Modesto, California, and are named for the several types of nuts grown in the region. They play the ...

, and hit .283 in 114 games for the team. Ortega made his major league debut with the Rockies on September 30, 2012. He spent the 2013 season with the Double-A Tulsa Drillers, slashing .228/.315/.297 in 42 games.

Texas Rangers

Ortega was claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers on November 27, 2013. The Rangers designated Ortega for assignment on December 30, 2013.

St. Louis Cardinals

The

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

claimed Ortega on January 6, 2014. He was assigned to the Double-A

Springfield Cardinals The Springfield Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springfield, Missouri. They compete as a member of the Texas League's North Division. The Cardinals began play in 2005. The team is owned by the 11-time Major League Baseball ...

to begin the year. On September 8, 2014, Ortega was designated for assignment by St. Louis. He was outrighted to the Triple-A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...

on September 10. He spent the 2015 season in Memphis, batting .286/.367/.378 with 2 home runs and 42 RBI. On November 6, 2015, he elected free agency.

Los Angeles Angels

The

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

signed Ortega to a one-year, major league contract on December 1, 2015. Ortega made the team out of spring training as a fourth outfielder. After injuries to their starting left fielders, Ortega was entrenched as the Angels left fielder. In 36 games, he hit .236 and only struck out 16 times in 122 at bats. On June 11, Ortega was sent down to Triple-A. On November 11, 2016, Ortega was designated for assignment by the Angels. He elected free agency on November 18.

San Diego Padres

On December 13, 2016, Ortega signed a minor league contract with the

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 penn ...

. He spent the 2017 season with the Triple-A

El Paso Chihuahuas The El Paso Chihuahuas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in El Paso, Texas, and play their home games at Southwest University Park, which opened ...

, posting a .317/.383/.468 batting line with 4 home runs and 31 RBI. On November 6, 2017, he elected free agency.

Miami Marlins

Ortega signed a minor league contract with the Miami Marlins on December 15, 2017. He was assigned to the Triple-A

New Orleans Baby Cakes The New Orleans Baby Cakes (formerly the New Orleans Zephyrs) were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They were located in Metairie, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans, ...

to begin the year. On August 10, 2018, Ortega was selected to the active roster. He hit .233/.287/.271 with 7 RBI in 41 games for Miami. On October 12, 2018, Ortega was outrighted off of the 40-man roster. He elected free agency on October 17, 2018.

Atlanta Braves

On November 19, 2018, Ortega signed a minor league deal with the

that included an invitation to spring training. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Gwinnett Stripers The Gwinnett Stripers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They play their home games at Coolray Field in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia (with a Lawrencevil ...

to begin the season. On August 13, 2019, the Braves selected his contract. Ortega hit his second career home run, a grand slam against

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

pitcher

Dustin May Dustin Jake May (born September 6, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was selected by the Dodgers in the third round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft, and made h ...

, on August 18, 2019. He hit .205/.271/.307 with 2 home runs and 10 RBI in 34 games for Atlanta. He was included in the Braves' NLDS roster as the Braves fell to the

in 5 games. Ortega was non-tendered on December 2, 2019, and became a free agent. On December 10, he re-signed with Atlanta on a minor league contract. Ortega 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 ...

. He became a free agent on November 2, 2020.

Chicago Cubs

On February 12, 2021, Ortega signed a minor league deal with the Cubs which included an invitation to major-league spring training. Ortega did not make the Cubs opening day roster. He was however selected to the alternate site roster in South Bend, preceding the start of the delayed Minor League Baseball season. On May 26, 2021, Ortega was selected to the active roster. In his regular-season Cubs debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Ortega went 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored. On May 29, 2021, Ortega hit both his first home run of the 2021 season and as a Cub against Ryan Hendrix of the Cincinnati Reds. In the month of July, Ortega hit .368/.419/.500 including a .378/.429/.578 slash-line following the All-Star break. On July 31, 2021, Ortega hit his third home run of the year against Joe Ross of 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 ...

, the most home runs he's ever hit in one season. On August 1, 2021, Ortega continued his hot streak hitting three home runs in one game, tying the club record and becoming just th
43rd
Cub to do so. On August 23, 2021, Ortega ended the Cubs franchise record 13-game home losing streak at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago ...

with a walk-off 2-run home run against

Daniel Bard Daniel Paul Bard (born June 25, 1985) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Boston Red Sox from 2009 to 2013. In 2011, Bard set a Red Sox team record wit ...

of the Colorado Rockies. On August 25, 2021, Ortega stole home as a part of a double steal with

Ian Happ Ian Edward Happ (born August 12, 1994) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball at the University of Cincinnati for the Cincinnati Bearcats baseball team. The ...

. He became the first Cubs player to steal home since Billy Hamilton did so on September 27, 2020, also part of a double steal. On August 28, 2021, during the Crosstown Classic, Ortega hit a

grand slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

against

Lance Lynn Michael Lance Lynn (born May 12, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Texas Rangers. ...

of the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

as a part of the Cubs' 7–0 victory. Ortega finished the 2021 season batting .291/.360/.463 with 11 home runs, 33 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in a career-high 103 games. On November 18, 2022, Ortega was non tendered and became a free agent.

New York Yankees

On January 3, 2023, Ortega signed a minor league deal with the

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

. After being informed that he did not make the Opening Day roster, Ortega requested and was granted his release on March 28.

Texas Rangers

On April 2, 2023, Ortega signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ortega, Rafael 1991 births Living people Asheville Tourists players Atlanta Braves players Caribes de Anzoátegui players Casper Ghosts players Chicago Cubs players Colorado Rockies players Dominican Summer League Rockies players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic El Paso Chihuahuas players Gulf Coast Cardinals players Gwinnett Stripers players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela Memphis Redbirds players Miami Marlins players Modesto Nuts players New Orleans Baby Cakes players Round Rock Express players Salt Lake Bees players Springfield Cardinals players Tiburones de La Guaira players Tulsa Drillers players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States People from El Tigre

Career

Colorado Rockies

Texas Rangers

St. Louis Cardinals

Los Angeles Angels

San Diego Padres

Miami Marlins

Atlanta Braves

Chicago Cubs

New York Yankees

Texas Rangers

See also

References

External links