Ruben A. Gotay ( ; born December 25, 1982) is a Puerto Rican former 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 tea ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

. He 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) from 2004 to 2008 with the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

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 ...

and

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) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

. He is currently a coach for the

Clearwater Threshers The Clearwater Threshers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Clearwater, Florida, and have played their home games at BayCare Ballpark since 2 ...

Professional career

Kansas City Royals

Gotay made his major league debut with the

on August 4, , when they played 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 p ...

. He went 1-for-3 and got his first major league

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

off

José Contreras José Ariel Contreras Camejo (born December 6, 1971), is a Cuban former professional baseball pitcher, who played in the Cuban National Series (CNS), Major League Baseball (MLB), and internationally for the Cuban national baseball team. Contr ...

.mlb.com
/ref> Gotay played in 44 games for the Royals in 2004. He hit .270 with one

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 ...

and 16 RBI.baseball-reference.com
/ref> In , Gotay made the Royals' opening day roster and played in 86 major league games. He batted .227 with five home runs and 29 RBI. Gotay spent the entire season in the minor leagues.

New York Mets

He was traded to the

for prospect

Jeff Keppinger Jeffrey Scott Keppinger (born April 21, 1980) is an American retired Major League Baseball infielder. He played for the New York Mets, Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays, and Chicago White So ...

on July 19, 2006. Gotay was designated for assignment by the Mets to make room on the 40-man roster for

Chan Ho Park Chan Ho Park (; ; born June 30, 1973) is a South Korean former professional baseball pitcher. Park was the first South Korea-born player in MLB history. He played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, New York Mets, ...

in February . Gotay cleared waivers and was assigned outright to the

New Orleans Zephyrs 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, ...

of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

on February 16, 2007 but was brought back to the major league club on April 30, 2007, after an injury to

José Valentín José Antonio Valentín (born October 12, 1969) is a Puerto Rican former American Major League Baseball infielder. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers (–), Chicago White Sox (–), Los Angeles Dodgers (), and New York Mets (–). His ...

. On May 9, 2007, Gotay hit his first home run as a Met off

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

Matt Morris, the ball barely clearing the high right field wall at

AT&T Park Oracle Park is a Major League Baseball stadium in the SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has been the home of the San Francisco Giants. Previously named Pacific Bell Park, SBC Park, and AT&T Park, the stadium's curren ...

. On March 27, , Gotay was placed on waivers by the Mets.

Atlanta Braves

Gotay was claimed off waivers from the Mets on March 28, 2008, and hit his first home run for Atlanta on June 21. Gotay occasionally

pinch hit In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...

, but rarely started for the Braves.

Pittsburgh Pirates

In February , Gotay signed a minor league contract 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 ...

Arizona Diamondbacks

On April 4, 2009, Gotay's contract was sold to the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

and was assigned to Triple-A

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...

. In November 2009 Gotay Filed For Free Agency.

St. Louis Cardinals

On November 30, 2009, Gotay signed a minor league contract with 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 hav ...

with an invitation to Spring training.

Florida Marlins

On December 2, 2010, Gotay signed a minor league contract with the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

. He was later released by the Florida Marlins.

Return to Atlanta

Gotay signed a minor league contract with the

on June 19, 2011.

Toronto Blue Jays

Gotay was signed by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

on March 14, 2012.

Cincinnati Reds

Gotay signed a minor league deal with the Cincinnati Reds on December 18, 2013. He became a free agent after the 2014 season.

Saraperos de Saltillo

On April 3, 2015, Gotay signed with the

Saraperos de Saltillo The Saraperos de Saltillo (English: Saltillo Serape Wearers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League. Their home ballpark is the Estadio de Béisbol Francisco I. Madero in Saltillo, Coahuila. They have won three championships (198 ...

of the

Mexican Baseball 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 ...

. He was released on April 16, 2015. He signed with them again on April 1, 2016. He was released on April 7, 2016.

Long Island Ducks

On May 16, 2016, Gotay signed with the

Long Island Ducks The Long Island Ducks are an American professional minor-league baseball team based on Long Island in Central Islip, New York. The Ducks compete in the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB), an independent "partne ...

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 became a free agent after the 2016 season. He resigned on June 10, 2017.

Coaching career

The Philadelphia Phillies has hired him to be coach at their Single High A team Clearwater for 2018 season.

Personal

His uncle is former major leaguer

Julio Gotay Julio Enrique Gotay Sánchez (April 9, 1939 – July 4, 2008) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player, a shortstop and second baseman who played all or parts of ten seasons (1960–69) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Lo ...

. Gotay played little league in Fajardo Puerto Rico where his father Rubén Gotay was the head coach of the Pumas.baseball-reference.com
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gotay, Ruben 1982 births 2006 World Baseball Classic players Living people Atenienses de Manatí (baseball) players Atlanta Braves players Burlington Bees players Gigantes de Carolina players Gulf Coast Royals players Gwinnett Braves players Indios de Mayagüez players Kansas City Royals players Las Vegas 51s players Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente infielders Long Island Ducks players Louisville Bats players Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball third basemen Memphis Redbirds players Mexican League baseball first basemen Mexican League baseball second basemen Mexican League baseball third basemen Minor league baseball coaches Navegantes del Magallanes players Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in Venezuela New Orleans Zephyrs players New York Mets players Norfolk Tides players Omaha Royals players People from Río Piedras, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in Mexico Reno Aces players Richmond Braves players Saraperos de Saltillo players Senadores de San Juan players Springfield Cardinals players Wichita Wranglers players Wilmington Blue Rocks players Criollos de Caguas players Tiburones de Aguadilla players