Willy Taveras (born December 25, 1981) is a Dominican former

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 ...

player. A

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

, Taveras 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

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, and

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

Houston Astros

Taveras played in 10 games at the end of the

Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division, having moved to the div ...

season, mostly as a

pinch runner In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been sub ...

. In , he led the majors in

infield hit An infield hit is an outcome in baseball in which the batted ball stays in the infield, but neither the batter nor any runners are put out. If the batter and runners reach safely due to an error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "w ...

s (71),

bunt Bunt may refer to: * Bunt (community), an elite social group from Karnataka, India * Bunt (baseball), a batting technique in baseball * Bunt (sail), a part of a ship's sail * Bunt Island, island in Antarctica * The Bunt, nickname of the Bunting ...

hits (31), and singles (152), and was tops among rookies in runs (82), hits (172), and stolen bases (34; 6th in the NL). He hit .291. Taveras was the Astros' starting center fielder during his rookie season (2005), replacing

Carlos Beltrán Carlos Iván Beltrán (; born April 24, 1977) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder from 1998 to 2017 for the Kansas City Royals, Houston Astros, New York Mets, San Fra ...

, who signed with 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 ...

in the offseason. In Game 4 of the 2005 NLCS against 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 ...

, he made a catch while running up

Tal's Hill Minute Maid Park is a retractable roof stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It opened in 2000 as the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Houston Astros. It has a seating capacity of 41,168, which includes 5,197 club seats and 63 luxu ...

Minute Maid Park Minute Maid Park is a retractable roof stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It opened in 2000 as the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Houston Astros. It has a seating capacity of 41,168, which includes 5,197 club seats and 63 ...

's deep center field to end the 8th inning and preserve a 2-1 lead. He scored the winning run as a pinch-runner the inning before on a short sacrifice fly to center field. After the season, Taveras was voted

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

Rookie of the Year by the players (

Ryan Howard Ryan James Howard (born November 19, 1979), nicknamed "the Big Piece", is an American former professional baseball first baseman. Howard spent his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career playing for the Philadelphia Phillies, from to . He is ...

of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

won the actual Rookie of the Year Award). In , Taveras' batting average regressed to .278, though he again led the majors in bunt hits (21) and had 33

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 (10th in the NL), but just 30 RBI. Taveras had a 30-game hitting streak that ended August 29, 2006, during a game in which he was hit twice by

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

pitcher

Tomo Ohka (born March 18, 1976) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox (–), Montreal Expos / Washington Nationals (2001–), Milwaukee Brewers (2005–), Toronto Blue Jays (), Cleveland Indians ...

. His streak is a franchise record, breaking the record of 25 previously held by

Jeff Kent Jeffrey Franklin Kent (born March 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1992–2008 for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, San Francis ...

. He is the 42nd player in MLB history with a hit streak of 30-or-more games. Within that streak, Taveras had a streak of

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

in 28 consecutive games, tying a National League record set by Willie Davis in 1969. , Taveras and Davis still hold the league record.

Colorado Rockies

On December 12, 2006, Taveras was traded along with

Taylor Buchholz Taylor Buchholz (born October 13, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Biography Buchholz stands 6 feet 4 inches tall, and weighs 220 lbs. He bats and throws right-handed. He grew up and lives in Springfield, P ...

and

Jason Hirsh Jason Michael Hirsh (born February 20, 1982) is an American former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his career, he pitched for the Houston Astros and the Colorado Rockies. He stands at 6' 8" and weighs . He batted and threw right-ha ...

by the Astros to the

for Rockies

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 ...

Jason Jennings Jason Ryan Jennings (born July 17, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball with the Colorado Rockies (2001-2006), Houston Astros (2007) and Texas Rangers (2008-2009). High school/college ...

and

Miguel Asencio Miguel DePaula Asencio (born September 29, 1980) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He began his pro-career in in the Dominican Republic. In 11 games, he went 0–2 with a 6.55 Earned run average, ERA. Asencio was signed by the Philadel ...

. In 2007, Taveras hit .320, including an MLB leading 27 bunt singles, 2 home runs, 24 RBIs, 33 stolen bases, and caught stealing 9 times. He was part of the World Series roster after making a big play in the NLCS vs 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 ...

. The Rockies were swept by the Red Sox. In a 22-inning game played between April 17–18, , at

Petco Park Petco Park is a baseball stadium in Downtown San Diego, California. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's San Diego Padres, and has also been used as a venue for concerts, soccer, golf, and rugby. The ballpark is located between Se ...

, Taveras set a Rockies' club record with 10

at-bat 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 bat ...

s in the game. He led MLB with 68 stolen bases during the 2008 season, and led the NL with 24 bunt hits. At the same time, his .296 slugging percentage was the lowest in the majors. Defensively, however, his .976 fielding percentage was the lowest of all qualifying major league center fielders. On December 12, 2008, the Rockies non-tendered Taveras, making him a free agent.

Cincinnati Reds

On December 27, 2008, Taveras signed a two-year deal worth $6.25 million with the Cincinnati Reds. In his debut with the Reds, he hit a pinch-hit triple in the 8th inning after being down with the flu for over a week. In 2009, Taveras had the lowest slugging percentage, .285, and the lowest on-base percentage, .275, of all National League players with at least 350 plate appearances. On February 1, 2010, Taveras was traded along with Adam Rosales to the Oakland Athletics for

Aaron Miles Aaron Wade Miles (born December 15, 1976) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played nine seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2003 to 2011 for the Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, St. Louis Cardinals, Chica ...

and a player to be named later. He was later designated for assignment by Oakland. Taveras declined a Triple-A assignment and was granted free agency.

Washington Nationals

On February 15, 2010, Taveras signed a minor league contract with the

with an invite to spring training. He played 27 games, and on May 21, 2010 he was granted his unconditional release.

Philadelphia Phillies

On June 3, 2010, he signed a minor league contract with the

.Phillies sign OF Taveras to minor league deal
/ref> He was assigned to Triple-A

Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley (), known colloquially as The Valley, is a geographic region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County and Northampton County in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a component valley of the Great Appalachian Valley bound to the no ...

. On June 29, 2010, he was released after playing 23 games for the IronPigs, batting .208 in 96 AB's, with nine stolen bases. On August 15, 2010, Taveras signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers.

Return to the Rockies

On January 25, 2011, Taveras signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies. He spent the 2011 season with the Rockies Triple-A affiliate

Colorado Springs Sky Sox The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and was the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018), Colorado Rockie ...

, batting .308 in 97 games with a .336 on-base percentage. Due to problems with the sports agency that formerly represented him Taveras was out of American baseball for the entire 2012 season.

Kansas City Royals

On December 11, 2012, Taveras was signed to a minor league contract by the Kansas City Royals with an invitation to spring training. At the time of the signing Taveras was playing baseball in the

Mexican Pacific League The Mexican Pacific League (), known as Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico for sponsorship reasons or simply LMP for its acronym in Spanish, is a professional baseball winter league based in Northern Mexico. The ten-team regular season schedule run ...

with the Yaquis de Obregón.

Sugar Land Skeeters

Taveras signed with the

Sugar Land Skeeters The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros Major League Baseball club. They are located in Sugar Land, Texas, part of the Greater Houston metr ...

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 ...

for the 2015 season. This was Taveras first year in Independent Baseball.

Pericos de Puebla

On April 11, 2016, Taveras signed with the

Pericos de Puebla The Pericos de Puebla (English: "Puebla Parrots") are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Puebla, Mexico. History The state of Puebla came upon baseball in the early 1920s when returning Poblanos that had come from militar ...

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 ...

Acereros de Monclova

On February 21, 2017, Taveras, along with

Chad Gaudin Chad Edward Gaudin (; born March 24, 1983) is a former American professional baseball pitcher. He has been used as both a starting pitcher and a reliever throughout his career, functioning as a "swingman." Gaudin has pitched in Major League Ba ...

Daric Barton Daric William Barton (born August 16, 1985) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics. Minor league career Barton was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the ...

Nyjer Morgan Nyjer Jamid Morgan (born July 2, 1980) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cleveland Indians, in Nippon Pro ...

, Manny Rodriguez, and Rodolfo Amador, were traded to the

Acereros de Monclova The Acereros de Monclova (English: Monclova Steelers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Monclova, Coahuila, Mexico. Their home ballpark is Estadio de Béisbol Monclova, which has a capacity of 11,000 people. The Acere ...

in exchange for RHP Joaquín Lara. He became a free agent following the 2017 season.

Return to Sugar Land

On May 13, 2019, after spending all of 2018 out of professional baseball, Taveras signed with the

of the

. He was released on July 22, 2019.

Scouting report

Taveras has good skills for slap-hitting; however, he strikes out frequently (103 times in 2005) and rarely walks. His career-high in walks is 36, resulting in a low

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

. In addition, Taveras is an exceptionally poor power hitter, producing the lowest slugging percentage among all regular major league outfielders for both the 2005 and 2006 seasons. He has great speed and has been clocked at 3.57 seconds from home to first as a right-handed hitter. Taveras has also led the league in infield singles, and his BABIP (

batting average on balls in play In baseball statistics, batting average on balls in play (abbreviated BABIP) is a measurement of how often batted balls result in hits, excluding home runs. It can be expressed as, "when you hit the ball and it’s not a home run, what’s your b ...

) was .374 in 2007.

Career highlights

* Player's Choice Rookie of the Year. *2005 Sporting News Rookie of the Year *Named to 2006 Dominican Republic World Baseball Classic team. *30 game

hitting streak In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 plate ...

(

franchise record).

References

External links

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Taveras, Willy 1981 births Living people Acereros de Monclova players Águilas Cibaeñas players Burlington Indians players (1986–2006) Cincinnati Reds players Colorado Rockies players Columbus RedStixx players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Gwinnett Braves players Houston Astros players Kinston Indians players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players Major League Baseball center fielders Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Mexican League baseball center fielders Mexican League baseball right fielders National League stolen base champions Oklahoma City RedHawks players Omaha Storm Chasers players People from Hermanas Mirabal Province Pericos de Puebla players Round Rock Express players Scottsdale Scorpions players Sugar Land Skeeters players Washington Nationals players Yaquis de Obregón players World Baseball Classic players of the Dominican Republic 2006 World Baseball Classic players 2009 World Baseball Classic players

Professional career

Houston Astros

Colorado Rockies

Cincinnati Reds

Washington Nationals

Philadelphia Phillies

Return to the Rockies

Kansas City Royals

Sugar Land Skeeters

Pericos de Puebla

Acereros de Monclova

Return to Sugar Land

Scouting report

Career highlights

See also

References

External links