Ángel Peña AY-nyah(born February 16, 1975), is a former

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

Career

Signed by the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 1992, Peña made his major league debut with the Dodgers on September 8, 1998, and appeared in his final game on June 1, 2001. At one point in his career, Peña was heralded as the catcher of the future for the Dodgers. He initially was to take the spot of the traded

Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1992 to 2007, and is a member of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. He intended ...

. However, poor conditioning and the emergence of future

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

Paul Lo Duca Paul Anthony Lo Duca (born April 12, 1972) is an American former professional baseball player and television personality. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers (–), Florida Marlins (2004–, ), New York Met ...

spelled the end of Peña's days as a Dodger, and subsequently as a major league catcher. Pena was released by the Dodgers on October 15, 2001. He briefly played in the

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

minor league system and in independent baseball leagues after that but is now out of baseball.

External links

1975 births Albuquerque Dukes players Camden Riversharks players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in South Korea Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Fresno Grizzlies players Great Falls Dodgers players Guerreros de Oaxaca players Hanwha Eagles players KBO League first basemen Las Vegas 51s players Leones del Escogido players Living people Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Mexican League baseball first basemen Olmecas de Tabasco players San Antonio Missions players San Bernardino Stampede players Savannah Sand Gnats players Sultanes de Monterrey players {{DominicanRepublic-baseball-catcher-stub