Jack Henry López (born December 16, 1992) is a Puerto Rican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

in the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

organization. He has previously played in

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 ...

(MLB) for the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

and

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

. Listed at and , he bats and throws right-handed.

Baseball career

Amateur career

López graduated from Deltona High School in

Deltona, Florida Deltona is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Monroe (Florida), Lake Monroe. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population was 93,692. It is a principal city of ...

. He had a .462

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

during his senior season and was named to the All-Central Florida baseball team. Although he was offered a full scholarship to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

with the

Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes, known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes, are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...

, 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) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

selected López in the 16th round of the 2011 MLB draft, and he signed with the Royals for a $750,000 bonus.

Kansas City Royals

López began his professional career in 2012, splitting the season between the

Rookie-level Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

Idaho Falls Chukars The Idaho Falls Chukars are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and play their home games at Melaleu ...

and the

Single-A Single-A, formerly known as Class A and sometimes as Low-A, is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A, Double-A (baseball), Double-A, and High-A. There are 30 teams cl ...

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are a professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois, and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their home games a ...

. The following year, López was promoted to the High-A

Wilmington Blue Rocks The Wilmington Blue Rocks are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Wilmington, Delaware, and play their home games at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium. Fra ...

, where he batted .230/.297/.301 with 4 home runs and 45 RBI. He returned to Wilmington in 2014 and 2015, batting .215 and .238, respectively. In 2016, López advanced further through the Royals'

farm system In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful pl ...

, reaching Double-A with the

Northwest Arkansas Naturals The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springdale, Arkansas, Springdale, Arkansas. The team is a member of the Texas League, and serves as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. T ...

. For the 2017 season, López began the season in Double-A, and spent the year there aside from a short stint with the Triple-A

Omaha Storm Chasers The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, Nebraska, Omah ...

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 ...

. In 2018, López spent the year in Omaha, where he slashed .251/.279/.352 with 34

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) 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 th ...

(RBI) and a career-high 8 home runs. He elected free agency following the season on November 2, 2018.

Atlanta Braves

On March 9, 2019, López signed a minor league contract with the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

organization. He appeared in 96 games for the Triple-A

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

of the

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

in 2019, batting .273 with 12 home runs and 57 RBI. López did not play in a game in 2020, as the minor league season was canceled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He elected free agency on November 2, 2020.

Boston Red Sox

On January 16, 2021, López signed a minor league contract with the

organization. He began the season with the Double-A

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red ...

, and was promoted to the Triple-A

Worcester Red Sox The Worcester Red Sox (nicknamed the WooSox) are a professional minor league baseball team based in Worcester, Massachusetts. Beginning play in 2021, the team is the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, succeeding the Pawtucket Red Sox. Th ...

. López was on Boston's

taxi squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scout ...

in late August, traveling with the major-league team as a potential roster replacement. He was added to Boston's active roster on September 1, and made his MLB debut that evening against the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

. He was returned to Worcester on September 6, recalled to Boston on September 11, and returned to Worcester on September 21. López played in seven games for Boston, batting .154 (2-for-13). In the minor leagues, he played five games for Portland, batting 8-for-19 (.421), and 68 games for Worcester, where he had a .274 average. López became a free agent following the 2021 season.

Detroit Tigers

On February 9, 2022, López signed a minor league contract with the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

. López played in 95 games for the Triple-A

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

, batting .167/.205/.287 with 6 home runs, 34 RBI, and 11 stolen bases. He elected free agency following the season on November 10.

Los Angeles Angels

On April 11, 2023, López signed a minor league contract with the

organization. In 93 games for the Triple–A

Salt Lake Bees The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team that plays in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. Based in South Jordan, Utah, the team plays its home games at The Ballpark at Am ...

, he batted .277/.333/.476 with 13 home runs and 74 RBI. López elected free agency following the season on November 6. López re-signed with the Angels on a minor league contract on December 19, 2023. In 104 games for Salt Lake in 2024, he batted .274/.333/.421 with 12 home runs, 57 RBI, and 15 stolen bases. On August 16, 2024, the Angels selected López's contract, adding López to their active roster. In 27 games for the Angels, he slashed .254/.286/.343 with one home run and six RBI. On October 24, López was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to Salt Lake. He elected free agency following the season on November 4.

Seattle Mariners

On January 14, 2025, López signed a minor league contract with the

International career

López has played in the

Puerto Rican Winter League Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Oriental Mi ...

during the minor-league offseason, each year since the 2013–14 season. He has played for several teams in the league, including three seasons with Cangrejeros de Santurce. López played for

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

in the

Caribbean Series The Caribbean Series ( Spanish: ''Serie del Caribe'') is an annual club tournament contested by professional baseball teams in Latin America. It is organized by the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation. The series is normally played in ...

of 2018–19, 2019–20, and 2020–21, batting over .300 in each series. On July 2, 2021, López was named to the

United States national baseball team The United States national baseball team, also known as Team USA, represents the United States in international level baseball competitions. The team is currently ranked 5th in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The United S ...

for the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. He was granted a transfer of sports citizenship by the Puerto Rico Baseball Federation. The team went on to win silver, falling to Japan in the gold-medal game.

Personal life

López's father, Juan López, was a minor-league catcher who later served as bullpen coach for three different

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

teams during 14 seasons between 1999 and 2013. López's uncle Onix Concepción was a shortstop for the

, including their

1985 World Series The 1985 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1985 season. The 82nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Kansas City Royals and the Nat ...

team; he also played one game 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

References

External links

Player profile
at SoxProspects.com
Jack Lopez
at

USA Baseball The United States Baseball Federation, doing business as USA Baseball, is a 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that acts as the national Sports governing body, governing body for baseball in the United States. USA Baseball ...

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez, Jack 1992 births Living people Baseball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Baseball players from San Juan, Puerto Rico Boston Red Sox players Cangrejeros de Santurce (baseball) players Criollos de Caguas players Gwinnett Stripers players Idaho Falls Chukars players Indios de Mayagüez players Kane County Cougars players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball infielders Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Northwest Arkansas Naturals players Olympic baseball players for the United States Olympic silver medalists for the United States in baseball Omaha Storm Chasers players Portland Sea Dogs players Salt Lake Bees players Sportspeople from Río Piedras, Puerto Rico Tacoma Rainiers players Tiburones de Aguadilla players United States national baseball team players Wilmington Blue Rocks players Worcester Red Sox players