Jesús Miguel Flores (born October 26, 1984) is a Venezuelan former 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 ...

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 ...

. He 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 ...

with the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

Professional career

New York Mets

Flores was signed by the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

as an amateur free agent on March 12, 2002. In parts of three minor league seasons, Flores hit .257 (230-for-895) with 33 home runs and 140 RBI in 250

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Associat ...

. In 2004, he made the

Gulf Coast League The Florida Complex League (FCL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in Florida, United States. Before 2021, it was known as the Gulf Coast League (GCL). Together with the Arizona Complex League (ACL), it forms the low ...

All-Star team. In 2006, he had a terrific minor league season with the Mets' A+ team, St. Lucie. By the end of the season, he was rated by ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...

'' as the Mets top catching prospect after hitting .266 with a .335

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

and a .487

slugging average In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, a ...

. He also hit 32 doubles and tied for the

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

lead with 21

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s, making the Florida State League Mid-Season and Post-Season All-Star teams.

Washington Nationals

Flores, never having played above A-ball, was obtained by the

in the 2006 Rule 5 draft on December 7, 2006. His major league debut with Washington was on April 4, 2007, and his first start on April 19. Three days later, on April 19, he made his second start, and collected his first hits: he went 2-for-3 with a walk, two doubles and two RBIs. On September 4, 2007, Flores hit a 2 RBI, walk-off single to beat 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 team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

. During the 2007–08 offseason, he played for

Navegantes del Magallanes Navegantes del Magallanes B.B.C., commonly known as Navegantes del Magallanes (; ''Strait of Magellan, Magellan Navigators''), or simply Magallanes, are a professional baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP), based in ...

in the

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (, or LVBP) is the top-level professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Background and predecessors Baseball had been play ...

. As the 2008 season opened, Flores was the starting catcher for the Nationals. His season would be over on September 3, 2008 after being injured on a collision with

Chase Utley Chase Cameron Utley (born December 17, 1978) is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 16 seasons, primarily for the Philadelphia Phillies. He also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers. ...

when Utley attempted to steal home. On July 20, 2008, Flores collected five hits, all singles, in a 15–6 Nationals victory over 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 ...

. After 26 games in 2009, Flores was placed on the disabled list with a stress fracture in his shoulder. General Manager Mike Rizzo indicated that he would be out a minimum of three months, and possibly for the rest of the season. He wound up missing the entire 2010 season due to the injury and returned to play 30 games in 2011 and 83 games in 2012.

Los Angeles Dodgers

On January 16, 2013, Flores and 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 ...

agreed to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. The Dodgers assigned him to the AAA

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an ...

. In 22 games for the Isotopes, he hit only .164. He was released on May 23.

Tampa Bay Rays

On June 4, 2013, Flores signed a minor league contract with 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 elected free agency on November 4.

Kansas City Royals

On March 2, 2014, Flores signed a minor league contract 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) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

. He was released on July 23.

Atlanta Braves

On January 30, 2015, Flores signed a minor league deal with the

, that included an invitation to spring training. He was released on April 3.

Miami Marlins

On April 29, 2015, Flores signed a minor league contract with the

Miami 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...

. He was released on July 18.

Team Venezuela

In the

2017 World Baseball Classic The 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, composed of 16 competing nations, held from March 6 to 22, 2017. It was the fourth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. The first-round hosts wer ...

, he joined Team Venezuela due to Salvador Perez sustaining an injury.

References

External links

Baseball AmericaHot FootSportsNet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flores, Jesus 1984 births Living people Albuquerque Isotopes players Brooklyn Cyclones players Columbus Clippers players Durham Bulls players Gulf Coast Mets players Hagerstown Suns players Harrisburg Senators players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Navegantes del Magallanes players Omaha Storm Chasers players People from Carúpano Baseball players from Sucre (state) St. Lucie Mets players Syracuse Chiefs players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Washington Nationals players 2017 World Baseball Classic players