Jesús Antonio Guzmán Álvarez (born June 14, 1984) is a

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

n 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 ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

for the Delfines de La Guaira of the

Venezuelan Major League The Venezuelan Major League, officially the Major League of Professional Baseball ( or LMBP) is a professional baseball league in Venezuela. Unlike the top-level Venezuelan Professional Baseball League, which plays a winter league schedule, the ...

. He was signed by 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 ...

in 2000 and played several seasons in minor league baseball before he appeared in the major leagues. He 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

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 ...

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

, and

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

, and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the

Hiroshima Toyo Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Matsuda ...

Minor league career

Guzmán was signed by the

as an

undrafted 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 ...

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. He played in the Venezuelan leagues from 2001 through 2003 as a teenager. Guzmán came to the United States in 2004 and played with the Seattle High-A and Double-A affiliates through 2007 when he was granted free agency. The

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

signed Guzmán as a minor league free agent, and he played for three Athletics minor league clubs in 2008 before again being granted free agency. He posted a .364 batting average with the Double-A

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, which ope ...

, and a .237 average in a limited 59 at-bats with the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...

, but his defense was a liability and he made 22 errors in 317 chances in 2008 while playing third and second base. The

signed Guzmán as a minor league

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 ...

and invited him to spring training in 2009. He had an impressive spring, hitting .404 in Cactus League games, but in late March he was sent to learn to play first base in minor league games where his footwork on defense would not be as crucial. Guzmán began the 2009 season with the Triple-A

Fresno Grizzlies The Fresno Grizzlies are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They are located in Fresno, California, and play their home games at Chukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in ...

, where he spent most of the season apart from a few short stints with the Major League club. He accumulated a .321 batting average and a .885

OPS OPS may refer to: Organizations * Obscene Publications Squad, a former unit of the Metropolitan Police in London, England * Oceanic Preservation Society * Office of Public Safety, a former US government agency * Orchestre philharmonique de Strasb ...

in 115 games at Triple-A, playing first base almost exclusively. Guzmán spent all of 2010 with the Giants' Triple-A club, where he posted nearly identical numbers to 2009, a .321 batting average and .886 OPS in 125 games, while playing mostly in left field and at third base.

Major league career

San Francisco Giants

Guzmán was promoted from Triple-A and made his major league debut with the

on May 21, . He had 20 plate appearances in 12 games in 2009 spread over May, July, and September, making two starts at first base and one as a DH. On January 22, 2010, Guzmán was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

by the

to make room on the 40-man roster for

Bengie Molina Benjamin José Molina (born July 20, 1974), nicknamed "Big Money", is a Puerto Rican former Major League Baseball (MLB) catcher. He played for the Anaheim Angels / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (1998–2005), Toronto Blue Jays (2006), San Fran ...

, and on February 4 Guzmán was outrighted to Triple-A where he spent all of 2010.

San Diego Padres

On November 20, Guzmán signed a minor league contract with the

. He had his contract purchased by San Diego on June 16, 2011. ''

The San Diego Union-Tribune ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'' is a metropolitan daily newspaper published in San Diego, California, that has run since 1868. Its name derives from a 1992 merger between the two major daily newspapers at the time, ''The San Diego Union'' and ...

'' wrote that Guzmán line-drive hitting style was perfectly suited to the Padres' home at

Petco Park Petco Park is a ballpark in San Diego, California. It is the home of the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). The ballpark is located in the East Village neighborhood of downtown San Diego, adjacent to the Gaslamp Quarter. Petco Par ...

, and he emerged as the best hitter on their 2011 team, hitting .312 with a .847 OPS in 247 at-bats. However, he was not a proficient fielder at either first base or left field. Padres general manager

Jed Hoyer Jed Hoyer (born December 7, 1973) is an American sports executive who is the president of baseball operations of the Chicago Cubs. He has been the general manager of the San Diego Padres and the assistant general manager of the Boston Red Sox. E ...

projected Guzmán as a second option at first base (behind

Yonder Alonso Yonder Alonso (born April 8, 1987) is a Cuban former professional baseball first baseman and current MLB Network analyst. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, ...

) in 2012, otherwise he was a possibility in left field. In 2012, Guzmán made the majority of starts in left field in April and May while

Carlos Quentin Carlos José Quentin (born August 28, 1982) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres. In 2008 and 2011, Quentin was sele ...

was rehabbing a sore knee, and he returned to the position in September when Quentin's knee again bothered him. Otherwise, he made occasional starts at first and in right field, and he made 50 appearances as a pinch hitter. In a total of 321 plate appearances over 120 games, Guzmán hit .247 with a .737 OPS and 9 home runs. Guzmán made the Padres 25-man roster in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

as a reserve outfielder and first baseman. He made 25 starts in left field, allowing

to rest his knees early and late in the season. He also made 33 starts at first base, many in late June and early July when

was out with a hand injury. Overall in 2013, Guzmán appeared in 126 games, and had 288 at-bats, including 48 as a pinch hitter. He hit .226 with a .675 OPS and 9 home runs.

Houston Astros

On December 18, 2013, Guzmán was traded to the

in exchange for Ryan Jackson. He appeared in 69 games for the Astros, primarily at first base, and hit .188 with a .520 OPS. On October 9, 2014, Guzmán was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to the Triple–A

Oklahoma City RedHawks Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. He elected free agency the following day.

Hiroshima Toyo Carp

Jesus Guzman post game interview - July 30 2015

On October 26, 2014, it was announced that he had signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the

Toros de Tijuana

On January 1, 2016, Guzmán signed a minor league contract with the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

organization. He was released by the Cubs prior to the start of the season on March 30. On April 18, 2016, Guzmán signed with the

Toros de Tijuana The Toros de Tijuana (English: Tijuana Bulls) are a Mexican baseball team based in Tijuana, Mexico, that competes in the Mexican Baseball League. The team plays its home games at Estadio Chevron. Team history Original Attempt The franchise w ...

of the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

to be a pitcher. However, he did not pitch for the team, slashing .232/.384/.377 with one home run and 13 RBI over 20 appearances. Guzmán was released by Tijuana on May 29.

Delfines de La Guaira

In 2025, Guzmán signed with the Delfines de La Guaira of the

Personal life

Guzmán has a wife, Yolimar, and a daughter, Brianna Barbara.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guzman, Jesus 1984 births Living people Arizona League Athletics players Cardenales de Lara players Fresno Grizzlies players High Desert Mavericks players Hiroshima Toyo Carp players Houston Astros players Inland Empire 66ers players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Major League Baseball right fielders Mexican League baseball first basemen Midland RockHounds players Nippon Professional Baseball first basemen Oklahoma City RedHawks players Sacramento River Cats players San Antonio Missions players San Diego Padres players San Francisco Giants players Tucson Padres players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Japan Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Mexico Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Toros de Tijuana players Baseball players from Cumaná