Liván Enrique Soto (born June 22, 2000) is a Venezuelan 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 ...

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

and

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

in the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

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

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, ...

and

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

Professional career

Atlanta Braves

Soto signed 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 ...

on July 2, 2016, as an international

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 ...

. He made his professional debut for the

Gulf Coast League Braves The Florida Complex League Braves are an American baseball team. They are the Rookie-level affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast Lea ...

in 2017, appearing in 47 games and ending the season with a .225 batting average. He was granted

free agency 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 ...

on November 21, 2017, after

voided the contracts of nine Braves' minor league players after the league announced the Braves had violated international signing rules from 2015 to 2017.

Los Angeles Angels

On December 15, 2017, Soto signed a minor league contract with the

organization. He spent the season with the

Orem Owlz The Orem Owlz were a Minor League Baseball team located in Orem, Utah, United States, from 2001 to 2020. The team competed in the Pioneer League as a Rookie League affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. The Owlz played their home games at Home o ...

of the Pioneer League. He split the season with the AZL Angels and the

Burlington Bees The Burlington Bees are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Burlington, Iowa, and have played their home games at Community Field since 1947. Founded in 1889, the Bees played in Minor League Baseball' ...

. Soto did not play in a game in due to cancellation of the minor league season because of 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 ...

. In , he advanced to 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 ...

and Double-A levels, appearing with the

Tri-City Dust Devils The Tri-City Dust Devils are a Minor League Baseball team based in Pasco, Washington. The Dust Devils are members of the Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States ...

and

Rocket City Trash Pandas The Rocket City Trash Pandas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Madison, Alabama, and play their home games at Toyota Field. History In November 20 ...

. Soto began the 2022 season with Rocket City and was named the Southern League Player of the Week on July 11 after going 11-for-21 in six games. At the time, he was leading the league in hits and among the league leaders in batting average and

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 ...

. On September 17, 2022, Soto was selected to the

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. The following day against 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 ...

, Soto collected his first career hit and home run, with both coming off of Seattle starter

Marco Gonzales Marco Elias Gonzales (born February 16, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Seattle Mariners and Pittsburgh Pirates. He att ...

. Soto appeared in 18 games for the Angels in his rookie campaign, slashing an excellent .400/.414/.582 with one home run and nine RBI. Soto was optioned to 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 ...

to begin the 2023 season. He played in only four games for the Angels in 2023, going 2–for–9 (.222) with three walks. On February 3, 2024, Soto 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 Angels to open a spot on the 40-man roster for newly signed José Cisnero and on February 8, he was claimed off waivers by the

. He was designated for assignment by the Orioles on February 16 and returned to the Angels via another waiver claim on February 18. Soto was optioned to Triple–A Salt Lake to begin the 2024 season. He was once more designated for assignment by the Angels on April 8.

Baltimore Orioles

On April 11, 2024, Soto was claimed off waivers by the

. He appeared in one game for the Triple–A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

, going 2–for–4 (.500) with a home run and two RBI. Soto was designated for assignment on April 16, following the promotion of

David Bañuelos David Clemente Bañuelos (born October 1, 1996) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2024. Amateur career Bañuelos attended Damien High School in La Ver ...

Cincinnati Reds

On April 19, 2024, Soto was claimed off waivers by the

. He appeared in only one game for Cincinnati, and was designated for assignment by the Reds on July 30.

Baltimore Orioles (second stint)

On July 30, 2024, the Reds traded Soto, outfielder

Austin Slater Austin Thomas Slater (born December 13, 1992) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Francisco Giants, Cincinnati Reds, and Baltimore O ...

, and cash considerations to the

in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later. In 12 games for the Orioles, he went 3-for-10 (.300) with 3 walks. Soto was designated for assignment following the acquisition of

Roansy Contreras Roansy Contreras (born November 7, 1999) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher in the Baltimore Orioles organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Los Angeles Angels. Career New Yo ...

on January 10, 2025. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A

on January 17.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soto, Livan 2000 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players Arizona League Angels players Baltimore Orioles players Burlington Bees players Cincinnati Reds players Gulf Coast Braves players Los Angeles Angels players Louisville Bats players Major League Baseball infielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela Norfolk Tides players Orem Owlz players Rocket City Trash Pandas players Salt Lake Bees players Tri-City Dust Devils players