Santiago Espinal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Santiago Espinal | |
|---|---|
 Espinal with the Cincinnati Reds in 2025 | |
| Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 21 | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: (1994-11-13) November 13, 1994 (age 31) Santiago, Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| July 25, 2020, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
| MLB statistics (through April 14, 2026) | |
| Batting average | .260 |
| Home runs | 20 |
| Runs batted in | 162 |
Stats at Baseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Santiago Roman Espinal (born November 13, 1994) is a Dominican professional baseball utility player for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays and Cincinnati Reds. He was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 10th round of the 2016 MLB draft.
Espinal was born and grew up in the Dominican Republic until age 13, when he moved to the US.[1] He attended Lyman High School in Longwood, Florida for four years.[2] He then moved to New York and graduated through Penn Foster High School.[2] Espinal attended Seminole State College of Florida, and then attended Miami Dade College on a scholarship and played college baseball for them in 2016.[2][1]
Professional career
Boston Red Sox
Espinal was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 10th round, 298th overall, of the 2016 MLB draft.[3]
Espinal played for the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Red Sox in 2016, hitting a .244/.330/.267 slash line with 10 runs batted in (RBI).[4] He played for the Single-A Greenville Drive in 2017, hitting .280/.334/.358 with four home runs and 46 RBI.[1] Espinal began the 2018 season with the High-A Salem Red Sox, where he hit .313 in 65 games.[4]
Toronto Blue Jays
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On June 28, 2018, Espinal was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Steve Pearce and cash considerations.[5][6] He split the remainder of 2018 between the High-A Dunedin Blue Jays and the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, hitting .297/.356/.444 with 10 home runs and 60 RBI between the two teams and Salem.[1][7][8] Espinal played for the Surprise Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League (AFL) following the 2018 season.[9]
Espinal split the 2019 season between New Hampshire and the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons, hitting a combined .287/.347/.393 with seven home runs and 71 RBI.[10][11][12] Espinal was added to the Blue Jays 40-man roster after the 2019 season[13] and on July 23, 2020, he was added to the Blue Jays active roster to begin the 2020 season, which had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] On July 25, 2020, he made his MLB debut as the starting third baseman against the Tampa Bay Rays, going hitless in two at-bats.[15] Three days later, on July 28, Espinal got his first hit in the Major Leagues off of the Washington Nationals' Sam Freeman.[16] He made 26 appearances for the Blue Jays during his rookie campaign, hitting .267 with no home runs and six RBI in 26 games.[17]
On July 3, 2021, Espinal hit his first career major league home run, a two-run shot off Rays reliever Matt Wisler at Sahlen Field in Buffalo.[18] Overall in 2021, Espinal batted .311/.376/.405 with two home runs, 17 RBI, and six stolen bases in 92 games.[17] He led all qualifying AL third basemen with 16 total zone runs and a 3.13 range factor.[17]
Espinal began the 2022 season expecting to platoon at second base with Cavan Biggio but by mid-May was receiving acclaim for his impressive offensive numbers and game-changing defense while Biggio was optioned to Buffalo after going 1-for-23 in 13 games.[19][20] Blue Jays' General Manager Ross Atkins declared Espinal "an everyday player" after he was one of only five Blue Jays' players to appear in all of Toronto's first 17 games.[21] He was selected for the 2022 All-Star Game as a replacement for Jose Altuve.[22] In 135 games, he batted .267/.322/.370[17] and he had two hits, including a double, in the 2022 American League Wild Card Series.[23]
On January 13, 2023, Espinal signed a one-year, $2.1 million contract with the Blue Jays, avoiding salary arbitration.[24] In 93 games during the 2023 season, he batted .248/.310/.335 with two home runs and 25 RBI.[25] He had two hits in two at-bats in the 2023 American League Wild Card Series as well.[26]
Cincinnati Reds
On March 20, 2024, the Blue Jays traded Espinal to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for right-handed pitcher Chris McElvain.[27] He made 118 appearances for the Reds during the regular season, slashing .246/.295/.356 with nine home runs, 45 RBI, and 11 stolen bases.[28]
Espinal played in 114 games for Cincinnati during the 2025 campaign, batting .243/.292/.282 with no home runs, 16 RBI, and two stolen bases.[29] On October 31, he was removed from the 40-man roster and sent outright to the Triple-A Louisville Bats; he rejected the assignment and elected free agency the following day.[30]
Los Angeles Dodgers
On February 16, 2026, Espinal signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.[31] On March 19, the Dodgers selected his contract and added him to their 40-man roster.[32]
References
- 1 2 3 4 Shi Davidi (October 16, 2018). "Santiago Espinal an interesting fit on Blue Jays depth chart". Sportsnet. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- 1 2 3 Michael Martinez (April 1, 2016). "Freshman Infielder Providing Offensive And Defensive Punch For Sharks". The Reporter. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ "Six MDC Baseball Players Drafted in 2016 MLB Draft". Miami Dade College. June 13, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- 1 2 "Sanford Espinal Amateur, Minor, Winter & Fall League Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ Michael Silverman (February 21, 2019). "Santiago Espinal, traded by Red Sox for Steve Pearce, happy for everyone". Boston Herald. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
- ↑ Thomas Lott (June 26, 2018). "MLB trade news: Red Sox acquire Steve Pearce from Blue Jays". Sporting News. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ Carson Cistulli (May 11, 2018). "The Fringe Five: Baseball's Most Compelling Fringe Prospects". FanGraphs.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ Christopher Smith (June 14, 2018). "Boston Red Sox shortstop prospect Santiago Espinal continues breakout season". MassLive. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ Andrew Battifarano (September 28, 2018). "Bichette to skip AFL with minor injuries". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ TSN Staff (November 20, 2019). "Jays add Hatch, Espinal to 40-man roster, outright Mayza". TSN. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ Laura Armstrong (August 4, 2019). "Jays prospect Espinal makes next connection on Bichette's flight path". Toronto Star. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
- ↑ Tim MacLean (June 29, 2019). "NH Baseball: Fisher Cats' Espinal a great pickup from Red Sox". New Hampshire Union Leader. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ Buffalo Bisons (November 21, 2019). "After solid Triple-A debut, Jays add Espinal to 40-man". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ↑ "Blue Jays announce 30-player roster with Nate Pearson on taxi squad". Sportsnet. July 23, 2020. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
- ↑ "Toronto Blue Jays vs Tampa Bay Rays Box Score: July 25, 2020". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Toronto Blue Jays vs Washington Nationals Box Score: July 28, 2020". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Santiago Espinal Stats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Santiago Espinal Stats, Fantasy & News | Toronto Blue Jays". MLB.com. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
- ↑ "Espinal's hit streak reaches 10 in midst of impressive offensive season". tsn.ca. The Sports Network. May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
- ↑ Hamilton, Dan (May 16, 2022). "Blue Jays Activate Biggio, Option Him to Triple A". si.com. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
- ↑ Chisholm, Gregor (April 25, 2022). "Jays infielder Santiago Espinal turns second-base platoon into a one-man show". thestar.com. The Toronto Star. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
- ↑ "Jays 2B Espinal named to All-Star Game". TSN.ca. July 16, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
- ↑ "2022 Wild Card Series Seattle Mariners over Toronto Blue Jays (2-0)". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ Dierkes, Tim (January 14, 2023). "2023 MLB Arbitration Tracker". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved February 16, 2025.
- ↑ Gray, Doug (March 21, 2024). "Reds acquire infielder Santiago Espinal in a trade with Toronto". Redleg Nation. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
- ↑ "2023 Wild Card Series Minnesota Twins over Toronto Blue Jays (2-0)". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Jays send Santiago Espinal to Reds for minor leaguer Chris McElvain". ESPN.com. Associated Press. March 20, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
- ↑ "Santiago Espinal 2024 batting Stats Per Game". espn.com. Retrieved November 2, 2025.
- ↑ "Santiago Espinal 2025 batting Stats Per Game". espn.com. Retrieved November 2, 2025.
- ↑ McDonald, Darragh (October 31, 2025). "Reds Outright Santiago Espinal". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
- ↑ Wright, Charlie (February 16, 2026). "Dodgers To Sign Santiago Espinal To Minor League Deal". MLB Trade Rumors.
- ↑ Stephen, Eric (March 18, 2026). "Dodgers add Santiago Espinal to roster". SB Nation. Retrieved March 19, 2026.
External links
- Career statistics from MLB · ESPN · Baseball Reference · Fangraphs · Baseball Reference (Minors) · Retrosheet · Baseball Almanac
- Miami Dade Sharks bio