Wil Cordero

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Wil Cordero

Free Agent — No. --
First baseman
Born: October 3, 1971 (1971-10-03) (age 36)
Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
Bats: Right Throws: Right 
Major League Baseball debut
July 24, 1992 for the Montreal Expos
Selected MLB statistics
(through 2007)
Batting average     .273
Home runs     122
Runs batted in     566
Teams

Wilfredo Cordero Nieva (aka "Coco") (born October 3, 1971 in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico) is a first baseman/outfielder in Major League Baseball who is a free agent. He is best known as a member of the Montreal Expos (1992-1995, 2002-2003). Cordero made his Major League Baseball debut in 1992 and last played in 2005. In addition to the Expos, Cordero has played for the Boston Red Sox (1996-1997), Chicago White Sox (1998), Cleveland Indians (1999, 2000-2002), Pittsburgh Pirates (2000), Florida Marlins (2004), and Washington Nationals (2005). He bats and throws right-handed.

In a 14-season career, Cordero is a .273 hitter with 122 home runs and 566 RBI in 1247 games.

Cordero had an opportunity to make the Montreal Expos roster on Opening Day in 1992, less than four years after he signed with the team at the age of 16. But he struck out 17 times in 38 spring training at bats. Cordero bounced back to Triple-A Indianapolis. He debuted with the big team after the All-Star break and finished with a .314 batting average in 45 games, despite missing significant stretches of playing time due to a sprained ankle, a strained middle finger, and a serious case of chicken pox.

Like the privileged few who have made it to the majors quickly, Cordero showed inconsistency at bat. A line drive hitter, he finished his first full season with a .248 average, 10 homers and 58 RBIs in 1993. Meanwhile, he displayed excellent range at shortstop, a strong throwing arm and the cool demeanor necessary to make the correct play. Again on the disabled list in 1994, Cordero missed 52 games, but he finished with a career-high .294 average, 15 home runs, 63 RBI, 64 runs and 35 doubles, and made the National League All-Star team. The next year he batted .286.

Cordero was traded to the Boston Red Sox before the 1996 season. The Expos received pitchers Rheal Cormier and Shayne Bennett, and first baseman Ryan McGuire in the deal. In his first year in Boston, a pair of nagging injuries and the presence of John Valentin at shortstop limited his playing time. Cordero was used at second base and as designated hitter in only 59 games. His most productive season came in 1997, when he hit .281 and posted career-highs in home runs (18), RBI (72), runs (82), hits (160) and games (140). However, Cordero became an embarrassment to the organization and drew the ire of fans after he was arrested on June 10, 1997, on domestic abuse charges. He was re-arrested for violating an order to stay away from his wife after being released on $200 bail. Later that month, the Boston Globe published court documents from Cordero's 1993 divorce from his first wife Wanda Moro in which she alleged that he had struck her "on numerous occasions" causing "bruises and bleeding", including when she was pregnant.[1] Upon returning to the line up after an eight game absence, Cordero was booed by the Boston fans. On November 4, 1997, Cordero plead guilty to the charges and received a 90-day sentence, suspended for two years. At the end of the 1997 season, the Red Sox released Cordero and he signed with the Chicago White Sox.

Between 1998 and 2004, Cordero played for five teams, including two stints with the Cleveland Indians and a full season with his former club, Montreal. He suffered new injuries, had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in 2004, and some personal problems, including domestic abuse, that have plagued his career. But Cordero was back in 2005, with the new-look Washington Nationals franchise.

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[edit] 2005

On, July 25, 2005, the Nationals placed Cordero on waivers for the purpose of giving the veteran his unconditional release. The 33-year-old Cordero, who had been bothered by knee problems, batted just .118 with two RBI in 29 games that season for the Nationals. On July 27, the New York Mets signed Cordero to a minor league contract and assigned him to their Triple-A affiliate, the Norfolk Tides. The Mets released Cordero on August 15 after he hit just .129 for the Tides.

[edit] 2007

After not playing at all in 2006, the New York Mets signed Cordero to a minor league contract on March 7, 2007, but released him during spring training. During the summer of 2007, Cordero worked as a baseball coach at Kutsher's Sports Academy in Monticello, New York.

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