Iván DeJesús, Jr.

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is DeJesús and the second or maternal family name is Álvarez.
Iván DeJesús, Jr.

DeJesús Jr. with the Boston Red Sox
Cincinnati Reds
Second baseman
Born: May 1, 1987
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 1, 2011 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Career statistics
(through 2012 season)
Batting average .205
Home runs 0
Runs batted in 5
Teams
Career highlights and awards
  • Triple-A All Star (2014)

Iván DeJesús Álvarez, Jr. (born May 1, 1987)[1] is a right-handed throwing and right-handed batting Puerto Rican professional baseball player who plays second base in the Cincinnati Reds organization.[1] He was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers' in the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft,[2] and he is the son of Iván DeJesús.[2]

His Major League Baseball debut with the Dodgers occurred early in the 2011 Major League Baseball season. He has since split time between the Major League team and the Dodgers Triple-A affiliate, Albuquerque Isotopes of the Pacific Coast League before being traded to the Red Sox in August 2012. Following the trade, DeJesús was assigned to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League before being called up to the Red Sox a week later.

He spent 2013 with the Indianapolis Indians and 2014 with the Norfolk Tides both of the Triple-A International League, earning Triple-A All-Star recognition in 2014.

Career

Los Angeles Dodgers

In 1987, he was born in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.[1] He went to high school at American Military Academy of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.[1] When his father was hitting coach for the Houston Astros organization, he served as batboy.[3] He was the Los Angeles Dodgers' 2nd selection and 51st overall selection of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft.[2]

In 2005, he split time between the GCL Dodgers of the Gulf Coast League and the Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer Baseball League. He has played with the Columbus Catfish of the South Atlantic League in 2006 and with the Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino of the California League in 2007. He spent the 2008 season with the Jacksonville Suns of the Southern League.[1] He was selected to play for the South Division of the Southern League All-star game,[4] but he instead played in the 2008 All-Star Futures Game.[5] He ended 2008 with a 23-game hitting streak.[4] He finished second in the Southern League with 76 walks and tied for third with 150 hits.[6] He was selected to the Baseball America Minor League All-Star Second Team as a second baseman.[6] DeJesús was named 2008 minor league player of the year for the Dodgers organization.[4][7] DeJesús had been the Dodgers' sixth highest rated prospect and best defensive infielder prior to 2007.[8] He was listed as the #12 Dodger prospect prior to 2008 by Scout.com and #13 by Baseball America.[9]

DeJesús played in the 2008 Arizona Fall League and the 2008–2009 Puerto Rican Winter League.[4] The Dodgers invited him to Major League camp as a non-roster player for spring training, however he broke his left leg in a home plate collision during a spring training game.[10] He returned to play four games for the Arizona League Dodgers in late August.[1][11] The Dodgers added him to their 40 man roster prior to the 2010 season and promoted him to the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, where he hit .296 in 130 games. He played for the Phoenix Desert Dogs in the Arizona Fall League after the season.

DeJesús with the Dodgers

He made his Major League debut on April 1, 2011 against the San Francisco Giants.[12] He played in two games with the Dodgers, striking out five times in seven at-bats before being optioned back to AAA Albuquerque on April 6.[13] He was recalled to the Dodgers on April 12 when Rafael Furcal was placed on the disabled list.[14] He recorded his first Major League hit on April 16 against the St. Louis Cardinals.[15] On April 23, he took the field at the same time as his father when the Dodgers' pitched in the bottom of the eight inning at Wrigley Field. With the Cubs batting, his father was performing his third base coaching duties, while Junior entered the game as a defensive replacement. This was the first occurrence for a regular season game.[16] After being sent back to AAA on May 13,[17] and aside from a brief stint in the majors from June 4 – June 6,[18][19] he spent the rest of the season with the Isotopes, hitting .310 with 8 home runs and 59 RBI in 443 plate appearances and 100 games.[20] Following the conclusion of the 2011 AAA season, DeJesús was not among the post season callups by the 2011 Dodgers.[21] for whom he had only had 35 plate appearances.[12]

DeJesús lost his chance to make the opening day roster in 2012 when he suffered a torn oblique muscle in his side during a spring training game.[22][23] On May 3, he began his rehabilitation with Albuquerque.[24] The Dodgers recalled DeJesús on May 19.[25] On June 1, 2012 DeJesús was part of a Dodgers lineup that featured the sons of five former Major Leaguers (along with Tony Gwynn, Jr., Jerry Hairston, Jr., Dee Gordon and Scott Van Slyke). This was the first time in Major League history that this had occurred. It was also the first time a starting infield of four major league sons had ever occurred: first baseman Van Slyke, second baseman Hairston, third baseman De Jesus and shortstop Gordon.[26]

DeJesús was optioned to Albuquerque in late June.[27] On July 16, 2012 Isotopes manager Lorenzo Bundy decided to start DeJesús in left field. It was DeJesús' first outfield appearance after 686 games of professional baseball. However, during his six innings in the outfield no balls were hit to left field.[28][29] In 2012, DeJesús hit .273 in 23 games with the Dodgers and .295 in 60 games with the Isotopes.[30]

Boston Red Sox

On August 25, 2012 he was traded to the Boston Red Sox along with James Loney, Allen Webster and two players to be named later (Jerry Sands and Rubby De La Rosa) for Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Nick Punto and $11 million in cash.[31][32] On August 26, DeJesús was optioned to Triple A's Pawtucket.[30] After batting .385 in his first seven games in the International League, he was called up to the Red Sox on September 2.[33] With the Red Sox he had 8 at-bats and did not record a hit, striking out 6 times,[12] including the final out of the season.[34] He was designated for assignment by the Red Sox on November 20, 2012 and removed from the 40 man roster.[35]

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 26, 2012 the Red Sox traded him (along with Stolmy Pimentel, Jerry Sands and Mark Melancon) to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Brock Holt and Joel Hanrahan.[36] DeJesús spent the 2013 season with the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians of the International League.[37] Following the season, he became a Minor League free agent.[38]

Baltimore Orioles

On December 19, 2013, DeJesus signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles.[39] He began the 2014 season with the Triple-A Norfolk Tides of the International League.[40] He was named to the Triple-A All-Star game in Durham, North Carolina.[41] In 113 games with Norfolk, DeJesús hit .282/.358/.389 with 5 HR and 56 RBI as the team's shortstop.

Return to Boston

On August 30, 2014, DeJesús was traded with Jemile Weeks to the Boston Red Sox for Kelly Johnson and Michael Almanzar. DeJesús was assigned to Triple-A Pawtucket.[42] On September 12, DeJesús tallied the game-winning two-run home run in the 13th inning of game 4 of the International League Championship Series against the Durham Bulls to force a decisive game 5.[43] Pawtucket won the International League Championship the next day.[44][45]

Cincinnati

On November 23, 2014, DeJesús signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds.[46]

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Ivan DeJesus". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Winston, Lisa (2008-07-02). "Past, Futures meet in young DeJesus: Dodgers prospect with big-league bloodlines building a bright future". MiLB.com. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
  3. ↑ "Dodgers' Ivan De Jesus Jr. tries to make up for lost time". Ventura County Star. 2012-05-29. Retrieved 2012-08-17.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Holmes, Tot (2008-09-22). "De Jesus, McDonald Honored". LADugout.com. Scout.com. Retrieved 2008-09-25.
  5. ↑ Jackson, Tony (2008-06-26). "Ivan DeJesus Jr. named to Futures Game". inside the dodgers. Los Angeles Newspaper group. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Leung, Diamond (2008-09-11). "Dodgers' McDonald a two-time POY". The Press Enterprise. Press-Enterprise Company. Retrieved 2008-09-25.
  7. ↑ "Dodgers Team Report". Yahoo! Inc. 2008-09-23. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
  8. ↑ Matthews, Alan (2007-02-20). "Top 10 Prospects: Los Angeles Dodgers". Baseball America. Retrieved 2008-09-25.
  9. ↑ Holmes, Tot (2008-02-03). "Dodger Prospect #12 - SS Ivan De Jesus, Jr.". LADugout.com. Scout.com. Retrieved 2008-09-25.
  10. ↑ Gurnick, Ken (2009-03-03). "DeJesus' injury has ripple effect on LA: Infielder likely out for year; DeWitt sees more work at short". MLB.com. Retrieved 2010-04-16.
  11. ↑ Holmes, Tot (2009-08-26). "Ivan DeJesus See First 2009 Action". LADugout.com and Scout.com. Retrieved 2010-04-16.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 "Ivan DeJesus". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
  13. ↑ Perkins, Owen (2011-04-06). "De Jesus optioned to Albuquerque". MLB.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  14. ↑ "Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions - 2011". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
  15. ↑ Shaikin, Bill (2011-04-16). "Dodgers take the fifth (loss in a row)". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
  16. ↑ Gurnick, Ken (2011-04-23). "De Jesus Jr. appears on same field as father". MLB.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  17. ↑ "Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions - 2011". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  18. ↑ Gurnick, Ken (2011-06-04). "Furcal, Garland latest Dodgers to go on DL: De Jesus Jr. and Ely promoted from Triple-A Albuquerque". MLB.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  19. ↑ Gurnick, Ken and Mike Radano (2011-06-06). "Dodgers call up Gordon, activate Uribe: Coming off disabled list, Thames, Hawksworth also join club". MLB.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  20. ↑ "Ivan DeJesus". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  21. ↑ Hernandez, Dylan (2011-09-06). "Stephen Strasburg comes back big, but so do Dodgers in 7-3 victory". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-09-07.
  22. ↑ "Dodgers' Ivan De Jesus Jr. has torn muscle in side, MRI reveals". Los Angeles Times. 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2012-04-04.
  23. ↑ Peltz, Jim (2012-03-18). "Dodgers infielder Ivan DeJesus strains abdominal muscle". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-08.
  24. ↑ Hernandez, Dylan (2012-05-03). "Dodgers' A.J. Ellis has potential to be an All-Star". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-08.
  25. ↑ "Dodgers put 2B Ellis on DL, recall DeJesus". Sports Illustrated. 2012-05-19. Retrieved 2012-06-08.
  26. ↑ Hernandez, Dylan (2012-06-03). "Dodgers again will be limited financially in amateur draft". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-06.
  27. ↑ "Dodgers break scoreless drought, but fall to Mets for 5th straight loss". ESPN. 2012-06-28. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
  28. ↑ Sickenger, Ken (2012-07-17). "‘Topes Win Despite Their Sloppy Play". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
  29. ↑ "Statistics: July 16, 2012". MiLB.com. 2012-07-16. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Goldsmith, Aaron (2012-06-27). "Former Dodger, De Jesus, Joins PawSox". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2012-08-27.
  31. ↑ Saxon, Mark (August 25, 2012). "Gonzalez, Crawford, Beckett to L.A.". Retrieved August 25, 2012.
  32. ↑ Saxon, Mark (October 4, 2012). "De La Rosa and Sands officially traded". Retrieved December 25, 2012.
  33. ↑ "Red Sox recall infielder Ivan De Jesus Jr. from Triple-A Pawtucket". MLB.com. 2012-09-02. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  34. ↑ Abraham, Peter (2012-10-04). "Red Sox fire Bobby Valentine". Boston.com. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  35. ↑ Aderhold, Nathan (November 20, 2012). "Red Sox designate, Stewart, De Jesus, Valencia, Carpenter and Rosario for assignment". MLB Daily Dish.
  36. ↑ Red Sox Acquire Joel Hanrahan From Pirates
  37. ↑ Wilson, Phillip B. (2013-04-03). "Indianapolis Indians: Everything you need to know about this year's team". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  38. ↑ Eddy, Matt (2013-11-05). "Minor League Free Agents 2013". Baseball America. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  39. ↑ Connolly, Dan (2013-12-19). "Orioles sign four players to minor league deals, invite all to spring training". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2013-12-24.
  40. ↑ Hall, David (2014-04-03). "2014 Norfolk Tides preview - Tidbits and numbers". The Virginian-Pilot. Hampton Roads. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  41. ↑ "De Jesus named to IL All-Star Team: Infielder to represent Norfolk in Triple-A All-Star Game". MiLB.com. 2014-07-02. Retrieved 2014-08-15.
  42. ↑ McAdam, Sean (August 30, 2014). "Sox acquire Jemile Weeks and Ivan De Jesus Jr.". CSN New England.
  43. ↑ Sutton, Bob (2014-09-13). "PawSox survive in Governors' Cup Finals: De Jesus homers in 13th after Castillo forces extras with RBI single". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2014-09-13.
  44. ↑ "Pawtucket 4, Durham 1". MiLB.com. 2014-09-13. Retrieved 2014-09-14.
  45. ↑ Tucker, Douglas (2014-09-13). "Castillo helps PawSox win Governors' Cup". ESPN. Retrieved 2014-09-14.
  46. ↑ Sinins, Lee (2014-11-23). "Around the majors report: November 23, 2014". Gammons Daily. TruMedia Networks. Retrieved 2014-11-24.

External links