Yohandy Morales (born October 9, 2001) is an American professional baseball third baseman in the Washington Nationals organization.
Yohandy Morales | |||||||||||||||
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Washington Nationals – No. 35 | |||||||||||||||
Third baseman | |||||||||||||||
Born: Miami, Florida, U.S. | October 9, 2001|||||||||||||||
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Amateur career
editMorales attended G. Holmes Braddock Senior High School in Miami, Florida. He was selected for the 2019 Under Armour All-America Baseball Game at Wrigley Field.[1] He was considered a prospect for the shortened 2020 Major League Baseball draft, but went unselected and enrolled at the University of Miami to play college baseball.[2]
As a freshman at Miami in 2021, Morales became a part of the starting lineup and appeared in 53 games, mainly at third base.[3] For the season, he batted .284 with 11 home runs, 45 RBIs, and 13 doubles.[4] That summer, he played in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Wareham Gatemen, and batted .182/.308/.236, playing primarily first base and third base.[5][6]
As a sophomore in 2022, Morales played in sixty games at third base and slashed .329/.411/.650 with 18 home runs, 59 RBIs, and 17 doubles.[7] In Miami's opening game of the 2022 NCAA Division I baseball tournament, Morales hit three home runs in a win over Canisius College, making him the fourth player in Miami history to hit three home runs in one game.[8] After the season, he was selected to the USA Baseball National Collegiate Team.[9][10] For the 2023 season with Miami, Morales hit .408 with twenty home runs and seventy RBIs.[11]
Professional career
editMorales was selected by the Washington Nationals in the second round with the 40th overall pick in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft, and signed for $2,600,000 on July 18, 2023.[12][13]
Personal life
editMorales was born to Andy Morales and Daiyana Castillo. Andy Morales played for the Cuban national baseball team and, for part of two seasons, in the minor leagues for the New York Yankee and Boston Red Sox organizations.[14]
References
edit- ^ "Watch top Draft prospects in UA All-America Game". MLB.com. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "Here's what you need to know about the Miami Hurricanes players in this week's MLB draft". June 9, 2020.
- ^ Gammons, Peter. "Gammons: As opening day approaches, baseball's allure still ties parents and their children". The Athletic.
- ^ "'One of the top players in the country': 3B Yohandy Morales set to lead No. 25 Hurricanes". InsideTheU.
- ^ "Yohandy Morales". pointstreak.com. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
- ^ "3B Yohandy Morales looking to 'dominate' at the Cape". InsideTheU.
- ^ Parker • •, Jason. "'We Look Like an Omaha Team': Hurricanes Baseball Has High Ambitions After Postseason Collapse Last Season".
- ^ https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/college/acc/university-of-miami/article262158627.html
- ^ "Miami baseball star Yohandy Morales selected to USA Collegiate National Team". Sun Sentinel.
- ^ "3B Yohandy Morales set for Stars vs. Stripes series with USA Baseball". InsideTheU.
- ^ "Get to know Nationals' No. 40 pick Yohandy Morales". MLB.com. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
- ^ "Nationals' Yohandy Morales: Drafted by Washington".
- ^ "The Nats spent big to sign their second- and third-round picks. Here's why". www.msn.com. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
- ^ "2020 Draft legacies: Glavine, Boone ... Agassi?". MLB.com.
External links
edit- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)