Josmil Oswaldo Pinto (born March 31, 1989) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers.
| Josmil Pinto | |
|---|---|
 Pinto playing for the Minnesota Twins in 2013 | |
| Catcher / Designated hitter | |
| Born: March 31, 1989 Valencia, Carabobo, Venezuela | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 1, 2013, for the Minnesota Twins | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 2, 2016, for the Milwaukee Brewers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .252 |
| Home runs | 11 |
| Runs batted in | 30 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
Career
editMinnesota Twins
editPinto signed as an international free agent with the Minnesota Twins in 2006.[1] On November 20, 2012, the Twins added Pinto to their 40-man roster in order to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[2] Beginning the 2013 season with the New Britain Rock Cats of the Double–A Eastern League, Pinto was named an Eastern League All-Star.[3] He was promoted to the Rochester Red Wings of the Triple–A International League in August.[1][4] Pinto had a combined .309 batting average, .400 on-base percentage, and .482 slugging percentage with 15 home runs and 74 runs batted in (RBIs) in 126 games for New Britain and Rochester.[5]
On August 31, the Twins promoted Pinto to the major leagues.[6] In 21 games for the Twins, Pinto had a .342 batting average, .398 on-base percentage, and a .566 slugging percentage. He hit four home runs, five doubles, and recorded 12 RBIs.[5]
During spring training in 2014, the Twins named Pinto to their Opening Day roster as the backup to Kurt Suzuki.[5] He spent a lot of time as the designated hitter due to the absence of Josh Willingham from the lineup. He was hitting just .246 with 5 HR and 9 RBI through April, and those struggles continued into May, contributing to less playing time. Pinto was eventually optioned to Rochester on June 12.[7] In 43 games to that point, he was hitting .222 with 7 HR, 16 RBI and a .730 OPS. He also allowed all 20 runners who attempted to steal a base on him to do so due to poor arm strength and lazy catching skills.
Milwaukee Brewers
editOn November 20, 2015, the San Diego Padres claimed Pinto off of waivers.[8] He was designated for assignment on December 21.[9] Pinto was then claimed off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers on December 23.[10] The Brewers designated him for assignment on January 6, 2016.[11]
Pinto spent the 2016 season with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Triple–A Pacific Coast League. The Brewers promoted Pinto to the major leagues on September 20.[12] In six games for Milwaukee, he went 0–for–5 with a walk. On November 7, Pinto was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to Colorado Springs.[13] He subsequently elected free agency in lieu of an outright assignment.[14]
San Francisco Giants
editOn December 26, 2016, Pinto signed a minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants.[15] He was released on October 31, 2017.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Neal III, La Velle E. (August 3, 2013). "Twins like what they see in Pinto behind the plate". Star Tribune. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
- ^ "Twins add eight players to Major League roster". MLB.com. November 20, 2012. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
- ^ "Rock Cats: Rock Cats' All-Star catcher, Josmil Pinto, working to improve his all-around game". Hartford Courant. July 8, 2013. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
- ^ "Josh Willingham, others shuffle among rehab assignments". Star Tribune. August 2, 2013. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
- ^ a b c "Prospect Pinto makes Twins as backup catcher". Minnesota Twins. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
- ^ "Twins recall Josmil Pinto from Triple-A Rochester". MLB.com. August 31, 2013. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
- ^ Berardino, Mike (June 11, 2014). "Twins send rookie catcher Josmil Pinto to Triple-A Rochester". Pioneer Press.
- ^ Pioneer Press (November 20, 2015). "Twins add seven to 40-man, lose Josmil Pinto, A.J. Achter". TwinCities.com. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ^ Padres press release (December 21, 2015). "Padres sign LHP Buddy Baumann to one-year contract for 2016 season". mlb.com.
- ^ Fox Sports (December 23, 2015). "Brewers claim Nieuwenhuis, Pinto, Wilkins off waivers". FOX Sports. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ^ Haudricourt, Tom (January 6, 2016). "Brewers sign veteran first baseman". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
- ^ "Brewers call up C/1B Josmil Pinto from Triple-A". September 20, 2016.
- ^ Todd, Jeff (November 9, 2016). "Minor MLB Transactions: 11/9/16". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2016". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
- ^ Eddy, Matt (December 24, 2016). "Minor League Transactions: Dec. 10–22". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
External links
edit- Career statistics from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Josmil Pinto on Twitter
