Alex Cabrera

This article is about the athlete. For the guitarist, see Bridge to Grace.

Alex Cabrera
First baseman
Born: (1971-12-24) December 24, 1971 (age 52)
Caripito, Monagas State, Venezuela
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Professional debut
CPBL: March 16, 1999, for the Koos Group Whales
MLB: June 26, 2000, for the Arizona Diamondbacks
NPB: March 24, 2001, for the Seibu Lions
Last appearance
CPBL: September 20, 1999, for the Koos Group Whales
MLB: September 30, 2000, for the Arizona Diamondbacks
NPB: June 17, 2012, for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
CPBL statistics
Batting average.325
Home runs18
Runs batted in64
MLB statistics
Batting average.263
Home runs5
Runs batted in14
NPB statistics
Batting average.303
Home runs357
Runs batted in949
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Alexander Alberto Cabrera (born December 24, 1971) is a Venezuelan former first baseman and right-handed batter who played in 2000 for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Major League Baseball (MLB) and for 12 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He also played several seasons in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP).

Career

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Cabrera signed with the Chicago Cubs as an amateur free agent in 1991 and moved to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization before the 1998 season. He played for the Koos Group Whales in the CPBL in Taiwan in 1999, then signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2000.

After nine seasons in the minors, Cabrera finally reached the majors with the Diamondbacks. A muscular slugger, Cabrera hit a home run in his first at-bat.[1][2] He ended the 2000 MLB season with a .262 average, five home runs, 14 RBI, 10 runs, and a .500 slugging percentage in 31 games.[3] After the 2000 season, the Seibu Lions of the Japan Pacific League purchased his contract from Arizona.[4]

In 2001, Cabrera batted .282, with 49 home runs and 124 RBI. He was even better in 2002, with a .336 batting average, 55 home runs, and 115 RBI, winning the Pacific League's MVP award. His 55 home runs tied Japan's single-season record, equaling the mark set by Sadaharu Oh in 1964 and matched by former MLB player Tuffy Rhodes in 2001. Cabrera stated that he was unable to break the record because pitchers threw him very few strikes after hitting his 55th home run.[4] Wladimir Balentien, playing for the Yakult Swallows, later broke the home run record, hitting 60 home runs in 2013.[5]

In 2003, Cabrera hit an impressive 50 home runs with 112 RBIs, while batting .324 for Seibu. Injuries limited him to 64 games in 2004, with 25 home runs and 62 RBIs.[6]

On October 26, 2004, Cabrera hit a two-run towering homer as the Seibu Lions defeated the Chunichi Dragons 7–2 in Game 7 of the Japan Series to win their first championship since 1992. The ball bounced off the glass-enclosed private boxes above the left field seats at the Nagoya Dome. It was Cabrera's third home run of the series. He also hit a grand slam and a two-run homer in Game 3.

In six seasons with the Lions, Cabrera was a .308 hitter with 246 home runs and 605 RBI in 708 games.

In January 2008, Cabrera signed a one-year contract with the Orix Buffaloes. The contract reportedly required that Cabrera pass a drug test when he reported to the team in February.[7] He obtained free agency rights following the 2009 season after playing 8 years in Japan, thereby removing the designation as a "foreign player," becoming the fourth non-Japanese player to obtain such classification in NPB.[8]

In three seasons with Orix (2008–10), Cabrera slugged a combined 73 home runs and produced 225 RBIs. Cabrera's career in NPB ended with 97 games over two seasons for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in 2011 and 2012.

After leaving Japan, Cabrera continued to play professional winter league baseball for Tiburones de La Guaira in his native Venezuela. In 59 games during the 2013–14 season, Cabrera batted .391, with a record-setting 21 home runs. He broke the league single season home run record set by Bo Diaz, who hit 20 home runs in 1979–80.[9] Cabrera played 14 games for Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz in the Mexican League in April 2014 at the age of 42, batting .404 and hitting 4 home runs. He continued to play in the LVBP until 2016–2017, playing his final year with Tigres de Aragua.[6]

Steroid and performance enhancing drug allegations

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On December 13, 2007, Cabrera was linked to steroid use in the Mitchell Report, one of many MLB players so identified. The report detailed an incident in September 2000 when Cabrera was playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Team officials found a package that contained a vial of what they suspected to be anabolic steroids and several hundred pills. Clubhouse attendants claimed the package was intended for Cabrera. The contents of the package were tested and it was determined that the vial contained the anabolic steroid Winstrol, but the pills were legal, over-the-counter diet pills. Before the tests came back, however, Cabrera's contract had been sold to the Seibu Lions, so he was never tested for steroid use. Cabrera denied knowing why the package had been addressed to him.[10]

After the report came out, Cabrera denied ever using steroids.

"I couldn't have used the substances that are identified. I never had possession of the alleged box that supposedly contained the pharmaceutical drugs."[11][12]

During his career in Japan, Cabrera never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs.[13] In 2013, he stated that he never injected himself with drugs or was smoking drugs.[14]

In 2014, Cabrera tested positive for stanozolol, which ended his career in the Mexican League.[15] A Mexican sports court later suspended his permanent ban from the league.[16]

In 2016, Cabrera tested positive for adderall while playing in the LVBP. His suspension was overturned by a Venezuelan court later in 2016.[17][18] He tested positive for stanozolol in December 2016, receiving a 50 game suspension from the LVBP.[19][20]

Personal life

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Cabrera's son Ramón is also a professional baseball player. The younger Cabrera, a switch-hitting catcher, signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 2008, at the age of 18.[21] Ramón made his major league debut with the Cincinnati Reds on September 5, 2015.[22]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Houston Astros vs Arizona Diamondbacks Box Score: June 26, 2000". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  2. ^ "Cabrera homers in first at-bat | 06/26/2000". MLB.com. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  3. ^ "Álex Cabrera Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Caple, Jim (November 18, 2022). "For Cabrera, 55 was the limit in Japan". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  5. ^ Armstrong, Jim (September 13, 2013). "Wladimir Balentien Breaks Sadaharu Oh's Single-Season Home Run Record In Japan". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on September 19, 2013. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Alex Cabrera Minor, Mexican, CPBL, Japanese & Winter Leagues Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  7. ^ "Cabrera stays in Japan league, joins Orix for $2.2 million". ESPN. January 9, 2008. Archived from the original on January 12, 2008. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
  8. ^ Melesky, Scott (October 30, 2020). "NPB 300 Home Run Club: #29 - Alex Cabrera, 357 Home Runs (2001-2012)". JapanBall. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  9. ^ "Alex Cabrera breaks Venezuelan HR record". ESPN.com. December 23, 2013. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  10. ^ "Mitchell Report pp. 94-5" (PDF).
  11. ^ "Ex-D'back Alex Cabrera denies steroid use". USA Today. December 16, 2007. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  12. ^ "Alex Cabrera frente al informe Mitchell". Caracas Lions. December 14, 2007. Archived from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  13. ^ White, Paul (December 24, 2007). "Ripple effect felt in Japan over Mitchell Report". USA Today. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  14. ^ Sojo, Ormúz Jesús (October 28, 2013). "Alex Cabrera: "Decían que no servía para esto"". Liderendeportes.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 28, 2014. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  15. ^ "Alex Cabrera suspendido de por vida en México por dopaje". Desde la Plaza (in Spanish). May 7, 2014. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  16. ^ "El venezolano Cabrera acuerda con el Aguila de Veracruz seguir inactivo". San Diego Union-Tribune (in Spanish). July 24, 2014. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  17. ^ "#ESPECIAL Alex Cabrera: Entre el dopaje y los tribunales". El Impulso (in Spanish). November 2, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  18. ^ "El TSJ suspendió sanción por dopaje contra Álex Cabrera" [THE TSJ SUSPENDED A DOPING SANCTION AGAINST ÁLEX CABRERA]. La Iguana. March 23, 2016. Archived from the original on March 23, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  19. ^ Hernández, Favio (May 19, 2017). "LVBP suspendió a Alex Cabrera por 50 partidos debido a dopaje | La Nación Deportes". La Nación Deportes (in Spanish). Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  20. ^ "LVBP suspendió por 50 juegos a Álex Cabrera por dopaje". Diario Contraste Noticias (in Spanish). May 15, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  21. ^ Spotrac. "Ramón Cabrera | MLB". spotrac.com. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  22. ^ Badler, Ben. International Signing Roundup: NL Central", Baseball America, published October 13, 2008.
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