Omar Infante, Second Base


Date of Birth: 12/26/1981
Birthplace: Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela

Omar Infante, second baseman, started his professional baseball career in the Detroit Tigers' minor league system in 1999. He played in the minors until 2002 when he played in 18 games with the Tigers. The following season, he started as a shortstop with the Tigers but he was sent back to the minors after 69 games.

Infante played in 142 games in 2004. He batted .264 with 133 hits, 27 doubles, 16 home runs, and 13 stolen bases. That season, he was primarily a second baseman. From 2005 through 2007, Infante was mainly a bench player with the Tigers, playing in 121 games in 2005, 78 games in 2006, and just 66 games in 2007.

On November 12, 2007, Infante was traded to the Chicago Cubs and less than a month later, he was traded to the Atlanta Braves. He spent the 2008 season as a utility player for the Braves, playing in 96 games with them. He signed a two-year, $4.3 million contract with the Braves in January, 2009.

Infante was traded to the Miami Marlins for Dan Uggla after the 2010 season. His first year with the Marlins was a strong one. In 2011, Infante batted .276 with a career high 160 hits and 24 doubles. He also had a good defensive season at second base, leading the National League in assists with 466 and making 260 putouts, 75 double plays, and 8 errors and having a fielding percentage of .989.

In September, 2011, Infante signed a two-year contract extension with the Marlins. Less than a year later, in July, 2012, he was traded to the Detroit Tigers. In 2013, with the Tigers, Infante had a good year, batting .318 with 144 hits and 24 doubles in 118 games.

Infante signed a four-year, $30.25 million contract with the Kansas City Royals in December, 2013. The contract includes a club option for 2018. He finished the 2014 season with 133 hits, 21 doubles, 66 RBIs, and a .252 batting average. In the postseason, he had 13 hits, 3 doubles, 1 home run, 6 RBIs, and a .255 batting average in 51 at-bats in 15 games.

Infante batted .220 in 124 games with the Royals in 2015. He finished the season with 97 hits, 23 doubles, and 44 RBIs. As a second baseman in 124 games, he made 320 assists, 67 double plays, 193 putouts, and 10 errors.

The Royals designated Infante for assignment on June 15, 2016. Fifteen days later, he signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves. He was released on August 16th. He played in just 39 games with the Royals in 2016.

Infante returned to the Tigers on a minor league contract on December 9, 2016. He spent the entire 2017 season in the minors.

Infante became a free agent on November 6, 2017. He hasn't played professional baseball since 2017.

Career batting statistics for Infante through 2017 include:

  • 1,507 games played
  • 1,427 hits
  • 260 doubles
  • 542 RBIs
  • 776 strikeouts to 296 walks
  • .271 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Infante at second base through 2017 include:

  • 1,045 games played
  • 2,887 assists
  • 627 double plays
  • 1,722 putouts
  • 90 errors
  • .981 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Omar Infante
ESPN - Omar Infante