Andres Blanco, Infield

Date of Birth: 4/11/1984
Birthplace: Urama, Venezuela

Andres Blanco, infielder, was first signed by the Kansas City Royals in 2000. He played in the Royals' minor league system from 2002 through 2007, joining the Royals for 19 games in 2004, 26 games in 2005, and 33 games in 2006. He also played in Venezuela in 2007.

In November, 2007, Blanco signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs. He spent the 2008 season in the minors. He joined the Cubs for 53 games in 2009. During that time, he had 31 hits and a .252 batting average.

Blanco was traded to the Texas Rangers in March, 2010. He played a career high 68 games with the Rangers in 2010 and he had 46 hits and a .277 batting average. Although he played well in his time with the Rangers in 2010, he spent most of the 2011 season in the minors, joining the Rangers for just 36 games.

In December, 2011, Blanco signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals. He never played, however, with the Nationals, spending 2012, his one season with them, in their minor league system.

Blanco signed with his fifth team, the Philadelphia Phillies, in March, 2012. He spent all of 2012 in the Phillies' minor league system and 2013 in the minors and in Venezuela. He joined the Phillies for just 25 games in 2014.

Blanco played primarily in the minor leagues from 2002 through 2014. During that time, he had a .252 batting average with 653 hits and 235 RBIs in 772 games. As a shortstop in 731 games, he made 2,092 assists, 462 double plays, 1,057 putouts, and 150 errors.

Blanco played in 106 games with the Phillies in 2015. He finished the season with 68 hits, 22 doubles, and a .292 batting average. Defensively, he played 1 game at first base, 22 games at second base, 36 games at third base, and 10 games at shortstop.

In 2016, Blanco batted .253 with 48 hits and 15 doubles in 90 games with the Phillies. Defensively, he played 19 games at first base, 20 games at second base, 21 games at third base, 10 games at shortstop, and 1 game in left field.

Blanco signed a new one-year, $3 million contract with the Phillies on December 14, 2016. He finished the 2017 season with a .192 batting average in 80 games. Defensively, he played 11 games at first base, 15 games at second base, 16 games at third base, and 4 games at shortstop. He also pitched 0.1 innings in 1 game.

Blanco elected free agency on November 2, 2017. He signed a minor league contract with the Brewers on April 2, 2018. He played only in the minors in 2018.

Blanco became a free agent on November 2, 2018. He signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves on December 5, 2018. He spent the 2019 season in the minors.

Blanco became a free agent on November 4, 2019. He returned to the Milwaukee Brewers on a minor league contract on January 31, 2020, and he was released on May 28, 2020. He hasn't played professional baseball since 2019.

Career batting statistics for Blanco through 2018 include:

• 536 games played
• 305 hits
• 109 RBIs
• 202 strikeouts to 79 walks
• .256 batting average

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Andres Blanco
ESPN - Andres Blanco
Baseball Reference - Andres Blanco