Guillermo Quiroz

Infobox MLB player


width = 150
name = Guillermo Quiroz
team = Baltimore Orioles
number = 24
position = Catcher
birthdate = birth date and age|1981|11|29
birthplace = Maracaibo, Venezuela
bats = Right
throws = Right
debutdate = September 4
debutyear = 2004
debutteam = Toronto Blue Jays
statyear = 2008
stat1label = Batting average
stat1value = .201
stat2label = Home runs
stat2value = 2
stat3label = Runs batted in
stat3value = 26
teams =
*Toronto Blue Jays (by|2004-by|2005)
*Seattle Mariners (by|2006)
*Texas Rangers (by|2007)
*Baltimore Orioles (by|2008-present)

Guillermo Antonio Quiroz [gee-YARE-mo kee-ROZE] (born November 29, 1981 in Maracaibo, Venezuela) is a Major League Baseball catcher for the Baltimore Orioles.

Quiroz was signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as a non-drafted free agent in by|1998, before his 17th birthday, with a lucrative $1.5 million signing bonus. He progressed through Toronto's system as the team's number-one catching prospect. In addition, Baseball America rated him as the Blue Jays' third best prospect in their by|2004 pre-season rankings, and the 35th best prospect in all of baseball.

Defensively, Quiroz has good skills. In by|2003 he threw out 45% of base stealers, and was the starting catcher for the "World Team" in the 2003 All-Star Futures Game.

Despite his low average in the minors, Quiroz is a patient hitter who receives a significant number of walks and can hit with decent power. He missed the end of the 2003 season with a collapsed lung, and the broken hand he suffered in May 2004, hurt his chances of taking over as the Blue Jays' starting catcher in by|2005.

In by|2006, the Blue Jays signed catcher Jason Phillips initially as the backup to Gregg Zaun. They later signed Bengie Molina to be their new starter. This placed three catchers ahead of Quiroz on the Blue Jays' depth chart. On March 31, Quiroz was put on waivers by the Blue Jays, but was picked up by the Seattle Mariners on the same day. Quiroz started the seventh game of the 2006 season for the Mariners, but was outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma Rainers eight days later. Quiroz spent the rest of the season between Triple-A Tacoma and the Double-A San Antonio Missions.

Quiroz was signed by the Texas Rangers on December 28, 2006. He spent most of the by|2007 season with the Triple-A Oklahoma RedHawks until a September call-up to the Majors. At the end of the 2007 season, the Rangers outrighted Quiroz to the minors, but he refused the assignment and became a free agent

On December 3, 2007, Quiroz signed a one-year major league contract with the Baltimore Orioles. Now Quiroz is the backup catcher for Ramon Hernandez.

ee also

* Players from Venezuela in MLB

External links

* [http://www.battersbox.ca/archives/00002204.shtml Batter's Box (interview)]
* [http://members.tripod.com/bb_catchers/catchers/list.htm Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers (article)]
* [http://www.minorleaguesplits.com/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?pl=425565 Minor League Splits and Situational Stats]