| José Caballero | |
|---|---|
 Caballero with theTampa Bay Rays in 2025 | |
| New York Yankees – No. 72 | |
| Utility player | |
| Born: (1996-08-30)August 30, 1996 (age 29) Las Tablas, Los Santos,Panama | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 15, 2023, for the Seattle Mariners | |
| MLB statistics (through 2025 season) | |
| Batting average | .228 |
| Home runs | 18 |
| Runs batted in | 106 |
| Stolen bases | 119 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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José Manuel Ortega Caballero (born August 30, 1996) is a Panamanian professionalbaseballutility player for theNew York Yankees ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theSeattle Mariners andTampa Bay Rays. Caballero made his MLB debut in 2023 with the Mariners. Heled the American League (AL) instolen bases in 2024 and all of MLB in 2025.
Caballero attendedChipola College. In 2017, he led the school's baseball team to theJUCO World Series championship and was named themost valuable player of the tournament.[1]
TheArizona Diamondbacks selected Caballero in the seventh round, with the 202nd overall selection, of the2017 Major League Baseball draft.[2] He made his professional debut with the rookie-levelMissoula Osprey.
In 2018, he split the year between the Low-AHillsboro Hops and High-AKane County Cougars, hitting a cumulative .292/.378/.468 with 9 home runs, 40 RBI, and 17 stolen bases across 70 total games.[3] For the 2019 season, he began the year playing for the High-AVisalia Rawhide, posting a .268/.388/.396 with 3 home runs, 12 RBI, and 28 stolen bases in 43 contests.
On July 31, 2019, Caballero was traded to theSeattle Mariners in exchange forMike Leake.[4] Caballero played in 23 games for the High-AModesto Nuts, slashing .256/.339/.333 with no home runs, 10 RBI, and 4 stolen bases. He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[5]
Caballero split the 2021 season between the rookie-levelArizona Complex League Mariners, High-AEverett AquaSox, and Double-AArkansas Travelers. In 20 games, he hit .258/.385/.484 with 3 home runs, 15 RBI, and 11 stolen bases. In 2022, he played in 31 games for Double-A Arkansas, batting .227/.440/.330 with 2 home runs, 12 RBI, and 15 stolen bases.[6] He was assigned to the Triple-ATacoma Rainiers to begin the 2023 season.
On April 15, 2023, Caballero was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time.[7] He made his MLB debut that night as a defensive substitution, replacingJ. P. Crawford at shortstop in the ninth inning against theColorado Rockies.[8] On April 19, 2023, he recorded his first hit, a stand-up double offEric Lauer of theMilwaukee Brewers.[9] Caballero began seeing more playing time at second base as veteranKolten Wong struggled.[10] On May 21, 2023, he hit his first major league home run offNick Anderson of theAtlanta Braves, in the process becoming only the second Mariner afterMike Cameron to record a homer and three stolen bases in the same game.[11]
On January 5, 2024, the Mariners traded Caballero to theTampa Bay Rays in exchange forLuke Raley.[12] He made 139 appearances for the Rays during the regular season, batting .227/.283/.347 with nine home runs, 44 RBI, and an AL-leading 44 stolen bases.[13]
Caballero made 86 appearances for Tampa Bay in 2025, slashing .226/.327/.311 with two home runs, 27 RBI, and 34 stolen bases.[14]
On July 31, 2025, the Rays traded Caballero to theNew York Yankees in exchange forEverson Pereira and Marshall Toole.[15][16] Caballero lead the league in stolen bases for the 2025 season with 49 stolen bases.[17]
Caballero was named to thePanamanian national team in the2023 World Baseball Classic.[18] In the tournament, he slashed .231/.333/.308 with three hits and one walk over 15 plate appearances.