| Raimel Tapia | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Tapia with the Colorado Rockies in 2021 | |
| Sultanes de Monterrey – No. 15 | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born: (1994-02-04)February 4, 1994 (age 31) San Pedro de Macorís,Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Left Throws: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 2, 2016, for the Colorado Rockies | |
| MLB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
| Batting average | .274 |
| Home runs | 29 |
| Runs batted in | 201 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Raimel Antonio Tapia Linarez (born February 4, 1994) is a Dominican professionalbaseballoutfielder for theSultanes de Monterrey of theMexican League. He has previously played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for theColorado Rockies,Toronto Blue Jays,Boston Red Sox,Milwaukee Brewers, andTampa Bay Rays.
TheColorado Rockies signed Tapia as an internationalfree agent in 2010. He spent the 2013 season with theGrand Junction Rockies of theRookie-levelPioneer League, and was named the league's player of the month for July.[1] He had a 29-gamehitting streak for Grand Junction.[2][3] After the season, he was named theToppsPioneer League Player of the Year for 2013[4] and was named byBaseball Prospectus as the No. 97 prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2014 season. The Rockies added him to their 40-man roster after the 2015 season.[5]
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Tapia began the 2016 season with theHartford Yard Goats of theDouble–AEastern League, and was selected to appear in the 2016All-Star Futures Game.[6] The Rockies promoted him to theAlbuquerque Isotopes of theTriple–APacific Coast League in August.[7]
The Rockies promoted Tapia to the major leagues on September 2, 2016.[8]
On July 20, 2018, Tapia hit a two out, two strike, go-ahead pinch hitgrand slam in the top of the 7th inning againstArizona Diamondbacks relieverArchie Bradley to give the Rockies an 11–8 lead. It was the first grand slam of Tapia's career and would ultimately prove to be the difference as the Rockies would go on to win the game 11–10.
In 2018, in 25 at bats he hit .200/.259/.480.[9] He had the fastest baserunning sprint speed of all major league designated hitters, at 28.6 feet/second.[10]
Tapia received more playing time in 2020 afterIan Desmond opted out of the season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[11] In 51 games, Tapia hit .321, drove in 17 runs, and stole eight bases.
In 2021 he batted .273/.327/.372. He had the highest ground ball/fly ball ratio in the major leagues, at 4.10, the highest ground ball percentage, at 67.4%, and the lowest fly ball percentage, at 16.4%.[12]
On March 24, 2022, Tapia and Adrian Pinto were traded to theToronto Blue Jays in exchange forRandal Grichuk.[13]
On July 22, 2022, in the top of the 3rd inning, Tapia hit aninside the parkgrand slam atFenway Park against theBoston Red Sox, the second in franchise history. The Blue Jays would go on to win the game 28–5, setting a franchise record for the most runs scored in a single game.[14]
On November 15, 2022, Tapia wasdesignated for assignment. He was non-tendered and became a free agent on November 18.
On January 26, 2023, Tapia signed a minor-league contract with theBoston Red Sox and was named a non-roster invitee tospring training.[15][16] An impressive spring training performance got him added to the major-league roster for the team'sOpening Day game.[17] However, a roster crunch and an logjam in Boston's outfield meant Tapia was the odd man out, and he was designated for assignment by the Red Sox afterChristian Arroyo was activated from the injured list on June 5.[17] Tapia was released by Boston on June 11.[18] In 39 games for Boston, Tapia hit .264/.333/.368 with one home run, ten RBI, and nine stolen bases.
On June 14, 2023, Tapia signed a major league contract with theMilwaukee Brewers.[19] In 20 games for Milwaukee, he struggled to a .173/.267/.288 batting line with 2 home runs and 3 RBI. On July 22, Tapia was designated for assignment by the Brewers following the promotion ofSal Frelick.[20] He elected free agency upon clearing waivers on July 24.[21]
On August 3, 2023, Tapia signed a minor league contract with theTampa Bay Rays.[22] In 29 games for the Triple–ADurham Bulls, he batted .269/.371/.414 with 4 home runs and 11 RBI.[23] Tampa Bay selected his contract and added him to the active roster on September 23.[24] In 5 games for the Rays, he went 3–for–9 (.333) with two stolen bases. Following the season on November 4, Tapia was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to Triple–A Durham.[25] He elected free agency on November 6.[26]
On April 15, 2025, Tapia signed with theSultanes de Monterrey of theMexican League.[27]
Tapia has been noted for altering his batting stance during at-bats. He generally stands at the plate with an upright stance except when there are two strikes against him, at which point he crouches deeply.[28]
