| Carlos Santana | |||||||||||||||
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_(cropped).jpg) Santana with the Cleveland Indians in 2019 | |||||||||||||||
| Arizona Diamondbacks – No. 41 | |||||||||||||||
| First baseman /Catcher | |||||||||||||||
| Born: (1986-04-08)April 8, 1986 (age 39) Santo Domingo,Dominican Republic | |||||||||||||||
Bats: Switch Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||
| MLB debut | |||||||||||||||
| June 11, 2010, for the Cleveland Indians | |||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics (through 2025 season) | |||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .241 | ||||||||||||||
| Hits | 1,880 | ||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 335 | ||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 1,136 | ||||||||||||||
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Carlos Santana (born April 8, 1986) is a Dominican-American professionalbaseballfirst baseman andcatcher for theArizona Diamondbacks ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theCleveland Indians / Guardians,Philadelphia Phillies,Kansas City Royals,Seattle Mariners,Pittsburgh Pirates,Milwaukee Brewers,Minnesota Twins, andChicago Cubs. He plays with theDominican Republic national team internationally, winning thegold medal in the2013 World Baseball Classic. Santana was both anAll-Star selection andSilver Slugger Award winner in 2019 with Cleveland. In 2024, he won aGold Glove with Minnesota.
Born inSanto Domingo, Santana has five sisters and two brothers. Their parents began divorce proceedings when he was 15 years old. Santana and his sisters lived with his mother after the divorce, which afforded him the opportunity to play baseball, meanwhile emerging as a father figure to his sisters. He played baseball with his neighbors in a 5-on-5 format, and, instead of swinging with bats, they used baseball caps. After signing with theLos Angeles Dodgers, Santana received a bonus worth $75,000, taking a part of the money to buy his mother a house.[1]
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Santana signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in2005. He began his professionalbaseball career with theGulf Coast Dodgers, the rookie-levelminor league affiliate. He played 32 games in 2005 andbatted .295. He played primarily atthird base, while also appearing atcatcher,second base, inleft field, and inright field.[2]
On July 26, 2008, the Dodgers traded Santana and pitcherJon Meloan to theCleveland Indians for third basemanCasey Blake.[3] Santana appeared in 130 games combined in 2008 with theAkron Aeros,Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino, andKinston Indians during the 2008 season, with the majority at San Bernardino and Kinston at theClass A-Advanced level, and played primarily catcher. On offense, he hit .326, amassed .431on-base percentage (OBP), .568slugging percentage (SLG), .999on-base plus slugging (OPS), 125runs scored, 21home runs, collected 117runs batted in (RBI), 89bases on balls (BB) and 85strikeouts.[2] Santana was namedCalifornia League Most Valuable Player (MVP). He also earned mention as Hi-A Player of the Year and made the Hi-A All-Star team, California League All-Star team, andBaseball America's All-Star second team.[4]
Entering the2009 season, Santana wasBaseball America's choice as the top prospect in the Indians organization.[5] Assigned to the Aeros of the AA-levelEastern League, he played in 130 games, batted .290, 413 OBP, .530 SLG, 23 home runs, 90 BB and 83 strikeouts.[2] Behind the plate, he placed fifth in the league with a 30 percentcaught stealing clip while helping to lead the club to a Southern Division title. In the Eastern League All-Star Game, he was named the starting catcher for the Southern Division and participated in theAll-Star Futures Game atBusch Stadium inSt. Louis. Santana also won theEastern League MVP Award[6] and was named the Indians' 2009 Minor League Player of the Year − also known as the "Lou Boudreau Award".[7]
Baseball America ranked Santana as the organization's top prospect for the second time entering the 2010 season.[8] The club assigned him to theTriple-AColumbus Clippers, where he hit .316 with 13 home runs and 51 RBI in 57 games prior to his firstmajor league callup.[9]
TheIndians promoted Santana on June 11, 2010, to make his MLB debut.[9] He batted third in theorder, making him the first Tribe player to debut hitting third sinceJim Norris in1977, according to theElias Sports Bureau.[10] Santana recorded his first major league hit in his second game, on June 12, 2010, a two-out, two-RBI double in the second inning offWashington Nationals pitcherJ. D. Martin. In his next at-bat, Santana hit his first major league home run to right field in the bottom of the fifth inning.[11]
On August 2, 2010, Santana was injured in a game atFenway Park while defending home plate againstBoston Red Sox baserunnerRyan Kalish. While attempting to dislodge the ball from Santana's mitt, Kalish slid into his left knee, bending it to the side. Santana was unable to walk off the field and had to be removed on a cart. Tests revealed that Santana had a high-grade sprain of his LCL and a hyperextension of his left knee. The injury ended Santana's rookie season.
Santana started atriple play against theChicago White Sox on April 3,2011 with a diving catch off of anAlexei Ramírez bunt.[12] On April 29, 2011, Santana hit his first major leaguegrand slam, awalk-off to defeat theDetroit Tigers, 9−5.
Santana finished 2011, which was his first full season in the major leagues, with 27 home runs, setting a club record for home runs hit by a switch hitter, and played 66 games at first base. He also hit 79 RBI, 35 doubles, and added 97 walks. He was one of four hitters in 2011 to reach 25 home runs, 35 doubles, and 90 walks, joiningMiguel Cabrera,Prince Fielder, andJoey Votto.[13]
On April 10,2012, the Indians signed Santana to a five-year, $21 million contract with a club option for the 2017 season.[13] In the eighth inning of a May 25 game versus theChicago White Sox, Santana sustained a hit in the mask from a foul tip and was removed from the game due to experiencing dizziness. He was subsequently placed on the seven-day disabled list with a concussion.[14] Heading into the All-Star break, Santana was hitting .221, five home runs and 30 RBI in 69 games.ManagerManny Acta spoke of the hopes the Indians had for their catcher but admitted he was not hitting "the way we expected him to hit."[15]
When Santana hit a home run in a July 18 game versus theTampa Bay Rays, it was his first since May 15.[16] He later added on a single and finished the game with a season-high four RBI, his first multi-RBI game since May 11.[17] "I know Santana feels so much better to get that monkey off his back. That power drought had been weighing on him", Acta remarked after the game.[16] Santana matched a career with five RBI in a September 23 game against theKansas City Royals.[18] He hit two home runs in the game, his third career multi-home run game and first of the season since April 8.[2][19]
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In2013, Santana and the newly-promotedYan Gomes split the catching duties nearly evenly, with Santana seeing significant time at first base and designated hitter when Gomes was catching. With the emergence of Gomes' defensive prowess, Santana saw less and less time at catcher.[20]
Santana started2014 playing primarily third base, a position he had not played since single-A, with some time at catcher. After a stint on the 7-day concussion DL in early June, he played exclusively at first base for the remainder of the season and into2015.[21] In 2014, he reached a career-high 113 walks while also leading the major leagues, and placed tenth in the AL with 241 times on base.[22] He became the first switch hitter sinceLance Berkman in 2004 to achieve at least 25 home runs with 100 walks in the same season, and the fifth Indians switch hitter to do accordingly.[23]
On September 21,2016, Santana hit his 150th career home run, doing so against theKansas City Royals.[24] During the regular season, Santana batted .259, 34 home runs, 87 RBI and .865 OPS. He produced 30 home runs and 68 RBI when batting left-handed.[25] Santana homered twice in the2016 American League Championship Series versus theToronto Blue Jays. He also recorded the final out of the Series by catching aTroy Tulowitzki pop-up in foul territory, sending the Indians to theWorld Series. TheChicago Cubs defeated Cleveland in the World Series in seven games.[26] The Indians exercised their $12 million option for 2017.[25]
After the Indians acquiredEdwin Encarnación in free agency prior to the2017 season, he took over as the team's designated hitter, and Santana played primarily first base.[27] During the first 84 games of the season, he hit .238 with 10 home runs.[28] In August and September, the club won an American League-record 22 games in a row,[29] and Santana hit .365/.484/.689 during the streak. He had hit 13 home runs and 313/.429/.596 through that point in the second half of the season.[28] On September 10 versus theBaltimore Orioles, he drove in his 585th run, passingOmar Vizquel as the Indians' career RBI leader among switch hitters.[30] Overall in 2017, he batted .259/.363/.445, 112 OPS+, 90 runs scored, 23 home runs, 79 RBI, 88 BB, 94 strikeouts, and five stolen bases.[21]
Santana placed fourth in the AL in walks and seventh in times on base (242).[31] With significant improvement on defense, he led AL first basemen in total zone runs (13) and assists (95), was second in double plays (129), fourth in putouts (1,055), and fifth in fielding percentage (.996).[32] The Indians won an AL-best 102 games for the regular season, but were defeated by thewild-card qualifyingNew York Yankees in theALDS.[33] He won his first careerWilson Defensive Player of the Year Award at first base, given to the top defensive player in the major leagues at each position.[34] He was also named a finalist for the American LeagueRawlings Gold Glove Award at first base.[35]
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On November 2, 2017, Santana filed forfree agency.[36] On December 20, he signed a three-year contract with thePhiladelphia Phillies that included a team option for the 2021 season.[37] The value of the three guaranteed seasons was $60 million.[38] Santana reached 1,000 hits for his career on April 7, 2018, with a three-run home run in a 20−1 win[39] versus theMiami Marlins atCitizens Bank Park.[40] For the season, he batted .229 and had the lowestbatting average on balls in play (.231) of all major league players, and was second in the major leagues in walks per strikeout (1.18).[41][42] He placed second in theNational League in walks (110), hit 24 home runs, 86 RBI, and scored 82 runs.[43]
In March 2019,ESPN.com reported that, in September 2018, Santana, frustrated with the team's nonchalance amidst a long losing streak, destroyed a television with a bat in the team's clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park because teammates had been using it to playFortnite during games.[44]
On December 3,2018, the Phillies traded Santana andJ. P. Crawford to theSeattle Mariners forJean Segura,Juan Nicasio, andJames Pazos.[45] In a three-team transaction ten days later, the Mariners traded Santana with cash to theIndians, the Indians sent Encarnación and a competitive balance draft pick to the Mariners,Yandy Díaz andCole Sulser to theTampa Bay Rays, and the Rays tradedJake Bauers to Cleveland.[46]
Santana hit the 200th home run of his career on April 28, 2019, versusWade Miley of theHouston Astros.[47] Selected by fan voting in 2019 to his first careerMLB All-Star Game, Santana was named the starting first baseman for the American League. He and Indians were hosts for the event played atProgressive Field[48] and he batted cleanup.[49] Santana also competed in theHome Run Derby.[50] On August 11 versus theMinnesota Twins, he hit a game-winning grand slam in a 7–3 outcome to tie the Indians and Twins for first place.[51] The following night, Santana hit a walk-off home run at Progressive Field to defeat theBoston Red Sox, 6–5, that allowed the Indians to reclaim sole possession of first place in the AL Central for the first time since the previous April.[52] Through August 15, Santana homered five time times in the seventh inning or later to give the Indians a lead.[49]
Overall with the2020 Cleveland Indians, Santana batted .199/.349/.350 with 8 home runs and 30 RBIs in 60 games, and led the American League in walks, with 47.[53] The Indians declined their club option on Santana's contract for the 2021 season on October 30, 2020, making Santana a free agent.[54]
On December 8, 2020, Santana signed a two-year, $17.5 million contract with theKansas City Royals.[55] He was immediately inserted into the Royals lineup at first base; no player had started more than 55% of the team's games in a season at first base sinceEric Hosmer left the franchise after the 2017 season.[56] Santana made 136 starts at first base during the 2021 season, and in 158 games overall, he hit .214/.319/.342 with 19 home runs and 69 RBI for a career-lowOPS+ of 80. His wRC+ of 83 was 7th-worst in the league among qualified hitters, although it was better than two of his Royals teammates.[57] His 86 walks were good for sixth in the American League, and were the most by a Royals hitter sinceJosé Offerman in 1998. Santana did play a portion of the season with a leg injury, although he was never placed on the injured list.[58]
Santana remained the Royals' first baseman entering the 2022 season. The Royals were 26–45 at the time of his trade away from the organization, and Santana was hitting .216/.349/.341 with four home runs and 21 RBI in 52 games, although in a season in which league-wide offensive numbers were down, his OPS+ was at 98.
On June 27, 2022, the Royals traded Santana to theSeattle Mariners in exchange forWyatt Mills and William Fleming.[59] In 79 appearances for the Mariners, Santana batted .192/.293/.400 with 15 home runs and 39 RBI.[60]
On November 29, 2022, Santana signed a one-year contract with thePittsburgh Pirates.[61] On June 30, 2023, in a game against theMilwaukee Brewers, Santana hit a walk-off two-run home run into theAllegheny River to win it 8-7. It was the 69th home run hit into the Allegheny River in the history ofPNC Park.[62] In 94 appearances for Pittsburgh, Santana batted .235/.321/.412 with 12 home runs, 53 RBI, and six stolen bases.[63]
On July 27, 2023, the Pirates traded Santana to theMilwaukee Brewers in exchange for minor-league shortstop Jhonny Severino.[64] On September 23, Santana hit his 300th career home run off ofA. J. Puk of theMiami Marlins.[65] In 52 games for Milwaukee, he batted .249/.314/.459 with 11 home runs and 33 RBI. He became a free agent following the season.
On February 7, 2024, Santana signed a one-year, $5.25 million contract with theMinnesota Twins.[66] He played in his 2,000th career game on June 21, 2024, batting 1-for-4 with a double at theOakland Coliseum.[67] In 150 games, he batted .238/.328/.420 with 23 home runs and 71 RBI. Defensively, he led AL first basemen in games (146), assists (92), and total zone runs (10), and ranked third in putouts (998).[21] Santana won the AL Gold Glove for first base at the end of the 2024 season; at 38 years and 174 days, he was the oldest position player in MLB history to win his first Gold Glove award.[68]
On December 23, 2024, Santana signed a one-year, $12 million contract with theCleveland Guardians.[69] During May, he collected 22 RBI—tying his career-best for any month—and also slashed .307/.448/.507/.955. By authoring a 10-gamehitting streak, Santana became the first player aged 39 or older sinceEddie Murray in1996 to accomplish the feat for Cleveland.[70] In 116 appearances for Cleveland, he batted .225/.316/.333 with 11 home runs, 52 RBI, and seven stolen bases. On August 28, Santana was released by the Guardians.[71]
On August 31, 2025, Santana signed a one-year major league contract with theChicago Cubs.[72] He appeared in eight games for the Cubs, going 2-for-19 (.105) with two RBI.
On February 10, 2026, Santana signed a one-year, $2 million contract with theArizona Diamondbacks.[73]
Santana represented theDominican Republic national team at theWorld Baseball Classic in2013 and2017. They won thegold medal for the2013 championship, defeatingPuerto Rico 3–0 in the final.[74] In theMLB Japan All-Star Series, he played for theUnited States in the2014 and2018 editions.[75]
Santana is known by the nicknames "Slamtana," "Axeman", and "El Oso" ("The Bear" in Spanish).[21] In 2019, Santana raised his batting average to above his career high by hitting the ball the other way more frequently.[49]
Until spring training of the 2019 season, Santana did not have an established routine, he stated. It was during that period that Indians assistant hitting coachVic Rodriguez urged him to do so, because "if you have a consistent routine that works for you and you stick to it every day regardless of how good or bad a season you’re having, you’re going to be fine." The approach was designed to hit the ball with more hard contact up the middle, rather than attempt to continuously pull it, helping to significantly improve in virtually every category. He maintained better focus and increased his ability to shorten slumps. Commented longtime teammatesFrancisco Lindor, "[h]e’s always been a good player, but his mental preparation is a lot better this year. ... [H]e would have just two at-bats [a game]. He would have two good at-bats and the rest, whatever. Now he has three to five good at-bats."[76]
Third basemanJosé Ramírez noticed a more relaxed approach. "When he was first with us, his attitude was different, especially when things weren’t going well for him, it was very different. He’s changed. He doesn’t worry as much. He works, he knows what he has to do. I think it’s maturity and time, too. Maybe he learned from the rough year he had in Philadelphia."[76]
Santana wears the number 41 in honor ofVíctor Martínez, who is also a former switch-hitting catcher who started his career with the Cleveland Indians.[77]
Santana is married and his family resides inCleveland. They maintained the same residence in Cleveland while he played for Philadelphia in the 2018 season.[49] He mentioned that he considered the local police and a young boy withcerebral palsy named Niko Lanzarotta–whom he also named as his best friend in Cleveland–as part of his family.[78]
On April 19, 2019, Santana became anaturalized United States citizen.[79]
