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| Luis Salazar | |
|---|---|
 Salazar as hitting coach of theChattanooga Lookouts in 2009 | |
| Third baseman | |
| Born: (1956-05-19)May 19, 1956 (age 69) Barcelona,Anzoátegui State,Venezuela | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 15, 1980, for the San Diego Padres | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 4, 1992, for the Chicago Cubs | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .261 |
| Home runs | 94 |
| Runs batted in | 455 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Member of the Venezuelan | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 2011 |
Luis Ernesto Salazar Garcia (born May 19, 1956) is aVenezuelan former professionalbaseball player,coach andmanager. He played inMajor League Baseball from 1980 to 1992 as athird baseman andoutfielder for theSan Diego Padres (1980–84, 1987, 1989),Chicago White Sox (1985–86),Detroit Tigers (1988), and theChicago Cubs (1989–92).
In 1973, he signed with theKansas City Royals but was released in 1974. He signed with thePittsburgh Pirates in 1975. On August 5, 1980, Salazar, along withRick Lancellotti, was traded to theSan Diego Padres for a player to be named later andKurt Bevacqua. The Padres later sentMark Lee to Pittsburgh to complete the trade. After seven minors seasons, finally, he got a chance with San Diego in the 1980 season.
An extremely versatile reserve who played every position but catcher in his career, Salazar was the Padres'third baseman between 1981 and 1983. In1984, they acquired 39-year-oldGraig Nettles, whoplatooned with Salazar at third base. The Padres won theNational League pennant,[1] before losingthe World Series in five games to theDetroit Tigers.[2] Salazar was traded to the White Sox along withOzzie Guillén (1985), and returned to the Padres as a free agent (1987). Then, he signed with Detroit (1988), before being dealt back to San Diego. Salazar finished his career with the Cubs.
In his first stint with the Padres, Salazar hit 29home runs with 187runs batted in and 109stolen bases in 525 games. In 126 games with the White Sox, he played onthird base,first base,shortstop andoutfield (eventually wasDH andrelief pitcher),batting .245 with 10 homers and 45 RBI. For Detroit, mostly in the outfield, he hit .270, 12, 62. Also, he kept the Tigers in a pennant race by filling in at shortstop for injuredAlan Trammell.
On August 31,1989, a few minutes before the postseason rosters must be filed, the Cubs obtained Salazar from San Diego in a last effort to replace their four slumping third basemen. Salazar gave the club a lift in September, playing a solid third base and batting .325 (26-80) with 12 RBI and a .357on-base percentage. The Cubs won theNational League East division title. The next three seasons Salazar played predominantly on third base, batting .243 with 31 homers, 110 RBI, and 78runs in 316 games.
In a 1,302-game career, Salazar batted .261 with 179 home runs, 653 RBI, 438 runs scored, 1070hits, 144doubles, 33 triples and 117 stolen bases. Salazar was also a valuablepinch-hitter in his career. He went 28-for-91 for a .308 of batting average, with four home runs and 17 runs batted in.
He has served as a hitting coach with theLouisville RiverBats (1999),Indianapolis Indians (2000),Milwaukee Brewers,Jacksonville Suns (2008) andChattanooga Lookouts (2009).
Salazar was inducted into theHispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame in 2010.
Salazar joined theAtlanta Braves organization in 2011 and was poised to serve as the manager of theirClass A-Advanced minor league affiliate, theLynchburg Hillcats of theCarolina League. On March 9, 2011, he was struck in the face by a foul ball hit by Braves catcherBrian McCann during a spring training game between the Braves and theSt. Louis Cardinals. He was airlifted to a local hospital to undergo surgery.[3] Salazar had his left eyeremoved on March 15, 2011, due to the injuries he sustained from the incident.[4] After the injury, Salazar stated that he intended to continue working for the Braves organization, and he was expected to return to manage the Hillcats once medically cleared to return to work.[5] Salazar returned to the Hillcats dugout on April 15, 2011.[6]
Salazar was named manager for the A advancedFlorida Fire Frogs in theAtlanta Braves organization for the 2018 season.