Audes de Leon

Audes Leopoldo de Leon Flores

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 196 lb.

• Born June 26, 1979 in Chitre Panama

Biographical Information

Audes de Leon played well for Panama in quite a few international events.

De Leon starred for the DSL Giants in 1997, hitting .411, second in the Dominican Summer League and 3 points off of the pace. He never made it to the San Francisco Giants US affiliates, though.

De Leon joined Panama's national team for the 2001 Bolivarian Games, helping them win the Gold Medal. He was very good in the 2003 Baseball World Cup and batted .356/.370/.756 with 5 homers, 10 runs and 16 RBI in 10 games as the DH for the Silver Medalists. He hit a 4th-inning solo homer against Vicyohandri Odelin in the Gold Medal game to tie it at 2. He tied Takashi Yoshiura for the tournament lead in home runs, was second to Yoshiura in RBI and tied teammate Olmedo Saenz for the hit lead (16). He was named the Cup All-Star DH.

In the 2005 Baseball World Cup, Audes manned first base for Panama and hit .368/.467/.526 with 9 runs and 8 RBI in 11 games for the Bronze Medal winners. Highlights included another home run against Cuba and a 3-for-4 day in the Bronze Medal win over the Netherlands. De Leon did not make the All-Star team as Percy Isenia was selected at first base.

He was 1 for 6 with a walk in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. He was 0 for 2 against Puerto Rico before being pinch-hit for by Earl Agnoly. He went 1 for 3 with a walk against Cuba. Against the Netherlands, he was 0 for 1 against Shairon Martis before giving way to Agnoly again.

In the 2006 COPABE qualifier for the 2008 Olympics, de Leon hit .333/.357/.564 with 9 runs and 7 RBI in 9 games at first base but Panama failed to make the cut with a 4-5 record. During the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games, de Leon hit .278/.400/.333 and led Panama with 3 runs in 5 games.

De Leon was 6 for 10 in the 2007 Pan American Games, second in average to Logan Forsythe, including yet another strong outing against Cuba - 3 for 4 in an opening-game upset of the eventual champions. He also draw two walks in the event for a .667 OBP but did not score a run as only one other Panamanian batter topped .300.

In the 2007 Baseball World Cup, Audes had his third excellent Baseball World Cup in a row, batting .375/.400/.417 but Panama failed to win a Medal after their Silver and Gold in 2003 and 2005 respectively. He was not as successful in the 2008 Americas Baseball Cup, only hitting .126/.214/.167 but still managed to lead Panama with 6 RBI in 7 games; their poor showing overall prevented them from going to the 2009 Baseball World Cup.

He had one at-bat in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He pinch-hit for Ruben Tejada, facing Nelson Figueroa, and ground into a fielder's choice. He helped Panama win the 2009 Bolivarian Games and 2010 Central American Games and was with them for the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games.

He then was third base coach for Panama when they won the Silver Medal in the 2017 Central American Games.

Sources

• IBAF site
• World Baseball Classic site
• 1998 Baseball Almanac
• Article on De Leon's performance in the 2007 Pan Am Games
• Central American and Caribbean Games