Frank Taveras Jr.

Franklyn Taveras

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 158 lb.

• Born September 6, 1974 in Santiago, Santiago D.R.

BR Minors page

Biographical information

Frank Taveras Jr. played in the minor leagues from 1993-2002. He is the son of former big leaguer Frank Taveras.

Taveras Jr. debuted as a pro in 1993 with the DSL Indians, hitting .250. He batted .254 for the DSL Indians in both 1994 and 1995. By 1996, he was in the US minors, hitting .236/~.263/.317 with 50 strikeouts in 161 AB for the Burlington Indians. The next year, he batted .263/~.319/.376 for Burlington and made 33 errors, tying Paul Hoover for the Appalachian League lead.

Taveras spent most of 1998 with the Columbus RedStixx and batted .260/~.285/.363. Lacking his father's speed, he only stole one base in six attempts. He also briefly played for the Akron Aeros, going 2 for 4 with a walk and a run. In 1999, Frank hit .234/~.274/.346 in 31 games as a utility man, playing all four infield positions as well as the outfield for the Kinston Indians. He also played 16 more games with Akron and batted .190/~.261/.286 with 17 strikeouts in 42 AB.

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed Taveras to a minor league deal for 2000 but he failed to make the club and went to the independent leagues, where he put up good numbers. In 2000, he hit .295 with a .492 slugging percentage, 14 home runs and 74 RBI for two teams in the Texas-Louisiana League.

Taveras spent 2001 with the San Angelo Colts and hit .295 with 27 doubles, 18 homers, 79 RBI and a .527 slugging percentage as the primary third baseman and sometime second baseman. He made the TLL All-Star Team as a utility infielder. He tied for 4th in the leagues in doubles and tied for third in home runs. Taveras wrapped up his career in 2002 with three teams in the Central Baseball League, hitting .284 and slugging .464.

Taveras later scouted for the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets and Seattle Mariners. He also has coached for the DSL Mariners. He signed Martires Arias, Miguel Celestino, Yucary De La Cruz, Gabby Guerrero, Wilton Martinez, Henry Perez, Michael Pineda and Rudy van Heydoorn.

Sources

• 1996-2003 Baseball Almanacs
• Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database
• Pirates Mailing List