Gilberto Mejia

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 160 lb.

• Born September 1, 1982 in Bani, Peravia Dominican Republic

Minors BR page

Biographical Information

Infielder Gilberto Mejia won minor league batting and slugging titles in an otherwise mediocre career in Organized Baseball then played in the independent leagues. He has stolen over 250 bases as a pro.

He played seven seasons in the Detroit Tigers organization, beginning in 2000. He spent 2000-2001 with the DSL Tigers, hitting .248 the first year and .270 the second. He came to the US in 2002 with the West Michigan Whitecaps, hitting .246/.341/.449 as a backup 2B.

In 2003, he led the Gulf Coast League with a .360 average (.400 OBP, .611 SLG, 23 SB, 5 CS, 9 3B, 36 R in 44 G) while playing for the GCL Tigers and hit 11 triples while playing ball at three different levels. He was 5 for 21 for the Oneonta Tigers and hit only .200/.252/.261 in 34 games for West Michigan. In addition to leading the GCL in average, he also led in triples, tied for 7th in home runs (5, 2 more than in his first three seasons combined), tied for 5th in RBI (29), led in steals, led in slugging, led in extra-base hits (25), was 5th in hits (63) and was 6th in runs (36). He was named the GCL All-Star shortstop but was not rated as one of the GCL's top 20 prospects by Baseball America.

For a defending minor league batting and slugging champion, he had a relatively insignificant role with the 2004 Lakeland Tigers, hitting .266/.330/.390 as a utility man and going 16-for-26 in steal attempts. He briefly reached the AA level in 2005, hitting just .190/.266/.261 in 60 games for the Erie SeaWolves. He also played 64 games for Lakeland, putting up worse numbers than the year before (.265/.323/.385 in 64 G). Back with Lakeland in 2006, he hit .248/.333/.354 with 7 triples and 25 swipes (in 39 tries) and fielded .955 at second base. He tied for third in the Florida State League in three-baggers and tied for third in times caught stealing, one shy of the lead. His 22 errors led the league's second basemen.

Since 2007, Mejia has played in the independent leagues. He spent four years with the Windy City Thunderbolts of the Frontier League. The first year, he hit .264/.347/.373 and stole 23 bases in 27 tries. In 2008, he put up a .282/.374/.420 line with 34 steals (caught 16 times) and 67 runs in 81 games. He tied Brandon Anderson for third in the Frontier League in swipes, tied for 10th in runs and led in times gunned down stealing. In '09, the 26-year-old batted .324/.384/.499 with 10 triples, 83 runs and 47 steals (in 65 attempts) in 95 contests. He led the Frontier League in triples, ranked 7th in average, was second in runs (one shy of Stephen Holdren), was second in hits (122) and led in both steals and times caught stealing. He was named the All-Star second baseman. In 2010, he fell to .294/.396/.393 with 7 triples and 35 steals (only caught 9 times). He again led the circuit in triples while finishing 4th in stolen bases. He repeated as the All-Star second sacker.

He played for the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League in 2011, putting up a .286/.354/.387 line with 75 runs, 10 triples and 40 steals in 49 tries. He was 9th in the league in runs, third in triples (trailing Adam Greenberg and Kennard Jones) and second in steals (behind Kraig Binick). He lost All-Star honors at 2B to Ramon Castro.

Mejia became a manager with the DSL Mets Orange in 2023.

Sources include 2004 and 2007-2011 Baseball Almanac, Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database