Juan Yepez
Juan David Yepez Alvarez
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 1", Weight 200 lb.
Biographical Information[edit]
Infielder Juan Yepez was signed by Atlanta Braves scout Rolando Petit as a 17-year-old before the 2015 season and split his first year as a pro between the Danville Braves and GCL Braves, both being Rookie-class teams. He 59 games, he hit .299/.364/.458 with 4 homers and 31 RBIs. In 2016, he was limited to 23 games with the Rome Braves of the South Atlantic League, and 3 more on a rehabilitation assignment in the Gulf Coast League. When in Rome, he hit .261 with 1 homer and 7 RBIs playing against much older competition. He was back with Rome at the start of the 2017 season and had already logged 36 games, during which he hit .275 with 1 homer and 15 RBIs, when on May 20th he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in return for major league 1B Matt Adams. The Braves had just suffered a devastating injury to their best hitter, 1B Freddie Freeman, and were willing to part with a solid prospect like Yepez in order to fill their immediate need for a replacement. After the trade, he was assigned to the Peoria Chiefs of the Midwest League.
Prior to making his major league debut, Yepez was added to the Cardinals' roster for the 2021 National League Wild Card Game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, but did not appear in the game. He made his debut the following season, on May 4, 2022, starting in RF and batting 5th against the Kansas City Royals. He went 2 for 3 in a 10-0 win before being replaced by pinch-hitter Dylan Carlson in the 7th, with both hits being doubles. He began to play regularly after that, the Cardinals accepting some sub-par defense in the outfield in return for his hot bat. On June 27th, he had the first multi-homer game of his career in a 9-0 win over the Miami Marlins.
Yepez has played both first and third base as a professional, with first base being his main position his first two years, after which he was moved to third base in 2017. By the time he made his major league debut in 2022, he was a first baseman/outfielder.
Further Reading[edit]
- John Denton: "How Yepez went from 'last shot' to 1st MLB multi-HR game", mlb.com, June 28, 2022. [1]
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