Manuel Chavez (minors03)

Jesus Manuel Chavez Baltazar

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 3", Weight 175 lb.

• Born November 22, 1993 in Mexicali, Baja California MEX

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Pitcher Manuel Chavez, sometimes called Jesus Chavez, has been active in the minor leagues since 2012. He was first signed as an international amateur free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies on April 29, 2012 and began his pro career that same year with the VSL Phillies in the Venezuelan Summer League, pitching 4 innings in 2 games. He was with the same team in 2003 and did very well, finishing at 9-0, 2.18 in 14 starts. However, he decided not to continue with the Phillies after that, as he received offers to move straight to the Mexican League. Thus, in 2014, he found himself pitching for the Acereros de Monclova, and had been pitching in Mexico ever since.

In his first season for Monclova, he went 1-0, 3.72 in 18 games, then was 3-0, 4.50 in 26 games in 2015 and 2-2, 5.15 in 41 games in 2016. He moved to the Pericos de Puebla in 2017, going 1-1, 5.68 in 34 games, by which time he was being used strictly as a LOOGY. His rising ERAs led to his being let go by Puebla and he only pitched 5 games for the Leones de Yucatan in 2018, before spending a full season with them in 2019, when he was 1-0, 5.16 in 44 games. There was no summer baseball in Mexico in 2020, a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, but in 2021 he was back with Yucatan, going 1-0, 0.71 in 25 games. In 2022, after years as a lefty relief specialist, he made 5 starts in 29 appearances, finishing at 2-3, 4.34. The change of role came after he had found some success as a starter in winter ball.

In parallel with his summer career, he first played in Mexican Pacific League in 2013-14, with the Aguilas de Mexicali, then returned to the team the following three winters. After a break of a couple of years, he returned to the MXPL in 2019-20, when he was with both the Charros de Jalisco and Algodoneros de Guasave, then was back with Guasave in 2020-21. It was with Mexicali in 2021-22 that he was given a chance to start some games and he ended up doing very well in spite of a 2-4 record: his ERA in 57 1/3 innings was 2.04, with 57 strikeouts, as 10 of his 18 appearances were as a starter. He was again a starting pitcher for the Aguilas in 2022-23, but did not do as well, ending up with a record of 1-4, 6.75 in 11 games.