Miguel Ibarra

Miguel Aparicio Ibarra

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 180 lb.

• Born May 31, 1958 in Bocas del Toro Panama

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Miguel Ibarra peaked at AAA.

Ibarra hit .265/.346/.346 with 42 runs in 61 games in his pro debut for the 1977 Pulaski Phillies. His 15 errors led Appalachian League catchers. In '78, his offensive production fell (.237/.349/.310) with the Spartanburg Phillies while defense remained shaky at best (24 errors, 18 passed balls, .955 fielding percentage). He led South Atlantic League backstops in errors, 6 ahead of runner-up Steve Christmas. Mike cut his errors to 14 with the 1979 Peninsula Pilots, while producing at a .258/.297/.358 clip. He was second in the Carolina League in errors by a catcher, trailing Junior Ortiz.

By the time he made it to AA with the 1980 Reading Phillies, Ibarra was a backup to Ozzie Virgil Jr., hitting only .219/.310/.278. He also pitched a hitless, walkless, scoreless inning. In 1981, Ibarra started for Reading and had a career year at the dish (.266/.382/.390, 84 BB, 28 2B, 73 R). He also was fielding better, with a .983 fielding percentage. His 10 errors were only 7th in the 8-team Eastern League, though his 14 passed balls were one shy of co-leaders Christmas and Dave Valle. Ibarra tied Tony Incaviglia for third in the EL in doubles, trailing Greg Walker and Les Pearsey. He was also third in walks (behind Al Chambers and Gary Pettis) and 9th in OBP (between Incaviglia and Eddie Vargas). He was named the EL's All-Star catcher.

The Chicago Cubs took the Panamanian catcher in the 1981 Rule V Draft but he failed to make their team and was returned to Philadelphia. In the summer of 1982, he hit .263/.350/.365 in 97 games for Reading and .267/.323/.317 in 21 contests for the Oklahoma City 89ers. Jerry Willard and John Russell were the catchers for Reading, leaving Ibarra at DH. He did not play in the minors in 1983. In 1984, he returned to Reading once more but did poorly (.196/.277/.244 in 66 G as a backup 1B-C) and ended his playing career.

Overall, Ibarra had batted .250/.339/.340 in 637 minor league games, with 294 runs, 259 RBI and 269 walks. He fielded .966 at catcher with 64 passed balls in 372 games, .977 in 26 games at 1B and .889 in 11 games at 3B.

He later was a Chicago White Sox scout in Panama, signing Carlos Lee and Olmedo Sáenz. He coached for the Panamanian national team in the 2011 Baseball World Cup and 2011 Pan American Games.

Sources

• 2004 article from La Prensa on Ibarra's scouting days
• 2011 Pan American team information
• 1978-1983 Baseball Guides