Ossie Blanco

Oswaldo Carlos Blanco Díaz
(Ossie)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.

• Debut May 26, 1970
• Final Game June 9, 1974
• Born September 8, 1945 in Caracas, Distrito Federal, Venezuela

BR page

Biographical Information

First baseman Ossie Blanco played briefly in the major leagues, with 34 games for the Chicago White Sox in 1970 and 28 games for the Cleveland Indians in 1974. He hit a combined .196 with no homers and 10 RBIs between the two stops.

He was in the minor leagues from 1963, when he was signed by the San Francisco Giants out of Venezuela, until 1979 when he played for the Caracas Metropolitanos of the short-lived Inter-American League. Part of his time was spent in the organizations of the Kansas City Athletics, New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs in addition to the teams already mentioned. He was in AAA every year from 1969 to 1979, including seasons in the Mexican League and Inter-American League. He was a high-average hitter with line drive power - he would typically hit around 15 homers per year, so he was considered under-powered as a major league first baseman. He hit .340 in 94 games for the Syracuse Chiefs in 1969 in what was his best minor league season.

In addition to his time in the U.S. and Mexico, he had a long career in the Venezuelan League where he was known by his birth name of "Oswaldo Blanco".