Rick Prieto

Richard Anthony Prieto

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 175 lb.
• School San Jose City College

• Born August 24, 1972 in Carmel, CA USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Rick Prieto is the twin brother of Chris Prieto. Rick was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 28th round of the 1993 amateur draft; his brother was chosen by the San Diego Padres two rounds earlier. Chris eventually made it to the majors; Rick did not.

Rick debuted with the 1993 Watertown Indians and hit .292/~.399/.452 with 11 steals in 12 tries while playing second base. In '94, he struggled with the Columbus RedStixx and batted .214/.352/.357 with 21 steals in 31 attempts. Additionally, he was converted to the outfield, further reducing his value. He finished his time with the Indians organization in 1995 by hitting .193/~.297/.263 for the Kinston Indians and going 4 for 18 for Columbus.

In 1996, Prieto had a dazzling season with the independent Salinas Peppers, hitting .338/.410/.508. Splitting the year between the outfield and second base, he made the Western League All-Star team as a utility man. He led the league in runs (83), hits (123), steal percentage (.968) and triples (10, a 3-way tie for the lead). He was 6th in average, tied for third in doubles (27), fifth in steals (30) and fifth in OBP and was named the WL MVP.

1997 marked Prieto's return to Organized Baseball. Hitting .357 with Salinas, he joined the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in the San Diego Padres chain and batted .292/~.388/.409, about as well as Chris hit for the same club that year. In '98, Rick only hit .239/~.305/.353 for the Mobile BayBears and .266/~.363/.367 for the Las Vegas Stars. In 1999, Prieto was back with Mobile for the second of four Southern League seasons. He hit .287/~.385/.393 with 28 steals in 33 tries.

Moving to the Birmingham Barons in 2000, Rick had a .255/.379/.310 line for the Chicago White Sox affiliate, swiping 30 in 35 attempts. He led the SL with 14 sacrifice bunts and 86 walks. He hit .240/.352/.342 as a 28-year-old at AA the next year and only stole 9 in 15 tries and went 6 for 26 for the Charlotte Knights.

By 2002, Prieto was back in his old Western League stomping grounds, now with the Chico Heat. He hit .313 and stole 25 bases for the league champions and was once again a teammate of his twin brother's. In the finale, he helped give Chico the title with a catch on a long fly by Benny Craig and a throw to first to finish a game-ending double play. When the Western folded, Rick moved to the Kansas City T-Bones of the Northern League and hit .340/.410/.493. He was third in the league in average and made the league All-Star team.

In 2004, Rick batted .314/.441/.482 for the T-Bones. He legged out 10 triples, leading the league, and stole 17 bases. Due to his impressive OBP, he scored 97 runs, setting a league record. His 78 walks also were a new league mark. He made the league All-Star team again. The next season, the 32-year-old veteran hit .333/.398/.512 for the T-Bones and was 8th in the Northern in average.

Sources: 1993-2006 Baseball Almanacs, 1995 Baseball Guide, Thebaseballcube.com