Yairo Muñoz

Yairo Munoz

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 201 lb.

• Debut March 29, 2018

• Born January 23, 1995 in Nagua, Maria Trinidad Sanchez D.R.

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Biographical Information

Infielder Yairo Munoz reached the majors in 2018.

Munoz was signed by the Oakland Athletics in 2012 and spent that year playing in the Dominican Summer League. He appeared in 25 games for the AZL Athletics the next year. On July 13th, he hit his first pro home run off Josh Uhen of the AZL Brewers. With the Vermont Lake Monsters in 2014, he hit .298 and stole 14 bases to earn a spot on the New York-Penn League All-Star team. He split 2015 between the Beloit Brewers and Stockton Ports, hitting .260 with 13 home runs in 136 games between the two clubs.

Munoz was with the Midland Rockhounds in 2016. He hit .240 with 9 homers as his team won the Texas League crown. He split the next summer between Midland and the AAA Nashville Sounds, posting a .300 average and 13 home runs between the two teams. Following the 2017 season, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals along with fellow minor leaguer Max Schrock in return for Stephen Piscotty. He made the Cardinals' Opening Day roster in 2018 and made his big league debut in the team's opener, striking out against Robert Gsellman of the New York Mets in a 7th-inning appearance as a pinch-hitter. He played 108 games that season, seeing time at three infield positions and in the outfield, and hit .276 with 8 homers and 42 RBIs, excellent production for a utility player. In 2019, he played another 88 games, hitting .267 with 2 homers and 13 RBIs in a similar role. The Cardinals won a division title that year, but he appeared in just one postseason game making an out as a pinch-hitter in Game 4 of the NLCS against the Washington Nationals.

He went to spring training with the Cardinals in 2020 but abruptly left the team after apparently injuring a hamstring in a game. Instead of consulting the team's trainers, he hopped a plane to the Dominican Republic without advising anyone. The team's front office was not amused and on March 7th, announced that he had been released, explaining that Munoz was apparently not pleased about his playing time and his usage the previous season and felt he was not being given an appropriate opportunity to earn a regular position. Manager Mike Shildt commented: "He was going to see more opportunities. I wish him the best. I wish I had a better explanation. It's been baffling."

Related Sites

• Yairp Munoz on mlb.com