The winner of WBN‘s International Player of the Week is Leones de Yucatan first baseman Art Charles in Liga Mexicana de Beisbol.
The left-handed Charles, 33, made history with his 30th home run of the season against Conspiradores de Queretaro starting pitcher Carlos Viera on July 16 at Estadio Finus in Huimilpan Queretaro. That bomb made him the all-time single-season home run leader, and he was an LMB All-Star this season.
Charles is having an exceptional year, leading the LMB in home runs (31), RBI (75), slugging percentage (.807), and OPS (1.275). Charles’ 31 home runs lead Conspiradores de Queretaro outfielder Leonys Martin by three home runs for the LMB lead. Martin, 36, is a former MLB player who spent most of his nine-year career with the Texas Rangers.
Charles also spent time with MLB clubs but never made it out of their farm systems. The Toronto Blue Jays drafted him in the 20th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. He was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in spring training before the 2013 regular season. He made it as high as the Phillies’ Double-A affiliate, the Reading Fightin Phils.
In six MiLB seasons, his career numbers are 99 home runs, 387 RBI, and an OPS of .795 in 2,289 at-bats.
After the 2015 season, the Phillies released him. In 2016, he played in the Canadian-American Association with the New Jersey Jackals. He hit 29 home runs, 101 RBI, and an OPS of .1.160 in 436 at-bats. Charles played 12 games with the Jackals in 2017 and then went to the Mexican Pacific Winter League to play with Charros de Jalisco.
He debuted with Leones de Yucatan in 2018 and has played eight seasons in LMB. Charles has 117 home runs, 343 RBI, and a slash line of .260/.390/.556 in 1,503 at-bats in his LMB career.
Photo Credit: Art Charles #56 of Leones de Yucatan at the bat against Diablos Rojos during the match 1 of the Mexican Baseball League (LMB) between Leones de Yucatan and Diablos Rojos del México, at Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium. (Photo by Carlos Santiago/Eyepix Group/LightRocket via Getty Images)
