Eric Filia of Team United States prepares to bat against Team Republic of Korea during the semifinals of the men’s baseball on day thirteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Yokohama Baseball Stadium on August 05, 2021 in Yokohama, Japan. (Photo by Yuichi Masuda/Getty Images)
Journeyman outfielder and 2020 Silver Olympic Medalist Eric Filia signed with Acereros de Monclova in the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol for the remainder of the 2023 regular season.
He replaced Mel Rojas Jr. on the roster, who batted .241 playing in 36 games with 158 plate appearances, recording 28 hits, five home runs, 20 RBI, and walking 38 times before being released.
Filia was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 2016 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft in the 20th Round after his junior season at UCLA. He played five seasons with the Mariners organization.
In 2019, he played his first season with the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers, and had to serve a 100-game suspension for failing a third positive test for a drug of abuse. After returning to play, he suited up in 35 games with 151 plate appearances, recording 40 hits, 13 doubles, two home runs, 25 walks, and 13 RBI.
In the 2021 season, Filia played in 44 games in his second season at the Triple-A level, batting .262 with 183 plate appearances and recording 39 hits, three home runs, 15 RBI, and 30 walks before being released by the Mariners on November 1, 2021.
Filia was a big part of the United States in their run to the silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where they lost to Japan in the gold medal game at Yokohama Stadium. He batted .263, recording five hits in 19 at-bats while hitting one double, and walking once at the Olympics.
During the 2020 World Baseball Softball Confederation Americas Olympic Qualifiers in West Palm Beach, Florida, Filia batted .313 in 16 at-bats, recording five hits, one double, one home run, walking twice, and five RBI helping the United States beat Venezuela to qualify for the Tokyo games.
Filia has played in the Liga de Béisbol Profesional de la República Dominicana winter league the last four winter seasons.
In the 2022-23 winter league season with Gigantes del Cibao in the Dominican Republic, Filia batted .231 playing in 23 games with 72 plate appearances, recording 15 hits, three doubles, one home run, six RBI, and six walks.
Filia played for Guerreros de Oaxaca before being signed with Monclova, batting .361 through 52 games with 228 plate appearances and recording 28 hits, five home runs, 19 RBI, and 34 walks in his first year of returning to professional baseball after not playing in 2022.
Acereros de Monclova are 31-29 of the season and are in sixth place of the LMB’s Zona Norte.
Acereros de Monclova will play the eighth place Zona Norte Mariachis de Guadalajara (26-35) in their second game of their home three-game series at 9:30 p.m. EDT, streaming on Liga Mexicana de Beisbol paid streaming service website Jonron.TV.