Freddy Galvis of the Philadelphia Phillies throws towards first base while turning a double play during the fifth inning against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park on October 02, 2021 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
Former Major League Baseball infielder Freddy Galvis will play for the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos during the 2024 Liga Mexicana de Beisbol season, the team announced on their official X account on Monday.
Galvis, 34, played 10 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily with the Philadelphia Phillies from 2012-21. In 1,102 career MLB games, he hit .246 with a .680 OPS and 109 home runs. Galvis has never been a significant threat on offense but is versatile in the field, with experience at every infield position besides first base. He played 883 MLB games at shortstop, starting in 858 of those contests.
Galvis, a native of Punto Fijo, Venezuela, spent the 2022 and 2023 Nippon Professional Baseball seasons with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. He went 2-for-2 with a grand slam in his NPB debut on March 25, 2022, against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, but struggled for the remainder of the season.
Galvis finished the 2022 NPB season with a .171 batting average in 38 games and hit just .152 in 19 games in 2023. Due to his struggles on offense, Galvis saw most of his playing time in Japan for Fukuoka’s Western League team, playing 61 games in 2022 and 41 games in 2023.
According to Liderendeportes.com, Galvis is the 13th Venezuelan player or coach with the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos organization this upcoming LMB season. Galvis signed with the Philadelphia Phillies as an international free agent on July 2, 2006.
“It’s hard for a young kid,” Galvis told Elyssa Kaplan of MLB.com in June 2021, shortly after signing with the Baltimore Orioles as a free agent. “Leaving my family back in Venezuela and going to a different country with a different language, things were really hard,” Galvis said. “I was chasing my dream.”
Galvis has returned to Venezuela several times, playing six seasons with the Aguilas del Zulia of Liga Venezolana de Beisbol Profesional during the 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2016-17, and 2023-24 winter seasons.
Galvis hit .213 with no home runs and 16 RBI in 26 games for the Aguilas del Zulia during the 2023-24 LVBP season. His best statistical season with the organization was in 2013-14 when he hit .306 with two home runs and 23 RBI in 50 games. Galvis, not known for power, hit a career-high 23 home runs during the 2019 MLB season with the Toronto Blue Jays and Cincinnati Reds.
Galvis hit his 100th career MLB home run on May 19, 2021, against Ryan Yarbrough of the Tampa Bay Rays. According to Elyssa Kaplan of MLB.com, he was the 28th Venezuelan-born player to hit 100 or more home runs in their career.
Galvis and the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos will play their first game of the 2024 LMB season against the Acereros de Monclova on the road on Friday, April 12, at Estadio de Béisbol Monclova in Monclova, Mexico.