Carlos Santana

He batted third in the order, making him the first Tribe player to debut hitting third since Jim Norris in 1977, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Carlos Santana (born April 8, 1986), nicknamed "Slamtana," is a Dominican-American professional baseball first baseman for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB).

A native of Santo Domingo, Santana first joined the professional ranks when he signed as an amateur free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 13, 2004.

Santana signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2005.

He began his professional baseball career with the Gulf Coast Dodgers, the rookie level minor league affiliate.

He played 32 games in 2005 and batted .295.

He played primarily at third base, while also appearing at catcher, second base, in left field and in right field.

Over consecutive minor league seasons spanning 2008–2009, he won Most Valuable Player Awards (MVPs), first of the High-A California League, and then of the AA Eastern League.

He was also named High A Player of the Year in 2008, Indians' Minor League Player of the Year in 2009, and the Indians' top prospect in 2009 and 2010.

He played in the Dodgers' minor league system until July 26, 2008, when he was traded to the Indians.

On July 26, 2008, the Dodgers traded Santana and pitcher Jon Meloan to the Cleveland Indians for third baseman Casey Blake.

Santana appeared in 130 games combined in 2008 with the Akron Aeros, Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino, and Kinston Indians during the 2008 season, with the majority at San Bernardino and Kinston at the Class A-Advanced level, and played primarily catcher.

On offense, he hit .326, amassed .431 on-base percentage (OBP), .568 slugging percentage (SLG), .999 on-base plus slugging (OPS), 125 runs scored, 21 home runs, collected 117 runs batted in (RBI), 89 bases on balls (BB) and 85 strikeouts.

Santana was named California League Most Valuable Player (MVP).

He also earned mention as Hi-A Player of the Year and made the Hi-A All-Star team, California League All-Star team, and Baseball America's All-Star second team.

Entering the 2009 season, Santana was Baseball America's choice as the top prospect in the Indians organization.

Assigned to the Aeros of the AA-level Eastern League, he played in 130 games, batted .290, 413 OBP, .530 SLG, 23 home runs, 90 BB and 83 strikeouts.

Behind the plate, he placed fifth in the league with a 30 percent caught stealing clip while helping to lead the club to a Southern Division title.

In the Eastern League All-Star Game, he was named the starting catcher for the Southern Division, and participated in the All-Star Futures Game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

Santana also won the Eastern League MVP Award and was named the Indians' 2009 Minor League Player of the Year − also known as the "Lou Boudreau Award".

He made his MLB debut in 2010 with the Cleveland Indians and has also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Milwaukee Brewers.

Baseball America ranked Santana as the organization's top prospect for the second time entering the 2010 season.

The club assigned him to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, where he hit .316 with 13 home runs and 51 RBI in 57 games prior to his first major league callup.

The Indians promoted Santana on June 11, 2010, to make his MLB debut.

Santana recorded his first major league hit in his second game, on June 12, 2010, a two-out, two-RBI double in the second inning off Washington Nationals pitcher J. D. Martin.

Each season since 2011 (with the exception of the shortened 2020 season), Santana has hit at least 18 home runs while finishing within the top four in the league in bases on balls.

In international competition, he has participated with the Dominican Republic national team, winning the gold medal in the 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC).

Noted for plate discipline and power, Santana has also emerged as an excellent defender at first base.

He stands 5 ft tall, weighs 210 lb, throws right-handed and is a switch hitter.

He primarily split his time between catcher and first base through the 2013 season, and since has played mainly first base and designated hitter, and some third base.

Prior to the 2018 season, Santana became a free agent and signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for three years.

After one season, he was traded to the Seattle Mariners, and then back to Cleveland in the same offseason.

He signed with the Kansas City Royals at the conclusion of his contract, and was traded to Seattle during the 2022 season.

Born in Santo Domingo, Santana has five sisters and two brothers.

Their parents began divorce proceedings when he was 15 years old.

Santana and his sisters lived with his mother after the divorce, which afforded him the opportunity to play baseball, meanwhile emerging as a father figure to his sisters.

He played baseball with his neighbors in a 5-on-5 format, and, instead of swinging with bats, they used baseball caps.

After signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Santana received a bonus worth $75,000, taking a part of the money to buy his mother a house.

He was named an MLB All-Star in 2019, has twice participated in the MLB Japan All-Star Series, and in 2017, was recognized as Wilson Defensive Player of the Year at first base.

Santana set Indians' club records among switch hitters for both home runs in a career and in a single season, and for career runs batted in (RBIs).