Erick Almonte

1.1. Birth and Family

Erick R. Almonte Moreta was born on February 1, 1978, in the Dominican Republic. He is the brother of Héctor Almonte, who also played professional baseball, including stints in Major League Baseball in 1999 and 2003 for the Florida Marlins, Boston Red Sox, and Montreal Expos.

2.1. New York Yankees and MLB Debut

Almonte signed with the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1996. He spent four years developing in their minor league system before making his Major League Baseball debut on September 4, 2001. After playing the entire 2002 season in the Yankees' minor league system, he was recalled to the majors in 2003. During this period, he primarily served as the starting shortstop for the team while Derek Jeter was recovering from an injury. Following the 2003 season, the Saitama Seibu Lions of Japan's NPB considered acquiring him as a replacement for Kazuo Matsui, but the acquisition did not materialize.

2.2. Minor League and Independent League Stints

After being released by the Yankees, Almonte spent the 2004 season in the Colorado Rockies organization, playing as a key player for their Triple-A affiliate, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. In November 2004, the Cleveland Indians signed him to a minor league contract, but they sold his contract to the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan's Pacific League before he played any games for them. In 2006, he played for the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League, an independent baseball league, where he was a prominent player. From 2007 to 2008, he signed a minor league deal with the Detroit Tigers on October 31, 2007, and played in their minor league system, reaching Triple-A with the Toledo Mud Hens. He became a free agent after the 2008 season and signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs in January 2009. After becoming a free agent during spring training, he then signed another minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. He spent the entire 2009 and 2010 seasons playing for the Brewers' Triple-A affiliate, the Nashville Sounds. In 2012, he continued to play for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, despite signing another minor league contract with the Brewers, without being promoted to the major leagues. In 2013, Almonte played for the Aguascalientes RailRoadmen in the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol.

2.3. Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Career

Almonte joined the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2005 on a two-year contract. Scouts at the time evaluated him as capable of batting around .320 with 20 home runs. He managed to remain on the first team at the start of the 2005 season. While he displayed a good on-base percentage by drawing walks, his batting performance was inconsistent. Furthermore, his defensive play at shortstop was poor, leading Shigeru Takada, then the general manager of Nippon-Ham, to lament that his defense was "totally useless" due to a series of errors. He was demoted to the minor league team on May 5 but was re-promoted on July 13 after showing improved performance in the minors, where he batted in the clean-up and lead-off positions. After his re-promotion, he was primarily utilized as a designated hitter or pinch hitter. Despite being under a two-year contract, his performance did not improve, and he was ultimately released on September 3, along with teammate Brandon Knight, due to his unsatisfactory play.

2.4. Milwaukee Brewers and MLB Return

After his time in Japan and the independent leagues, Almonte signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. In 2011, he participated in spring training as an invited player and delivered an exceptional performance, achieving a batting average of .416, 3 home runs, and an OPS of 1.074, which was the highest among players who met the plate appearance requirement. This strong showing earned him a promotion to Major League Baseball, his first in eight years since 2003, and he appeared in the opening game of the season. He hit his first home run in nearly 10 years for the Brewers against the Cincinnati Reds on April 2, 2011. On June 3, 2011, he was outrighted to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds.

2.5. Concussion Incident

On April 26, 2011, Erick Almonte made history by becoming the first player to be placed on Major League Baseball's newly established concussion-based 7-day disabled list. This occurred after he was hit in the forehead by a throw during a practice session.

3.1. Managerial and Coaching Roles

In 2018, Almonte served as the manager for the St. Louis Cardinals' rookie-level Gulf Coast League Cardinals. He was subsequently appointed manager of the Peoria Chiefs, a Class A affiliate of the Cardinals, for the 2019 season. Most recently, Almonte was named the hitting coach for the FCL Cardinals for the 2024 season, continuing his work in player development.

4.1. Personality and Anecdotes

Almonte is highly regarded for his good personality and strong work ethic. He was seen as a diligent player and a mentor to younger teammates. During his tenure with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in Japan, Japanese players often remarked that he was "not like a foreign player," indicating his exceptional integration and positive influence within the team. However, from the beginning of the season, there was skepticism about whether he was worthy of replacing the established regular shortstop, Makoto Kaneko, who was consequently moved to the minor leagues.

A distinctive anecdote from his time in Japan involves his unique cheering song. It featured a minor melody with an `anacrusis` (often referred to by its German term, Auftakt_Auf-takt^German) specifically designed for the "Almonte" part of the lyrics, causing the note to start an eighth note earlier than expected. However, when the song was actually performed at the stadium, this anacrusis was often omitted because the cheering squad members had mistakenly remembered the melody incorrectly. This particular cheering song was later reused for Michel Abreu, who joined the team in 2013.

5.1. Batting and Fielding Statistics

;Infield Fielding

;Outfield Fielding

5.2. Uniform Numbers

Almonte wore the following uniform numbers during his professional playing career:

• 11 (2001, 2003) - New York Yankees
• 43 (2005) - Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
• 22 (2011) - Milwaukee Brewers