1. Early life and background
Erick Augusto Mejia was born on November 9, 1994, in Villa Mella, which is located in Santo Domingo Province, Dominican Republic. He developed his skills as a switch-hitter and right-handed thrower, eventually pursuing a professional career in baseball.
2. Professional career
Mejia's professional baseball journey began in 2012 when he signed with the Seattle Mariners. Over the years, he progressed through various minor league levels and had stints with multiple MLB organizations, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, and eventually returning to the Mariners before joining the Washington Nationals.
2.1. Seattle Mariners (first stint)
Mejia signed as an international free agent with the Seattle Mariners on June 30, 2012. He made his professional debut in 2012 with the rookie-level Dominican Summer League Mariners, where he played 13 games, achieving a batting average of .182, 8 RBI, and 3 stolen bases.
In 2013, he continued his development, playing for both the Dominican Summer League Mariners and the rookie-level Arizona League Mariners. Across these two teams, he appeared in 31 games, posting a .283 batting average, 5 RBI, and 13 stolen bases. His 2014 season was spent entirely with the Arizona League Mariners, where in 38 games, he hit .230 with 1 home run, 13 RBI, and 13 stolen bases.
The 2015 season saw Mejia play for four different minor league affiliates: the rookie-level Arizona League Mariners, Class A-Short Season Everett AquaSox, Class A Clinton LumberKings, and Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers. In a combined 51 games, he recorded a .282 batting average, 16 RBI, and 20 stolen bases.
2.2. Los Angeles Dodgers
On January 12, 2016, Mejia was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for pitcher Joe Wieland. During his time with the Dodgers organization, he played for the Class A-Advanced Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in 2016. He was named a post-season all-star with the Quakes, hitting .287 with 4 home runs, 47 RBI, and 24 stolen bases in 124 games.
In the 2017 season, Mejia progressed through the Dodgers' system, splitting his time between the Class A-Advanced Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, Double-A Tulsa Drillers, and Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers. Across these three teams, he appeared in 127 games, batting .278 with 8 home runs, 41 RBI, and 28 stolen bases.
2.3. Kansas City Royals
Mejia's journey continued on January 4, 2018, when he was involved in a significant three-team trade. In this transaction, the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired Scott Alexander and Jake Peter, the Chicago White Sox received Joakim Soria, Luis Avilán, and cash considerations, while Mejia and Trevor Oaks were sent to the Kansas City Royals.
He spent the 2018 season with the Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals, playing in 136 games. His performance included a .263 batting average, 5 home runs, 59 RBI, and 34 stolen bases. In the 2019 minor league season, Mejia played for the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers, appearing in 128 games. He hit .271 with 7 home runs, 63 RBI, and 19 stolen bases.
On September 3, 2019, the Royals selected Mejia's contract, promoting him to the major leagues. He made his Major League Baseball debut on September 5, 2019, against the Detroit Tigers. In his debut, he started as the eighth batter in the lineup and played center field, going 0-for-3 at the plate. Following the 2019 season, on December 2, Mejia was non-tendered and became a free agent, but he subsequently re-signed with the Royals on a minor league contract on December 17, 2019.
On July 23, 2020, Mejia signed a major league contract and was added to the Royals' 40-man roster for the shortened season. During the 2020 season, Mejia played in 8 MLB games, batting .071 with no home runs and 0 RBI. He was again non-tendered by the Royals on December 2, 2020. He re-signed with the Royals on a minor league contract on December 21, 2020, with the re-signing officially announced on January 4, 2021. Mejia spent the entire 2021 season with Triple-A Omaha, where he played in 55 games, hitting .246 with 7 home runs and 30 RBI. He became a free agent after the season on November 7, 2021.
2.4. Seattle Mariners (second stint)
On February 12, 2022, Mejia signed a minor league contract, marking his return to the Seattle Mariners organization. He played 120 games for the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers. During this stint, he batted .261/.330/.433, achieving a career-high 15 home runs, 58 RBI, and 19 stolen bases. He elected free agency following the season on November 10, 2022.
2.5. Washington Nationals
On November 19, 2022, Mejia signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals, where he is currently affiliated.
3. International career
Erick Mejia has proudly represented the Dominican Republic national baseball team in international competitions. He was an integral part of the Dominican Republic squad that participated in the 2020 Summer Olympics, which were held in Tokyo, Japan, in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In a thrilling bronze medal match, the Dominican Republic team secured a bronze medal by defeating the Republic of Korea. Following his impressive performance throughout the tournament, Mejia was selected for the Tokyo 2020 All-Olympic Baseball Team, recognized as the designated third baseman.
4. Awards and honors
- 2020 Summer Olympics Bronze medal (with Dominican Republic)
- Tokyo 2020 All-Olympic Baseball Team (Third Baseman, 2021)
5. Career statistics
This section provides a summary of Erick Mejia's professional batting and fielding statistics from his Major League Baseball career, as of the end of the 2020 season.
5.1. Batting statistics
| Year | Team | Batting Avg. | Games | At Bats | Runs | Hits | Doubles | Triples | Home Runs | Total Bases | RBI | Stolen Bases | Caught Stealing | Walks | Hit by Pitch | Strikeouts | Double Plays | Errors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | KC | .227 | 9 | 22 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | .071 | 8 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | |
| MLB: 2 years | .167 | 17 | 36 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 1 | |
5.2. Fielding statistics
| Year | Team | Second Base (2B) | Third Base (3B) | Shortstop (SS) | Left Field (LF) | Center Field (CF) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | ||
| 2019 | KC | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | - | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | - | 7 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | ||||||||||
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ---- | 4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | .875 | - | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | - | |||||||||||
| MLB | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | .875 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 7 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | |
6. Uniform numbers
- 26 (Kansas City Royals: 2019-2020)