Luis Valbuena
Venezuelan baseball player (1985–2018)
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Key Takeaways
- Luis Adan Valbuena (November 30, 1985 – December 6, 2018) was a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder.
- While primarily a third baseman, Valbuena also played second base and first base.
- Early life Valbuena grew up in Sucre, a municipality in the Venezuelan state of Zulia.
- Valbuena's older brother and several uncles helped him learn to play baseball.
- He was first promoted to the major leagues on September 1, 2008, from the Mariners' Triple-A team, the Tacoma Rainiers.
Luis Adan Valbuena (November 30, 1985 – December 6, 2018) was a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder. He played eleven seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 2008 through 2018, for the Seattle Mariners, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, and Los Angeles Angels. While primarily a third baseman, Valbuena also played second base and first base. He was killed alongside José Castillo in a 2018 car crash in Venezuela caused by bandits in an attempted robbery.
Early life
Valbuena grew up in Sucre, a municipality in the Venezuelan state of Zulia. He was raised by a single mother named Nelly, who was the president of the local youth baseball league. Valbuena's older brother and several uncles helped him learn to play baseball.
Professional career
Seattle Mariners
Valbuena began his professional career in the Seattle Mariners organization in 2005. He was first promoted to the major leagues on September 1, 2008, from the Mariners' Triple-A team, the Tacoma Rainiers.
Cleveland Indians
On December 10, 2008, Valbuena was traded to the Cleveland Indians in a three-team trade that sent Franklin Gutiérrez to Seattle. Valbuena hit his first major league home run off of Bartolo Colón on June 7, 2009.
In July 2011, the Indians optioned Valbuena to Triple-A Columbus, to make room for the promotion of rookie second baseman Jason Kipnis. In August 2011, Valbuena was recalled after Kipnis was put on the disabled list with an oblique injury. He was designated for assignment and removed from the 40-man roster on November 18. On November 26, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for cash considerations.
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