Omar Vizquel

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Vizquel and the second or maternal family name is González.
Omar Vizquel
Vizquel with the Chicago White Sox in 2011
Shortstop
Born: (1967-04-24) April 24, 1967 (age 57)
Caracas, Venezuela
Batted: Switch
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 3, 1989, for the Seattle Mariners
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 2012, for the Toronto Blue Jays
MLB statistics
Batting average.272
Hits2,877
Home runs80
Runs batted in951
Teams
As player

As coach

Career highlights and awards
Member of the Venezuelan
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction2018
Vote77%
Election methodContemporary Committee

Omar Enrique Vizquel González (Spanish pronunciation: [oˈmaɾ βisˈkel]; born April 24, 1967), nicknamed "Little O", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball shortstop. During his 24-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Vizquel played for the Seattle Mariners, Cleveland Indians, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, and Toronto Blue Jays. In Venezuela he played for Leones del Caracas. From 2014 to 2017, he was the Detroit Tigers' first-base, infield and baserunning coach. He was manager for the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League.

Widely considered one of baseball's all-time best fielding shortstops, Vizquel won 11 Gold Glove Awards, including nine consecutive from 1993 to 2001. Among shortstops, his .985 fielding percentage is tied for highest all-time, he is the all-time leader in games played, and the all-time leader in double plays turned. Vizquel tied Cal Ripken Jr.'s American League record for most consecutive games at shortstop without an error (95, between September 26, 1999, and July 21, 2000), since surpassed.[1] Vizquel ranked as the all-time hits leader among players from Venezuela (2,877; 44th all-time) until May 12, 2021, when he was surpassed by Miguel Cabrera.[2] Vizquel has third-most hits all time among shortstops, behind Derek Jeter and Honus Wagner. Vizquel is also the career sacrifice hits leader of the live-ball era.

At the time of his retirement, Vizquel was the oldest position player in the Major Leagues, and the only active position player with service time in the 1980s. He is one of only 31 players in baseball history to play in Major League games in four decades, and the only one who played shortstop. On May 7, 2012, Vizquel became the oldest player to play at shortstop in Major League history, surpassing Bobby Wallace, who played 12 games with the St. Louis Cardinals at the age of 44 in 1918.[3]

Vizquel was the last active player in any of the major North American professional sports leagues to have played in the 1980s.[4] Starting in 2020, various allegations of domestic abuse and sexual assault emerged against him.[5][6][7]

  1. ^ "Cooperstown Bound? – Omar Vizquel". Washington Times. June 11, 2008. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved September 3, 2012.
  2. ^ Beck, Jason (May 12, 2021). "Miggy tops in MLB hits for Venezuelan player". MLB.com. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  3. ^ "Vizquel sets mark as oldest to play shortstop". Toronto Blue Jays. MLB. Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved September 3, 2012.
  4. ^ "Omar Vizquel – Society for American Baseball Research". Society for American Baseball Research. November 12, 2018. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
  5. ^ Rosenthal, Katie Strang and Ken. "Omar Vizquel accused of domestic abuse: 'He's not the person that you see'". The Athletic. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  6. ^ "Ex-All-Star Vizquel accused of domestic violence". ESPN.com. December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  7. ^ Strang, Katie; James Fegan (August 7, 2021). "Omar Vizquel sued for sexual harassment by former Birmingham Barons batboy". The Athletic. Retrieved August 7, 2021.