Alex Liddi
Encyclopedia
Alessandro "Alex" Liddi (born August 14, 1988 in Sanremo, Italy) is an infielder
for the Seattle Mariners
. He is the first player born and raised in Italy to play in the major leagues. Liddi was signed as a non-drafted free agent from Italy on September 9, by Mariners scouts Wayne Norton and Mauro Mazzotti.
in hits with 57 and slugging percentage with a .500 clip, fifth in extra-base hits with 22 and tied for ninth in average batting .313. Liddi also led team with 13 doubles and recorded 15 multi-hit games, including eight season-high three-hit games. He had season-high eight game hitting streak, batting .469 from July 19 – 28. He hit his first career home run on July 20 against the Arizona League Angels. He hit .352 in 23 games in July. He hit .384 in 22 games at home, compared to .250 in 25 road games. Liddi was promoted to the Class-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
on August 24, appearing in 11 games.
In , Liddi spent the entire season with Wisconsin. He led the Timber Rattlers in doubles with 28, RBIs with 52, at-bats with 400, games played with 113 and total bases. 41 percent of his hits went for extra-base hits. He recorded an RBI in six consecutive games from May 28 – June 2. He hit .282 in 23 games in the month of July.
He spent his second season with the Class-A Wisconsin in , appearing in a career-high 125 games. He recorded a career-high five hits, going 5-for-5 with three runs scored and two doubles on June 14 against the Clinton Lumberkings
. In the month of June, he hit .312 with 12 runs scored, five extra-base hits and nine RBIs in 21 games. He hit .308 with 16 runs scored, 11 extra-base hits and 17 RBIs in 29 games in August. Liddi participated in the Mariners Arizona Fall League
in Peoria, Arizona
.
Liddi had a break-out season in , batting a league-leading .345 with 23 home runs and 104 RBIs in 129 games with the Class-A High Desert Mavericks
. His batting average led all Mariners minor leaguers, while his 104 RBI tied with teammate Joe Dunigan for the organizational lead. Despite having the highest batting average among full-season minor league players, Liddi shared the California League
batting tile with Koby Clemens
. He was named the California League Most Valuable Player, after ranking in the top-5 in the league in hits, doubles, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, extra-base hits, and runs scored. He recorded 53 multi-hit games, while also knocking in at least two runs 28 times. A native of Italy, Liddi played for Team Italy
in the World Baseball Classic
in March. In June he was one of four Mavericks on the California League All-Star Team, and in July he participated in the All-Star Futures Game
in St. Louis, Missouri
. At season's end, Liddi was named the Topps
California League Player of the Year. He was also named the Mariners' Minor League Player of the Year in September. Liddi was selected by MLB.com
as the Mariners Organization Player of the Year.
Liddi participated in his first Spring Training
with the Mariners in 2011. He hit grand slams in back-to-back games before being demoted to the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate, the Tacoma Rainiers
, on March 12, 2011. In 8 Spring Training games, Liddi hit for a .385 batting average
and a .429 on-base percentage, with an OPS
of .846. Liddi began the 2011 season in Tacoma. He hit .259 with 30 home runs, 104 RBIs and a Pacific Coast League-leading 121 runs in Tacoma. Liddi was called up by the Seattle Mariners in September and made his MLB debut on September 7. He got his first career hit on September 9 against the Kansas City Royals
. He hit his first career home run on September 19 against the Cleveland Indians
. The following day, September 20, he hit his second career home run against the Minnesota Twins
.
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...
for the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
. He is the first player born and raised in Italy to play in the major leagues. Liddi was signed as a non-drafted free agent from Italy on September 9, by Mariners scouts Wayne Norton and Mauro Mazzotti.
Seattle Mariners
Liddi began his professional career with the Peoria Mariners in , hitting safely in 34 of 47 games. He finished tied for fourth in the Arizona LeagueArizona League
The Arizona League is a minor league baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona. It is a rookie-level professional baseball league run by Major League Baseball since 1989. Games are played at the spring training complexes of the team's parent organizations from mid-June until the...
in hits with 57 and slugging percentage with a .500 clip, fifth in extra-base hits with 22 and tied for ninth in average batting .313. Liddi also led team with 13 doubles and recorded 15 multi-hit games, including eight season-high three-hit games. He had season-high eight game hitting streak, batting .469 from July 19 – 28. He hit his first career home run on July 20 against the Arizona League Angels. He hit .352 in 23 games in July. He hit .384 in 22 games at home, compared to .250 in 25 road games. Liddi was promoted to the Class-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers are a minor league baseball team of the Midwest League, and the Class A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, and are named for timber rattlesnakes. The team plays its home games at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium...
on August 24, appearing in 11 games.
In , Liddi spent the entire season with Wisconsin. He led the Timber Rattlers in doubles with 28, RBIs with 52, at-bats with 400, games played with 113 and total bases. 41 percent of his hits went for extra-base hits. He recorded an RBI in six consecutive games from May 28 – June 2. He hit .282 in 23 games in the month of July.
He spent his second season with the Class-A Wisconsin in , appearing in a career-high 125 games. He recorded a career-high five hits, going 5-for-5 with three runs scored and two doubles on June 14 against the Clinton Lumberkings
Clinton LumberKings
The Clinton LumberKings are a Midwest League Class A minor league baseball team based in Clinton, Iowa, USA, affiliated with the Seattle Mariners.-History:Clinton joined the Midwest League in 1954 and is the oldest franchise in the league...
. In the month of June, he hit .312 with 12 runs scored, five extra-base hits and nine RBIs in 21 games. He hit .308 with 16 runs scored, 11 extra-base hits and 17 RBIs in 29 games in August. Liddi participated in the Mariners Arizona Fall League
Arizona Fall League
The Arizona Fall League is an off-season league owned and operated by Major League Baseball which operates during the fall in Arizona, United States at five spring training complexes...
in Peoria, Arizona
Peoria, Arizona
Peoria is a city in Maricopa and Yavapai counties in the U.S. state of Arizona. Located primarily in Maricopa County, it is a major suburb of Phoenix. According to 2010 Census Bureau releases, the population of the city is 154,065. Peoria is currently the sixth largest city in Arizona for land...
.
Liddi had a break-out season in , batting a league-leading .345 with 23 home runs and 104 RBIs in 129 games with the Class-A High Desert Mavericks
High Desert Mavericks
The High Desert Mavericks are a minor league baseball team in Adelanto, California, USA. Their Major League parent club is the Seattle Mariners. They are a Class A - Advanced team in the California League and had been a farm team of the Kansas City Royals since 2005 before the switch...
. His batting average led all Mariners minor leaguers, while his 104 RBI tied with teammate Joe Dunigan for the organizational lead. Despite having the highest batting average among full-season minor league players, Liddi shared the California League
California League
The California League is a Class A Advanced minor league baseball league which operates throughout the state of California. Before 2002, it was classified as a "High-A" league, indicating its status as a Class A league with the highest level of competition within that classification, and the fifth...
batting tile with Koby Clemens
Koby Clemens
Koby Aaron Clemens is the eldest son of major league pitcher Roger Clemens, and a right-handed first baseman in professional baseball.-Early life:...
. He was named the California League Most Valuable Player, after ranking in the top-5 in the league in hits, doubles, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, extra-base hits, and runs scored. He recorded 53 multi-hit games, while also knocking in at least two runs 28 times. A native of Italy, Liddi played for Team Italy
Italy national baseball team
The Italy national baseball team is the team that represents Italy in international baseball competition. The Italian national team is currently ranked 12th in the world.-World Baseball Classic:...
in the World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...
in March. In June he was one of four Mavericks on the California League All-Star Team, and in July he participated in the All-Star Futures Game
All-Star Futures Game
The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game between a team of top minor league prospects from the United States and a team of prospects from other parts of the World...
in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. At season's end, Liddi was named the Topps
Topps
The Topps Company, Inc., manufactures chewing gum, candy and collectibles. Based in New York, New York, Topps is best known as a leading producer of baseball cards, football cards, basketball cards, hockey cards and other sports and non-sports themed trading cards.-Company history:Topps itself was...
California League Player of the Year. He was also named the Mariners' Minor League Player of the Year in September. Liddi was selected by MLB.com
MLB.com
MLB.com is the official site of Major League Baseball and is overseen by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P. . MLB.com is a source of baseball-related information, including baseball news, statistics, and sports columns...
as the Mariners Organization Player of the Year.
Liddi participated in his first Spring Training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
with the Mariners in 2011. He hit grand slams in back-to-back games before being demoted to the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate, the Tacoma Rainiers
Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are a minor league baseball team that plays in the Pacific Coast League , and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners...
, on March 12, 2011. In 8 Spring Training games, Liddi hit for a .385 batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
and a .429 on-base percentage, with an OPS
On-base plus slugging
On-base plus slugging is a sabermetric baseball statistic calculated as the sum of a player's on-base percentage and slugging percentage. The ability of a player to both get on base and to hit for power, two important hitting skills, are represented. An OPS of .900 or higher in Major League...
of .846. Liddi began the 2011 season in Tacoma. He hit .259 with 30 home runs, 104 RBIs and a Pacific Coast League-leading 121 runs in Tacoma. Liddi was called up by the Seattle Mariners in September and made his MLB debut on September 7. He got his first career hit on September 9 against the Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
. He hit his first career home run on September 19 against the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
. The following day, September 20, he hit his second career home run against the Minnesota Twins
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
.