Islay "Izzy" Molina is a former Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 catcher

Catcher

Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...

 for the Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

 and Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...

. Molina, though a catcher, is not related to the trio of catching Molina brothers, Bengie

Bengie Molina

Benjamin José "Bengie" Molina , nicknamed "Big Money", is a former Major League Baseball catcher.He is the older brother of major league catchers José Molina and Yadier Molina....

, Jose, and Yadier

Yadier Molina

Yadier Benjamin Molina known affectionately by fans as "Yadi", is a Major League Baseball catcher who plays for the St. Louis Cardinals.Molina was the third catcher to play in two World Series before age 25, along with Johnny Bench and Yogi Berra. He is considered one of the best defensive...

.

Molina was drafted out of high school by the Oakland Athletics in the 22nd round of the 1990 Major League Baseball Draft

1990 Major League Baseball Draft

-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1990 Major League Baseball draft.-Background:The draft went a record 101 rounds, surpassing 1989's total of 88, and included a record 1,487 selections. The Astros led all clubs with 100 selections. Seattle was second with 75,...

 and made his professional debut that same year for the Arizona League Athletics where he batted

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 :...

 .339 in 39 games. He made his major league debut for Oakland on August 15, . Molina left the Athletics via free agency

Free agent

In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....

 after the season. On October 26, 1998, he signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...

, but was traded to the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 with Ben Ford for Darren Holmes in 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...

 .

Over the next three years, Molina did not play in the majors while spending time in the minors with the Yankees, 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...

, and Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....

 organization. A minor league free agent after the season, Molina signed with the Baltimore Orioles. He began the year with Double-A Bowie

Bowie Baysox

The Bowie Baysox are a minor league baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the class-AA affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League...

, was promoted to Triple-A Rochester

Rochester Red Wings

The Rochester Red Wings are a minor league baseball team based in Rochester, New York. The team plays in the International League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins major-league club. The Red Wings play in Frontier Field, located in downtown Rochester.The Red Wings were an...

, and also appeared in one game in the majors. Molina last played professional baseball in with the Orioles Single-A, Double-A, and Triple-A teams.

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