Omar Quintanilla is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 professional baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 infielder

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...

 who is a free agent.

Early life

He attended Socorro High School in El Paso, Texas

El Paso, Texas

El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...

, where he led the city of El Paso in home run

Home run

In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

s, RBI

Run batted in

Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...

, and was elected to the Texas All-State shortstop

Shortstop

Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

. After graduating, he received a scholarship to the University of Texas, Austin, where he played second base, third base

Third Base

is a 1978 Japanese film directed by Yōichi Higashi.-External links:...

, and shortstop, and appeared in two national championship games, winning one.

Baseball career

He was drafted by 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....

 in the 1st round (33rd overall) of the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft

2003 Major League Baseball Draft

The 2003 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 3 and 4. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams.Source: -First round selections:...

. In , he played for Low-A Vancouver

Vancouver Canadians

The Vancouver Canadians are a minor league baseball team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Canadians are the Northwest League affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The C's have previously affiliated with the Oakland Athletics between 2000-2010. They are the only Canadian team in the...

 and High-A Modesto, batting

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 :...

 .358 in 40 games. He started 2004 with Modesto as the A's 7th ranked prospect and after hitting .315 received a late-season promotion to Double-A Midland

Midland RockHounds

The Midland RockHounds are a minor league baseball team based in Midland, Texas, USA. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Citibank Ballpark, located in Midland. Opened in 2002, the stadium seats...

. He began with Midland as the A's 8th ranked prospect and on July 15, he was traded along with outfielder

Outfielder

Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

 Eric Byrnes

Eric Byrnes

Eric James Byrnes , is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He has played for the Oakland Athletics, the Colorado Rockies, the Baltimore Orioles, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and the Seattle Mariners...

 to the Colorado Rockies for pitcher

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

s Joe Kennedy and Jay Witasick

Jay Witasick

Gerald Alphonse "Jay" Witasick, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. He was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2nd round of the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft. He made his major league debut on July 7, as a member of the A's versus the California Angels...

. The Rockies assigned him to Triple-A Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs Sky Sox

The Colorado Springs Sky Sox are a minor league baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team's colors are red and blue. The team plays in the Pacific Coast League and are the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Colorado Rockies...

 and promoted him to the majors in late July. He made his debut on July 31 and went 1-3. In each of the next three seasons, Quintanilla began the season with Triple-A Colorado Springs and was promoted to the majors at least once each season. In limited at-bats, he had his highest batting average in at .238.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball announced August 11, 2010, that Quintanilla had received a 50-game suspension after testing positive for Methylhexaneamine, a performance-enhancing substance, in violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

Quintanilla signed with the Texas Rangers

Texas Rangers (baseball)

The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...

 after the season and in July 2011, he had his contract purchased by Texas after hitting .298 in 51 games with Triple-A Round Rock

Round Rock Express

The Round Rock Express is a class Triple-A Pacific Coast League minor league baseball team in Round Rock, Texas, owned by RSR Sports and founded by Reid Ryan, son of Baseball Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. The team is affiliated with the Texas Rangers, for whom Nolan Ryan serves as the president and...

. On August 1, he was outrighted to back to Round Rock and elected free agency. Overall with the Rangers, he hit .045 in 11 games, with two RBI.

External links