Houston Astros Quietly Sign Exciting Cuban Shortstop
In just one week of action since signing with the Houston Astros, Cuban shortstop Luis Aviles Jr. is already making a name for himself with the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks.
Aviles has also already won Player of the Week honors, as he took home the award after being with the Hooks for just five games.
The 28-year-old infielder, who started his baseball career in the Milwaukee Brewers organization back in 2013, inked a minor league contract with the Astros on June 6.
And he’s been on fire ever since.
In his first five games with Corpus Christi, Aviles slashed .368/.350/1.158 with five home runs, 11 RBI and two stolen bases.
On Sunday alone, Aviles went 3-for-5 with four RBI and a walk-off home run in the 11th inning for a 7-5 Hooks win.
A journeyman through many Major League Baseball teams, Aviles spent several seasons in the minors for the Brewers, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins and San Diego Padres while also playing in the Mexican League before signing with Houston.
Throughout his entire 10-year minor league baseball career, Aviles has a slash line of .241/.291/.368, but so far he’s looking like a steal of a deal in the summer of 2023.
With the signing of Aviles, the Astros now lead the league with 23 Cuban-born players in their organization.
If Aviles can keep the momentum going, he very well may find himself donning an Astros jersey come 2024 or 2025.
The Hooks (29-30) return to the diamond in a road matchup at Arkansas (37-22) on Thursday night, with first pitch slated for 6:35 p.m. CT.
Corpus Christi currently sits 3.0 games behind first-place San Antonio (32-27) in the south division of the Texas League.
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