Eduardo Valencia

Eduardo Valencia
Valencia with the Toledo Mud Hens in 2025
Detroit Tigers – No. 32
Catcher / First baseman
Born: (2000-01-25) January 25, 2000
Valencia, Venezuela
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
July 9, 2026, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
(through August 18, 2026)
Batting average.362
Home runs6
Runs batted in17
Stats at Baseball Reference 
Teams

Eduardo Andres Valencia (born January 25, 2000) is a Venezuelan professional baseball catcher and first baseman for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Career

Valencia signed with the Detroit Tigers as an international free agent in April 2018.[1]

In 2025, Valencia made 103 appearances split between the Double-A Erie SeaWolves and Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, batting a combined .311/.382/.559 with 24 home runs and 95 RBI. On November 18, 2025, the Tigers added Valencia to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[2]

Valencia was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to begin the 2026 season.[3] On July 9, 2026, he was called up to give the Tigers an extra catcher while Dillon Dingler recovered from a badly bruised thumb. He made his Major League debut that night as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning, where he hit a home run in his first at-bat. He is the tenth Tiger to hit a home run in his first MLB at-bat, but only the second to do so in a pinch hitting role, following Gates Brown in 1963.[4][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2025/09/23/henning-where-and-how-soon-will-detroit-tigers-find-a-place-for-eduardo-valencia/86307047007/
  2. ↑ https://www.mlb.com/news/tigers-add-prospects-to-40-man-roster
  3. ↑ "Tigers cut 4 prospects from spring training, but not Kevin McGonigle". freep.com. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  4. ↑ read, Miracle Dimwesh·2 min (July 9, 2026). "Tigers Recall Eduardo Valencia as Dillon Dingler Remains Day-to-Day". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved July 10, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ Beck, Jason (July 9, 2026). "Valencia makes dream debut, becomes 10th Tiger to homer in first MLB at-bat". mlb.com. Retrieved July 10, 2026.
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