Of the several Minor League signings the Los Angeles Dodgers completed during the offseason and Spring Training, arguably none came with a more unique story than Eddy Alvarez, an Olympic medalist.
Alvarez made his MLB debut with the Miami Marlins last year and appeared in 24 games for the club. He was outrighted off their 40-man roster in October and became a free agent.
That led to Alvarez signing with the Dodgers and impressing during Spring Training. He continued to fare well in Triple-A Oklahoma City and received a call-up this past weekend as the corresponding roster move to Edwin Ríos being placed on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain.
Alvarez made a pinch-hit appearance on Saturday and started at third base in the series finale against the New York Mets. He delivered a game-tying RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning.
“They were kind of beating me with fastballs all day, so I knew I wanted to be aggressive first pitch because they were throwing a lot of first-pitch strikes to me,” Alvarez said of his clutch hit.
“So I just put a good enough swing on it, got it by and, you know, gave our team the best chance. It’s incredible. I’m going to cherish this forever. Just to crack this roster and to be a little piece of the algorithm is incredible. So I’m going to count my blessings and I’m going to do what I can.”
Alvarez had his wife, son, parents, sister, brother-in-law and niece in attendance for his first start with the Dodgers. They, along with droves of Dodgers fans, went into a frenzy when Alvarez tied the game.
“You know, every game feels like it’s the Olympics here,” answered Alvarez when asked how being with the Dodgers compares to the Olympics. “We had 30,000 fans screaming in a nice arena. When you put 60-70,000 out in the stands here, it kind of feels like the same energy.
“Plus, just the atmosphere and the love that the city has for this team, it’s incredible to play in front of.”
Turner impressed by Eddy Alvarez
Trea Turner and Alvarez had previously crossed paths during their respective time in the National League East, and the utilityman has certainly made an impression on the All-Star shortstop.
“Spring training, I was definitely really impressed by him,” Turner said. “He played really well in Spring Training, and then you look at the scoreboard and they had his numbers from Triple-A right up there, he’s hitting really good.
“And then he comes up here and does the same thing, plays good defense, gets some knocks and just puts good at-bats together.”
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