Alfonso Rivas, a first baseman who made his major league debut with the Chicago Cubs in 2021, is on his way to the west coast. The Los Angeles Angels claimed Rivas off waivers on Friday, adding him to their 40-man roster as the league gets ready for the holiday break.
Both teams made the announcement. Rivas was most recently with the Cleveland Guardians, who acquired him in November after waiving him in favor of catcher Austin Hedges in free agency.
After being called up late in the season in 2021, Rivas was promoted to the Cubs. Following the Oakland Athletics’ trade of Rivas to the Cubs in exchange for Tony Kemp, he joined the team in early 2020. He was promoted as a result of his performance with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. In 58 games with Iowa, he hit.284/.405,.411 with four home runs, 32 RBIs, and 13 doubles.
He concluded the 2021 season with a finger injury, batting.318 with one home run and three RBIs in 44 at-bats.
As a batter, Rivas participated in 101 games for Chicago in 2022.235 with 14 RBI and three home homers. The Cubs assigned him to a position in December and then let him go.
Rivas played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres in 2023. He played 40 games with the Pirates, averaging.234 with three home runs and 14 RBI.
He has a.243 batting average, seven home runs, and 43 RBI in his MLB career.
The Mexican native attended La Jolla Country Day School in La Jolla, California, for his high school baseball career, and the University of Arizona was his collegiate baseball team. He competed in the Cap Cod League as well.
The Oakland Athletics selected him in the fourth round of the 2018 MLB Draft based on the caliber of his collegiate career.
