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Yulieski Gourriel Castillo (born June 9, 1984), commonly known as Yuli Gurriel and nicknamed " La Piña", is a Cuban professional baseball first baseman who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, Kansas City Royals, and San Diego Padres, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars. Gurriel is a former member of Cuba's national team, and an Olympic medal in 2004.
The son of former Cuban player Lourdes Gourriel, Yulieski was regarded as the best player in Cuba in 2006. At the World Baseball Classic in 2006, MLB scouts projected that Gurriel would be a first-round draft pick were he eligible for the draft. He defection from Cuba in 2016, and made his major league debut that year.
In his first full MLB season, 33–year old Gurriel helped lead the Astros to the 2017 World Series championship over the Los Angeles Dodgers, making him the fifth player to have won both an Olympic Games gold medal and a World Series title. He also helped lead the club to American League (AL) pennants over the New York Yankees in 2019 and 2022, as well as the Boston Red Sox in 2021. Gurriel won a second World Series title with the Astros over the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022.
In 2021, Gurriel won the AL batting title, becoming the Tony Oliva to achieve this. At age 37, Gurriel tied Tony Gwynn (.372 in 1997), Barry Bonds (.370 in 2002), and George Brett (.329 in 1990) as the second oldest player in the divisional era (since 1969) to win a batting title; the only player who was older was Bonds, who also led the NL at age 39 in 2004 with a .362 batting average. Gurriel was also the AL Gold Glove Award winner at first base in 2021, becoming the oldest player to win a Gold Glove at that position until Carlos Santana won the award at age 38 in 2024.
Lourdes Jr. signed with the Toronto Blue Jays on November 12, 2016.
Nearly 10 years prior, ESPN.com had erroneously reported that Gurriel and another Cuban national player, Eduardo Paret, had defected from Cuba and into Colombia. Gurriel refuted this claim on August 1, 2006, stating that he returned to his home in Cuba immediately after the tournament in which the Cuban national team had been playing.
"Cuban players have been systematically overhyped, but had Yulieski Gurriel defected at 21 rather than 31, he probably ends up in the Hall of Fame," said Joe Kehoskie, a former agent who followed Cuban baseball closely, in August 2016.
Following the regular season, Gurriel placed fourth in the AL Rookie of the Year voting. The Houston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) named him the Astros Rookie of the Year.
In Game 3 of the World Series, Gurriel hit a home run off Japanese Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yu Darvish, and upon returning to the dugout, made a racist gesture mocking the pitcher. Gurriel was caught on camera stretching the sides of his eyes and mouthing the Spanish word chinito, which translates to "little Chinese Boy". Gurriel apologized, and said that anyone from Asia is called a chino in Cuba, although he acknowledged that he knew the term was offensive from having played in Japan. Gurriel was suspended for the first five games of the 2018 season without pay, but not for the World Series. He was required to undergo sensitivity training in the offseason. The Astros said that they would donate Gurriel's salary lost during the suspension to a charity that supports diversity efforts. "Gurriel won't be suspended for any World Series games". espn.com. October 28, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
In Game 5, Gurriel hit a three-run home run off Dodgers star pitcher Clayton Kershaw in the fourth inning to tie the game 4–4; the Astros would go on to win 13–12. In Game 7, Gurriel faced Darvish again, and tipped his helmet before his at bat as a respectful gesture. The Astros won the game 5–1, giving them their first world championship in franchise history. Gurriel became the fifth player to have won both an Olympic gold medal and a World Series championship.
Gurriel became the first Astro with a run and RBI in seven consecutive games, and the fifth to homer in five consecutive games, on July 7, 2019, including a game-tying grand slam in doing so in an 11–10 win versus the Los Angeles Angels. He won the AL Player of the Week Award for the week ending July 8, his second weekly honor, after homering in all five of the Astros games for a total of six, among nine hits and an OPS of 1.812. He went on to win the AL Player of the Month Award for July, his first time, after batting .398, .427 OBP, .837 SLG, 18 runs scored, seven doubles, 12 home runs, 31 RBIs over 24 games. In a 14–3 romp over the Colorado Rockies on August 7, Gurriel homered and tied J. R. Towles with eight RBIs for the club record in one game.
Gurriel batted .298/.343./.541/.884 in 2019, with 40 doubles, 31 home runs, 104 RBI, 65 strikeouts and 305 total bases, ranking fifth in the AL in doubles and ninth in RBI. He established career-highs in numerous categories, including in games played (144), on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, runs (85), hits (168), home runs, RBI, and bases on balls (37). At age 35, Gurriel became the oldest player in Astros history to produce 40+ doubles, 30+ HR and 100+ RBI in one season, surpassing Jeff Bagwell's age-33 campaign in 2001. Gurriel was the third-oldest player in MLB history to reach those milestones, after David Ortiz' 2016 season at age 40 and Vinny Castilla at age 36 in 2004.
In Game 7 of the 2019 World Series versus the Washington Nationals, Gurriel hit a second inning solo home run off Max Scherzer to give the Astros a 1–0 lead. The Astros eventually lost the game, 6–2, as the Nationals earned their first major league championship. In the 2019 postseason, Gurriel batted .250, 18-for-72, with five strikeouts and a club-leading 13 RBI.
In 2020, Gurriel endured his most challenging season in the major leagues to that point. He batted .232/.274/.384 with 27 runs, six home runs, 22 RBI, and five sacrifice flies (tied for second in the AL) in 211 at bats, playing 55 games at first base and two at DH. In an expanded postseason format, he went 5-for-44 – all singles – as the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Astros in the ALCS.
On September 29, 2020, the Astros signed Gurriel to a one-year extension with a club option for 2022.
In 2021, Gurriel batted .319 to edge out teammate Michael Brantley and Blue Jay Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the AL batting title. At age 37, he was the sixth-oldest player to win a batting title, the oldest to win their first batting title since Barry Bonds in 2002, and the first Cuban player since Tony Oliva in 1971. Gurriel tied for the major league lead in sacrifice flies, with 12. His final slash line included .319/.383/.462, 15 home runs, 81 RBIs, a career-best 59 walks and 68 strikeouts. He also led the Astros in on-base percentage (OBP, .383), hits (169), and walk-to-strikeout ratio (.868). On defense, Gurriel led all AL first basemen with 86 assists and ranked in the top five with five defensive runs saved, 1,147 total chances, 95 double plays and a .994 fielding percentage. He won his first career Gold Glove Award, becoming the second Astro to win the award at the position and first since Bagwell.
In the ALCS versus the Boston Red Sox, Gurriel batted .455/.520/.636, with 10 hits, one home run, one double, six RBI, one stolen base, three bases on balls, and one strikeout. In the World Series, Gurriel batted .273 with no home runs and two RBIs as the Astros lost to the Atlanta Braves in six games. Gurriel was, again, the final out of the series, grounding to Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson. This marked the third time Gurriel was the final out of a championship-clinching game. Game 6 also was the 73rd postseason start together for the infield unit of Gurriel, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Carlos Correa, which was more postseason starts than any quartet of teammates in major league history, surpassing the Yankees' Derek Jeter, Tino Martinez, Paul O’Neill, and Bernie Williams, who had started 68 postseason contests together.
Gurriel collected two hits on May 25 versus the Cleveland Guardians to help key an Astros 2–1 win. Three hits and two runs scored helped lad a 13–3 win over the Chicago White Sox on June 17. On August 11 versus the Texas Rangers, Gurriel broke an 0-for-12 slump with three hits to tie his season high. He connected for his 200th career double in extra innings versus the Atlanta Braves on August 20.
In 2022, Gurriel batted .242/.288/.360 in 545 at bats with 8 home runs, 53 RBIs, and a career-high 8 stolen bases. He led the Astros with 40 doubles, ranking sixth in the AL, and was fifth in the league in AB/SO ratio (7.9).
In the 2022 ALDS, Gurriel played a critical role in a sweep of the Mariners, batting .400/.400/1.000 with one home run, one stolen base, and no strikeouts over 15 at bats. It was his third postseason series with an OPS of at least 1.000, and first since the 2021 ALCS versus Boston. During Game 5 of the World Series, he exited with a knee injury, and was removed from the roster. A resurgent Gurriel batted .347/.360/.490 during the club's postseason. The following day, the Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies to give Gurriel his second World Series title.
The Houston Chronicle ranked Gurriel as the fourth-best first baseman in Astros history through the 2022 season among those who played there more for the club than any other position, following Bagwell, Bob Watson, Glenn Davis and ahead of Lee May. Gurriel was an integral piece on squads that made six consecutive six American League Championship Series and won two World Series titles. He batted .284 with 94 home runs, 435 RBI and .776 OPS in his first seven seasons in Houston, and hit another 8 home runs in 85 postseason games.
Following the World Series, Gurriel became a free agent.
On April 25, 2023, Gurriel recorded an inside-the-park home run off Atlanta Braves reliever Jesse Chavez after the ball got away from Kevin Pillar in the outfield.
The Houston Astros presented Gurriel his 2022 World Series ring during a pregame ceremony at LoanDepot Park on August 16, 2023, with former teammates Yordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Martín Maldonado, Justin Verlander, and manager Dusty Baker. In 108 games for Miami, Gurriel batted .245/.304/.359 with four home runs and 27 RBI. He became a free agent following the season.
Gurriel played second base for the Cuban national team at the 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC), striking out for the final out for Cuba in their championship game loss to Japan. He batted .273 in the tournament, with a .342 on-base percentage and a .515 slugging percentage. Later in the finals of the 2008 Beijing Olympics tournament, he again made the final out, by grounding into a double play against South Korea.
Gurriel played for Cuba again in the 2009 WBC, as their third baseman. He batted .333 in the tournament with two home runs and six RBIs.
In December 2023, Gurriel was announced as part of FEPCUBE's "Patria y Vida" team of expatriate Cuban ballplayers participating in the inaugural Intercontinental Series in Barranquilla, Colombia. It would have been the first time Gurriel represented Cuba, albeit unofficially, in an international tournament since the 2011 Pan American Games. However, the tournament was cancelled due to diplomatic pressure from the Cuban government.
2018–20
After both hitting two home runs on September 21, 2018, Gurriel and brother Lourdes, Jr., playing for the Toronto Blue Jays, became the first pair of brothers to achieve multi-home run games in the major leagues on the same day. Yuli Gurriel was named AL Player of the Week for the first time on September 23, 2018, having batted .462, .923 SLG, eight runs scored, three home runs, and 10 RBI. For the 2018 season, he batted .291/.323/.428. He hit .403 (56-for-139) with runners in scoring position (RISP), the second-highest average in the major leagues behind Joe Mauer (.407, 22-for-81). Gurriel set a new club record for average with RISP in one season, which exceeded José Cruz' .389 average (49-for-126) set in 1986.
Batting champion and Gold Glove winner (2021)
Following the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Gurriel lost . On May 7, 2021, versus the Blue Jays, he recorded four hits, including one home run, and four RBIs. Through 31 games in the season, he had surpassed his RBI total (24) and walk total (16) in 2020 while batting .342/.420/.553 and leading the Astros with 12 multi-hit games and in RBIs. In the final game of the 2021 regular season, Gurriel hit a walk-off single to score Jason Castro and defeat the Oakland Athletics.
2022
An announcement became public on November 3, 2021, that the Astros had selected Gurriel's option for 2022. The club placed him on the paternity list on April 8, 2022, and called up third baseman Joe Perez to take his place on the roster. Gurriel drove in two runs with two hits on April 22 versus the Blue Jays; one hit was a single that started a rally in the ninth versus closer Jordan Romano which fell short as the Astros lost, 4–3. On May 17, Gurriel hit the final of five Astros home runs in the second inning versus starter Nathan Eovaldi of the Boston Red Sox, tying the major league record for home runs hit by a team in one inning as the Astros rolled to a 13–4 victory.
Miami Marlins
On March 10, 2023, Gurriel signed a one-year minor league contract with the Miami Marlins. On March 26, the Marlins announced that Gurriel had made the Opening Day roster and would have his contract selected to the 40-man roster.
Atlanta Braves
On April 13, 2024, Gurriel signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves. In 75 games for the Triple–A Gwinnett Stripers, he slashed .292/.378/.485 with 12 home runs, 48 RBI, and 11 stolen bases.
Kansas City Royals
On August 31, 2024, Gurriel was traded to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for cash considerations. The next day, Kansas City selected Gurriel's contract, adding him to their active roster. He made his season debut versus the Astros on September 1, hitting an RBI single versus Tayler Scott. In 18 appearances for Kansas City, Gurriel hit .241/.338/.296 with no home runs, six RBI, and one stolen base.
San Diego Padres
On February 17, 2025, Gurriel signed a minor league contract with the San Diego Padres. On March 27, the Padres selected Gurriel's contract after he made the team's Opening Day roster. In 16 appearances for San Diego, he batted .111/.200/.139 with no home runs and three RBI. Gurriel was designated for assignment by the Padres on April 29. He cleared waivers and elected free agency on May 3.
International career
Gurriel represented the Cuba national team before his defection. He helped the national team win a gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympics, as well as at the World Cup of Baseball championships in 2003 and 2005. During the 2005 World Cup, he led all batters with eight home runs.
Batting profile
As a right-handed batter, Gurriel is unusual in the sense that he has a better batting average against right handed pitchers than left-handers, and is better at batting against breaking balls away from the bat, esp. sliders.
Personal life
Gurriel is the older brother of Lourdes Gurriel Jr. who plays for the Arizona Diamondbacks and is the son of Lourdes Gurriel. His family currently resides in Miami, Florida.
See also
External links
Categories: 1984 Births, Living People, American League Batting Champions, Baseball Players At The 2003 Pan American Games, Baseball Players At The 2004 Summer Olympics, Baseball Players At The 2007 Pan American Games, Baseball Players At The 2008 Summer Olympics, Baseball Players At The 2011 Pan American Games, Central American And Caribbean Games Gold Medalists For Cuba, Central American And Caribbean Games Medalists In Baseball, Competitors At The 2006 Central American And Caribbean Games, Corpus Christi Hooks Players, Cuban Expatriate Baseball Players In Japan, Cuban Expatriate Baseball Players In The United States, Defecting Cuban Baseball Players, Fresno Grizzlies Players, Gold Glove Award Winners, Gulf Coast Astros Players, Gwinnett Stripers Players, Houston Astros Players, Kansas City Royals Players, Lancaster Jethawks Players, Major League Baseball First Basemen, Major League Baseball Left Fielders, Major League Baseball Players From Cuba, Major League Baseball Second Basemen, Major League Baseball Third Basemen, Medalists At The 2003 Pan American Games, Medalists At The 2004 Summer Olympics, Medalists At The 2007 Pan American Games, Medalists At The 2008 Summer Olympics, Medalists At The 2011 Pan American Games, Miami Marlins Players, Nippon Professional Baseball Second Basemen, Nippon Professional Baseball Third Basemen, Olympic Baseball Players For Cuba, Olympic Gold Medalists For Cuba, Olympic Silver Medalists For Cuba, Olympic Medalists In Baseball, Pan American Games Bronze Medalists For Cuba, Pan American Games Gold Medalists For Cuba, Pan American Games Gold Medalists In Baseball, Pan American Games Bronze Medalists In Baseball, Pan American Games Baseball Players For Cuba, San Diego Padres Players, Sportspeople From Sancti Spíritus, Yokohama Dena Baystars Players, 2003 Baseball World Cup Players, 2005 Baseball World Cup Players, 2006 World Baseball Classic Players, 2009 World Baseball Classic Players, 2011 Baseball World Cup Players, 2013 World Baseball Classic Players, 2015 Wbsc Premier12 Players
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