Elvis Andrus

From BR Bullpen

Elvis Augusto Andrus

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
Debut April 6, 2009
Born August 26, 1988 in Maracay, Aragua Venezuela

[edit] Biographical Information

Elvis Andrus is the Texas Rangers starting shortstop.

Andrus was signed by the Atlanta Braves at age 16. He debuted professionally in 2005, hitting .295/.377/.398 for the GCL Braves and going 5 for 18 with 4 walks and a double for the Danville Braves. He led Gulf Coast League shortstops with 63 putouts. Baseball America rated him as the #4 prospect in the GCL behind Andrew McCutchen, Jay Bruce and Chris Volstad and as the #2 Braves prospect.

In 2006, Elvis hit .265/.324/.362 with 23 steals in 38 tries for the Rome Braves as a teenager in a full-season league. He led South Atlantic League shortstops with 208 putouts. Baseball America again ranked him as his league's 4th-best prospect. He was named to the SAL All-Star team as a utility infielder.

Andrus only batted .244/.330/.335 for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans in 2007, though he stole 25 bases in 32 tries. He still was chosen for the 2007 Futures Game. Pinch-hitting for Chin-Lung Hu in the 5th, Andrus grounded out against Luke Hochevar. He stayed in to play shortstop. In the 7th inning, Andrus struck out versus Clay Buchholz. Later that year, he was dealt with Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Beau Jones, Neftali Feliz and Matt Harrison to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Mark Teixeira and Ron Mahay. Going to the Bakersfield Blaze, Andrus hit .300/.373/.369 and stole 15 bases in 23 attempts in 27 games.

Assigned to the Grand Canyon Rafters in the Arizona Fall League, Andrus batted .353/.411/.471.

Andrus played for the World team in the 2008 Futures Game. This time, he started at shortstop and hit second. In the first inning, he hit a potential double-play grounder but was able to reach thanks to an error by US shortstop Jason Donald. Elvis stole third and came home on a Pablo Sandoval grounder for the winning run in a 3-0 victory. He walked against Brett Anderson in the third but was picked off. Ramiro Pena replaced him at short.

During the 2008 campaign, Andrus hit .295/.350/.367 for the Frisco RoughRiders with 54 steals in 70 tries and 82 runs. He led Texas farmhands in steals and was five swipes behind Texas League leader Corey Wimberly. Andrus led the TL's shortstops in putouts (181), assists (361), errors (32) and double plays (79). Baseball America rated him as being the best defensive shortstop and having the best infield arm in the Texas League. He was named the league All-Star SS. The publication also rated him as the #5 prospect in the TL behind only Dexter Fowler, Chris Davis, Kyle Blanks and Vin Mazzaro.

In 2009, Elvis Andrus won the job as the Rangers' starting shortstop in spring training. There was some controversy attached to the decision by manager Ron Washington, as it meant moving Michael Young, who had won the 2008 Gold Glove Award to third base. He went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored on opening day against the Cleveland Indians.

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