Blaze Alexander

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Blaze Chanee Alexander

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Biographical Information[edit]

Shortstop Blaze Alexander made his major league debut with the Arizona Diamondbacks as the starting designated hitter on Opening Day on March 28, 2024. He went 2 for 5, with his first major league hit coming in a record-setting 14-run outburst in the 3rd against the Colorado Rockies. he had made an out in his first couple of at-bats in the game, including making the first out of the 3rd, but when he came up again, he singled off Anthony Molina, who was also making his debut, to also drive in his first career run. Later in the game, he moved over to play shortstop for the 9th inning with Arizona holding a commanding 16-1 lead. He hit .247 in 61 games for Arizona that season, with 3 homers and 21 RBIs for an OPS+ of 85. In 2025, he played 74 games for Arizona, with his main position being third base, followed by second base, with Geraldo Perdomo having an excellent season at shortstop. He hit .230 with 7 homers and 28 RBIs, his OPS+ improving to 96 largely thanks to am improved slugging percentage.

Just as spring training was about to get under way in February 2026, he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in return for three players, including P Kade Strowd. The Orioles wanted more depth in the infield with Jordan Westburg expected to miss the start of the season. He got more playing time in the first half of that season than he had in either of his two previous ones with Arizona, getting into 82 games before the All-Star break. The Orioles had no choice but to keep writing his name down in the starting line-up as he was hitting .312 with an OPS+ of 127 at that point. However, the half ended badly as in the 7th inning of a game against the Kansas City Royals on July 12th, he was hit on the wrist by a pitch from Lucas Erceg. That came immediately after teammated Samuel Basallo had homered, and he was the third Orioles batter to be plunked that day, so it definitely looked suspicious and it led to a bench-clearing brawl. After the dust settled, he was replaced by a pinch-runner and x-rays indicated that he had suffered a non-displaced fracture, likely putting him on the shelf for an extended time. For his part, Erceg insisted that there was no ill intent and that the pitch had simply got away from him.

He was drafted by Arizona in the 11th round of the 2018 amateur draft, out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL. He is part of a large baseball family as both his father, Chuck Alexander, and grandfather, Charles Alexander, pitched in the minor leagues, and his brother C.J. Alexander is an infielder who made his major league debut three months after him. Additionally, he is a cousin of pitchers Zach Plesac and Frank Plesac and a nephew of Dan Plesac and of Joe Plesac.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Jake Rill: "Blaze fractures left hand on HBP, giving O's significant 'gut punch'", mlb.com, July 12, 2026. [1]

Related Sites[edit]

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