Carlos Cortés

Note: This page is for 2020s outfielder Carlos Cortés; for others with the same name, click here.

Carlos Andres Cortés

• Bats Left, Throws Both
• Height 5' 7", Weight 197 lb.
• School University of South Carolina
• High School Lake Howell High School
• Debut July 23, 2025

• Born June 30, 1997 in Orlando, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Carlos Cortés played for the Puerto Rican national team before making his major league debut in 2025. He made history as the first ambidextrous position player in the majors.

He threw left-handed as an outfielder and pitcher and right-handed as an infielder. He hit .395 and had 3 saves as a high school senior; Perfect Game rated him as the #2 high school prospect in Florida. The New York Mets took him in the 20th round of the 2016 amateur draft but he opted for college. He batted .286/.368/.566 with 12 homers and 41 RBI in 50 games as a college freshman. With the 2017 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, he hit .268/.340/.406 in the Cape Cod League. In '18, he produced at a .265/.385/.500 clip with 15 dingers, 43 walks and 53 runs in 62 games. He tied for 5th in the Southeastern Conference in walks and tied for 7th in home runs.

The Mets picked him again, this time in the 3rd round of the 2018 amateur draft, the #83 overall pick. He followed Jarred Kelenic and Simeon Woods-Richardson as Mets draftees that year, the first collegian they picked, and signed for a bonus of over $1 million. The scout was Daniel Coles. He made his pro debut with the Brooklyn Cyclones, for whom he hit .264/.338/.382 and fielded .958. The next year, he batted .256/.336/.397 with 26 doubles and 52 walks for the St. Lucie Mets. He tied Blake Tiberi and Grégor Blanco for third in the Mets chain in walks and tied Wagner Lagrange for 8th in two-baggers. He tied for 7th in the Florida State League in doubles and tied Luken Baker and Tiberi for 7th in walks.

That winter, he was 1 for 9 with a walk for the Indios de Mayagüez in the Puerto Rican League. The 2020 minor league season was wiped out due to COVID-19, but he was back in action that winter, tearing it up for the Sydney Blue Sox - .392/.429/.706, 16 RBI in 14 G. He was .008 behind 2020-2021 ABL average leader Delmon Young, tied for 9th in RBI, led in slugging (.053 ahead of Grant Witherspoon) and beat out Young for the OPS lead by 75 points. That summer, he hit .257/.332/.487 with 26 doubles and 14 home runs for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, now being used as an outfielder rather than at second. He led Mets farmhands in doubles and tied for 4th in home runs. In Double-A Northeast, he tied for 7th in doubles. He hit .236/.358/.309 for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League.

In the summer of 2022, he appeared for Binghamton (.241/.316/.413 in 89 G) and the Syracuse Mets (.168/.231/.234 in 34 G). With Syracuse for all of 2023, he posted a .241/.355/.428 line with 15 home runs and 65 walks. He tied Jeffry Rosa for 7th in the New York organization in homers and tied Rowdey Jordan for 4th in walks. In Puerto Rico in winter ball, he batted .203/.262/.305 for the Leones de Ponce. In his third AAA season, he hit .246/.330/.456 for Syracuse in 2024. He tied Brett Baty and Trayce Thompson for 4th in the Mets farm system in dingers with 16. He then was with Puerto Rico for the 2024 Premier 12. He was their starting right fielder and hit cleanup in their opening win over Team USA, flying out against Rich Hill his first time up. His first hit was off Sam Benschoter. In their five games, he was at .368/.400/.474 and handling nine putouts in the outfield. He tied Sabin Ceballos for the team lead in hits.

He became a free agent following the 2024 season and signed a minor league contract with The Athletics for 2025. He was assigned to the AAA Las Vegas Aviators to start the season and had a great first half, batting .322 in his first71 games, with 17 homers and 77 RBIs. He was named the Pacific Coast League Player of the Month for June. He was first called up to West Sacramento, CA on July 15th but was sent down without getting into a game, only to be called up again on July 22nd. He made his major league debut on July 23rd with an unsuccessful appearance as a pinch-hitter against the Texas Rangers. His first big league hit, run and RBI all came the next day in a 5-2 win over the Houston Astros, with a sacrifice fly that opened the scoring in the 2nd inning and a single on which he scored in the 4th inning, both times against Jason Alexander.

He normally plays the outfield, where he is a left-handed thrower, but can also play second base - as a right-handed thrower. He practiced this for years growing up, as his father was concerned that he was too short to have a chance to play the outfield professionally and wanted him to have other options. He did play some second base early in his pro career, but gave it up after the pandemic, concentrating on the outfield. He first used both hands in a big league game on August 10, 2025, when he entered the game as a defensive replacement in right field in the 8th inning, then played the 9th inning at third base after some further substitutions left him as the only player on the A's with infield experience - he had never played at the hot corner, however. He borrowed a right-handed glove from teammate Max Schuemann, but no ball was hit his way.

Further Reading

• Theo DeRosa: "A's new switch-throwing(!) outfielder brings unique skillset to play", mlb.com, July 29, 2025. [1]
• Martín Gallegos: "One-of-a-kind change: Cortes plays RF left-handed ... then 3B right-handed!", mlb.com, August 10, 2025. [2]

Related Sites

• Carlos Cortes on mlb.com
• BR Register page
• University of South Carolina bio