Jays prospect Moreno chose ball field over soccer pitch
On a sunny Tuesday afternoon in Dunedin, Fla., Gabriel Moreno smiles for a picture after a post-practice interview. Moreno is a 19-year-old Venezuelan catcher who was signed by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2016 as an international free agent. He finished 2018 with the Bluefield Blue Jays. Photo: Caio Miari
By Caio Miari
DUNEDIN, Fla. — About nine years ago, Gabriel Moreno’s dream might have been to follow the footsteps of Venezuelan soccer legend José Salomón Rondón.
Things have changed.
Moreno, who was born in a soccer-mad area in the South American nation, decided to follow baseball, the most popular sport in the country. And he has no regrets.
“When I was 10 years old I used to play soccer (and) I’m from a neighbourhood where I was playing soccer often,” he said, at the Toronto Blue Jays minor league complex. “My dad told me to dedicate myself in one thing only because I was (starting to) playing baseball and playing soccer too.
“So I decided to go with baseball and baseball is my priority now. And here we are.”
By “Here we are”, the 19-year-old catcher means at his third spring training with the Jays.
Moreno was born in Barquisimeto, capital of the state of Lara, located north of Venezuela.
In 2016, he signed as an international free agent with the club. Two years later, he was promoted to the Bluefield Blue Jays (from DSL Blue Jays) hitting .359 batting average, .395 on base, and .575 slugging in the season, showing solid hand-eye coordination, as well as defensive instincts and a strong arm.
He has moved up to No. 22 on the club’s top-prospects list.
“Last season was very good, thanks to God,” the catcher said. “[Last year] my challenges were to work on my priorities, which were pitches movements, defence, catching.”
But what called the attention in Moreno’s game last season was his discipline at the plate. He had the least strikeouts (20) among players with 120+ at-bats on the roster.
The reason, he says, is simple.
"Every time that I’m at the home plate I’m focused on doing something to hit the ball,” he said.
Moreno’s motivation comes from his family and girlfriend, who are with him all the time in his heart. His inspiration comes from other baseball players, such as Francisco Lindor of the Cleveland Indians, and the aggressive Salvador Pérez, catcher with the Kansas City Royals.
Pérez is a reference for Moreno also because he is a Venezuelan catcher with six All-Star appearances and a World Series Most Valuable Player award winner.