Jimmy Paredes, a veteran of six Major League seasons, including stints with the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies, has been signed to a contract by the Lancaster Barnstormers, it was announced today by manager Ross Peeples.
Paredes, 29, made his big league debut with the Houston Astros in 2011 after being acquired from the New York Yankees along with reliever Mark Melancon for first baseman Lance Berkman the year before. He made an immediate impact with a two-run triple off Cincinnati’s Bronson Arroyo in his first big league at bat, August 1 of that season.
He returned to Houston for portions of the 2012 and 2013 seasons before heading to Kansas City and eventually Baltimore in 2014. In 2015, he became a regular in the lineup for the Orioles, batting .275 with 10 homers and 42 RBI in 104 games.
In 2016, he appeared in seven games for Toronto and 76 for the Phillies. He batted .217 with four homers and 17 RBI while in Philadelphia.
Paredes spent last season with Chiba Lotte in Japan, batting .219 with 10 homers and signed to play in Korea earlier this year.
Over his career, the native of the Dominican Republic has played second base, shortstop, third base and the outfield.
While with Lexington in 2010, he was teammates with 2017 American League MVP Jose Altuve and the potential 2018 winner, J.D. Martinez.
“Paredes can play all over the infield,” said Peeples. “We also think he can come in and be very valuable to us and help us score some runs. We have heard good things about him, and we are anxious to see him play.”