First baseman Greg Bird has reportedly signed with the Mexican League’s Charros de Jalisco, according to MiLB.com. The slugger had previously been playing in the Australian Baseball League, which announced Bird’s departure on Instagram earlier today.
Bird, 31, was a fifth-round pick by the Yankees in the 2011 draft and made his big league debut with the club back in 2015, stepping is as the club’s everyday first baseman after Mark Teixeira’s season was cut short by a fractured shin. In 46 games with the club during his rookie season, Bird impressed with a .261/.343/.529 slash line and 11 home runs in just 178 trips to the plate. Unfortunately, Bird suffered a torn labrum that offseason and underwent surgery that rendered him unavailable for the entirety of the 2016 season.
After losing what could have been the first full season of his career to injury, Bird returned to the big leagues as the Yankees’ Opening Day first baseman, though he struggled to a brutal .100/.250/.200 slash line in 19 games before returning to the injured list with a foot injury that would eventually require surgery. He returned to the field near the end of August and posted excellent numbers down the stretch, slashing .253/.316/.575 with eight homers in just 98 trips to the plate.
Unfortunately, Bird’s injury woes would continue throughout his next two seasons with the Yankees as he slashed just .197/.287/.371 while being limited to 92 games by ankle surgery and a plantar fascia tear, leading the club to designate him for assignment shortly after the 2019 season came to a close. Bird spent the next several years in the minor leagues, signing with the Rangers, Phillies, Rockies, Blue Jays, and even briefly returning to the Bronx between 2020 and 2022. With that being said, he did not make an official appearance for the Texas, Philadelphia, or Toronto during his time in those organizations. That’s in spite of the fact that he was actually called back up to the majors with the Rangers, as he suffered an injury before he could take the field with the club.
While Bird sports a solid .262/.385/.485 slash line for his career at the Triple-A level, he slashed just .218/.325/.354 in 59 games at the level with the Yankees in 2022, and hasn’t found a role in affiliated ball since. In addition to his time overseas in Australia, bird briefly played for the Frontier League’s Capitales de Quebec. Now playing in the Mexican League, the 31-year-old bird should have the opportunity to prove himself healthy and perhaps earn another shot in affiliated ball at some point in the future.
What kind of money are these guys making over there? More / same as Japan or Korea? I’ll say, Greg bird isn’t good enough to play in Asia. Curious to see if he hits in Mexico.
They tend to want hitters that make contact in Japan, so Bird wasn’t going to fly there.
Great layered comment lol
Birds gonna be getting his beak wet, as Jalisco has the most attractive women in Mexico.
Source?
Source? Ask any Mexican American you know.
Way less than Japan or Korea
Does the Mexican League require its teams to have Injured Lists?
“Lista de el broken hombres”
Injured list? Nah, if it’s anything like Mexican culture that I know, you either drink some Sprite, have some tequila or you just shake it off.
Ahhh the racist frog shows his stripes!
Nothing about that statement is racist. You just want it to be.
Ignorant Son-of-a-b,
I should state that, that was the culture around me and my family. Apologies if I came off as racist.
I’m Mexicano, but i don’t feel being discriminated by those conments, that’s reality…and in fact very funny. Please don’t play the race card here
thats the problem, he shoulda went to the carribbean and realized the worldly power Vicks has on EVERYTHING.
The average NPB salary ranged from $195,000 to $513,000 while the average KBO salary ranged from $619,000 to $2,090,000 in 2021, both according to Statista. The Mexican League maximum salary is $12,000 per month – a far cry from the pay Japan and South Korea offers.
Is that in Pesos? Bird is worth pesos.
Bird is worth a week supply of crunchwrap Supreme.
They play 6 months so that salary 6X= $72K X 17.00 (avg exchange rate)= $1’224,000.00 Mxn Pesillos. But i doubt that 10% of the players on that league earn that money.
Thanks for that info. Seems about right for bird lol
Chicken feed!
12,000 dollars a month in Mexico. Dude, you can live pretty comfortable if you play your cards right. Nowhere near a minor league salary here in the States, but you can stretch 12k a month in Mexico if you’re savvy about it.
$12,000 a month, the maximum, is much higher than minor league baseball salaries. The average pay, however, is $12000 a -year-..
Pooptoad,
Well never mind my assessment then. 12k a year is very low, he’s going to need a second job then…
Appreciate the information.
If you’re going to plagiarize at least cite your source. lmtonline.com/sports/article/It-s-overlooked-Mexic…
Wow, Korean baseball pays more than Japanese baseball? I thought Japan was a higher caliber of play.
You’re thinking pay correlates to caliber of play? Maybe things cost more in Korea, or you have to pay more to get people to come. If vacationing, which would you visit?
Korea is cheaper than Japan
I guess $144,000/year, is still better than getting a real job…..
An interesting read … lmtonline.com/sports/article/It-s-overlooked-Mexic…
Vaya con dios.
The injury bug can hit anyone. He’s not going to get rich playing in Mexico but he could prove he’s finally healthy and catch on with someone. Wish him luck.
Bird was always a great looking player; beautiful swing. Too bad he got derailed by injuries. Here’s hoping he makes it back to the bigs.
Dude just wants to play baseball. Rooting for the guy to sign a ML contract soon.
La Flama Blanca
effortless power before he got hurt. still remember him hitting a ball off the back wall over the right field stands at the trop. he’s up there with brien taylor and nick johnson in the yankees “what could have been” hall of fame
Injuries be damned he was the real deal. In that 2017 run he was the best hitter on the team. He was an absolute pest to get out in the ALCS and worked the pitchers and strike zone like a 10 year vet. It’s a shame the injuries got the best of him, it’s tough to get all the crucial time he lost back. Hoping for some wild success story from him one day.
Might have found 2017 WS glory, if not for the Astrisks*
effortless strikeout if you’re on the mound too. Just sayin
before his original call-up his minor league k rate was below 10% if he didn’t get hurt i believe he would have adjusted to mlb
He was too good to be true and the universe couldn’t let baseball have him free and clear. One of the greatest “what if’s” of all time.
He flew too close to the sun
I can’t believe he’s just 31.I feel like I’ve been reading about him forever.
He’s younger than Judge
Wild. If someone would have asked me I would have guessed that Bird was 40 or older
I heard the Yankees declined to trade Bird straight up for Mike Trout a couple years ago. Yankee fans said Mike Trout just wasn’t enough and was an injury risk. Well, atleast this is what Yankees fans were saying. Same with Rob Refsnyder
Remember when Met fans couldn’t wait to get rid of Zach Wheeler, overhyped Syndergaard and overed used and ruined Matt Harvey.
Crying about it like Wilmer, very fitting
Mexican League is cooking.
Drop the Chalupa
He almost made Blue jays couple years ago.. Instead of signing went back signed with Yankees. Who knows if gone to AAA with blue jays. Maybe he is still in MLB
In all of my years in sports Bird comes to mind often with the what ifs. This guy was money when healthy.
It’s like he really never got going.
Or never really got healthy
BIRD flies South to Mexico !!
The dude was a beast in the ABL this winter, hitting 11 homers in 40 games for Melbourne. Really endeared himself to the folks down under. Best of luck to him in Mexico!
How does Mike Ford continue to get offers but Bird has to fly to Mexico
He’s migratory.
Is it being honest to still refer to Greg Bird as a “slugger”?
I’m still jumping on that monumental Hr that El Birdo hit against the then Cleveland INDIANS on a 1-0 yankee win in the ’17 ALDS..aaay caramba mami pero qué clase de toletazo!!!
Greg would like to see Mike back in the captain’s chair
I would like to see Greg back in MLB
The Bird Man deserves another shot at the big league level !!
Plenty of guys he’s at least just as good as that have spots or opportunities
Some dudes bat flip when they go yard. This cat flips the bird.