George Arias

George Alberto Arias (born May 12, 1972, in Tucson, Arizona) is a former baseball player in the Major Leagues, and Japanese professional leagues.

Biography

Arias was drafted by the California Angels in the seventh round of the 1993 draft after graduating from the University of Arizona. He made his Major League debut in by|1996, and played 84 games, hitting .238 with seven home runs and 28 RBI. He went back and forth between the Majors and minor leagues after that, and was traded to the San Diego Padres during the by|1997 season. He played with the Padres until by|1999, before joining the Orix BlueWave.

Arias became the regular third baseman in his first year with the BlueWave, and was the team's best power hitter, hitting 38 home runs in by|2001. He was a slow but solid fielder, and had a strong arm. Arias was a very streaky hitter, and had a very low batting average with runners in scoring position. He signed with the Hanshin Tigers in by|2002, and hit 38 home runs with 107 RBIs in by|2003, contributing to the Tigers' league championship. He also won a Golden Glove award at first base, and the Best Nine award that year. He left the Tigers after by|2004, and signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals in by|2005, but was cut at the start of the season. He played in the Mexican League for the rest of the year.

Arias was signed by the Yomiuri Giants in June by|2006, and made his debut with the Giants in July as an outfielder. He was unable to repeat his previous success, and was demoted to the minors after playing 17 games. He hit only .167 his last year, and was cut at the end of 2006.

tatistics

Major Leagues
* 173 Games
* 14 Home runs
* 55 RBIs
* .238 Batting average

Japanese Professional Leagues
* 639 Games
* 161 Home runs
* 436 RBIs
* .259 Batting average

Teams

*California Angels
*San Diego Padres

ources

* [http://espn.go.com/mlb/s/2001/0703/1221823.html ESPN Article on Arias]