Willians Astudillo #64

Willians Jose Astudillo (pronounced ah-stew-DEE-oh)...Instagram: @williansastudillo... originally signed by Philadelphia as minor league free agent Dec. 15, 2008...nicknamed "Tortuga" by teammates, translating in Spanish to "Turtle"...gained national attention March 12, 2018, for a no-look pickoff at first base (as catcher) of Shane Robinson in spring training in Tampa (New York-AL)...Threw a pitch on May 17, 2021 that was registered at 35.7 mph. At the time was the slowest pitch in a Major League Baseball game in the history of the Statcast Era (2015-present).

2021

Played in 72 games for the Minnesota Twins in 2021. He hit .236 with seven home runs and 21 RBI...Made Twins Opening Day roster for second time in career (also 2019) as a catcher/infielder. Recorded career-high eight-game hitting streak from April 27-May 14, hitting .367 (11x30) with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 5 RBI and a 1.000 OPS in that span...Made four pitching appearances on the season: April 16 at Los Angeles-AL (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R), May 17 vs. Chicago-AL (1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 HR- Yermín Mercedes), June 4 at Kansas City (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R) and Aug. 26 at Boston (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R)...the appearances gave him five on the mound for his career, second in club history for a position player, trailing Chris Gimenez’s six in 2017...Walked just three times on the season and struck out 12 times in 216 plate appearances...Played 29 games (22 starts) at third base, 27 games (22 starts) at first base, 10 games (4 starts) at catcher, four games (2 starts) at second base, one game (1 start) in rightfield and four games at pitcher.

2020

Began season on 10-day Injured List with an undisclosed injury; reinstated Aug. 11 and optioned to alternate training site in St. Paul...Added as 29th man for doubleheader Sept. 4 vs. Detroit, pinch hitting in game two, going 0-for-1...officially recalled on same day after the doubleheader...Hit first and only home run of season Sept. 12 vs. Cleveland, a solo shot off Zach Plesac...Optioned to alternate training site Sept. 18 but added to Taxi Squad for a roadtrip in Chicago...Played exclusively at catcher, playing in six games, making four starts... Made postseason debut in Game 1 of AL Wild Card round Sept. 29 vs. Houston, pinch-hitting in the ninth inning, going 0-1, grounding into an inning-ending double play.

2019

Made Twins Opening Day roster for first time in career...hit .327 (16-for-49) with four doubles, two home runs, seven RBI, one walk and one strikeout in first 16 games through April 27...struck out twice in a game (4 at-bats) June 7 at Detroit, entering the game with just four strikeouts in 103 at-bats on the season and six strikeouts in 210 plate appearances for career...placed on 10-day Injured List with a left oblique strain June 27... played in 14 games on rehab assignment between Double-A Pensacola (5 games) and Triple-A Rochester (9 games) August 15-30 and reinstated September 1...named Twins minor league Player of the Week June 16 with Triple-A Rochester, hitting .600 (15-for-25) with three home runs, nine RBI and a 1.553 OPS...recorded first career four-hit game September 26 at Detroit with three singles and a home run...drew just five walks on the season (204 plate appearances) and struck out just eight times...became the first player with 200+ plate appearances and 10-or-fewer strikeouts in a season since Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith in 1996 (261 PA, 9 K)...played in 21 games (17 starts) behind home plate...also first base (15 games, 11 starts), third base (13 games, 11 starts), rightfield (6 games, 3 starts), leftfield (3 games, 1 start) and second base (2 games, 1 start), and started two games as designated hitter...finished 2019 with 301 career plate appearances and 11 career strikeouts... is one of three players in the Live Ball Era (since 1920) to have at least 300 plate appearances and 11-or-less strikeouts, joining Bill Killefer, who struck out nine times in 356 PA between 1920-21 for Chicago-NL and Charlie Pick, who struck out 11 times in 427 PA for the Boston Braves...Twins went 37-21 in games he played, including 29-17 in games he started.

2018

Was in Twins spring training, the first of his career; reassigned to minor league camp March 27 and began season with Triple-A Rochester... hit .289 (52-for-180) with 12 doubles, one triple, eight home runs and 26 RBI in first 50 games for Red Wings...had contract selected by Minnesota June 29...made major league debut June 30 at Chicago-NL, entering the game in leftfield...recorded first major league hit in same game, singling off Brian Duensing, and driving in first RBI...hit in each of first three career games, going 5-for-11 in that span with one triple and three RBI... made first career pitching appearance July 14 vs. Tampa Bay, allowing five runs on five hits in 1.0 inning pitched; allowed two home runs, no walks and no strikeouts...became the 12th different position player in club history to pitch and one of four on the season (Ryan LaMarre, Mitch Garver and Chris Gimenez)...optioned to Rochester July 21...played in 28 games for Rochester in August and was recalled for a final time August 24...hit first career home run August 29 at Cleveland, a solo shot off Adam Plutko...hit walk-off two-run homer September 9 vs. Kansas City off Jason Hammel, breaking a 1-1 tie with two outs in the bottom of the ninth...hit .388 (26-for-67) with four doubles, two home runs, 17 RBI and just one strikeout in 19 September games; led AL rookies in batting average, tied for second in RBI and sixth in hits, during the month...appeared in 16 games (14 starts) at catcher, six at third base (5 starts), two at second base (1 start), one game in leftfield, one game in centerfield and one game at pitcher...played for Caribes de Anzoategui in the Venezuelan Winter League, hitting .325 (76-for-234) with nine doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, 46 RBI, a .370 on-base percentage and just four strikeouts in 61 games...finished second in MVP voting with 166 points (22 first place votes, 15 second place votes and 11 third place votes), just 12 points behind former Twin Delmon Young who had 178 points (23 first place votes).

2017

Signed minor league contract with Arizona organization in off-season...Played in just 36 games for Triple-A Reno...Had two separate stints on disabled list: July 4-13 with a left hamstring strain and August 5-end of season with a left hamate fracture...Hit .393 (11-for-28) in eight August games and .365 (17-for-47) in 12 July games...Hit .364 (36-for-99) against right-handed pitching and .238 (5-for-21) against left-handed pitching... Played for Caribes de Anzoategui in Venezuelan Winter League, hitting .319 (65-for-204) with 11 doubles, six home runs and 37 RBI in 55 games.