Gilberto Celestino (born February 13, 1999) is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Gilberto Celestino | |
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Minnesota Twins – No. 67 | |
Outfielder | |
Born: (1999-02-13) February 13, 1999 (age 23) Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Right Throws: Left | |
MLB debut | |
June 2, 2021, for the Minnesota Twins | |
MLB statistics (through 2022 season) | |
Batting average | .222 |
Home runs | 4 |
Runs batted in | 27 |
Teams | |
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Celestino signed with the Houston Astros as an international free agent on July 2, 2015, for a $2.25 million signing bonus.[1] He split the 2016 season between the DSL Astros and the GCL Astros, hitting a combined .257/.365/.393/.758 with 2 home runs and 19 RBI. He spent the 2017 season with the Greeneville Astros, hitting .268/.331/.379/.709 with 4 home runs and 24 RBI.
On July 27, 2018, Celestino and Jorge Alcalá were traded to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Ryan Pressly.[2] Celestino split the 2018 season between the Tri-City ValleyCats, Corpus Christi Hooks, and the Elizabethton Twins, hitting a combined .287/.341/.406/.747 with 5 home runs and 34 RBI.[3]
In 2019, Celestino split the season between the Cedar Rapids Kernels and the Fort Myers Miracle, hitting a combined .277/.349/.410/.759 with 10 home runs and 54 RBI.[4][5] Celestino played for the Dominican Republic national baseball team at the 2019 WBSC Premier12.[6] On November 20, 2019, Celestino was added to the Twins 40-man roster.[7][8] Celestino did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]
On June 2, 2021, Celestino was promoted to the major leagues for the first time.[10] He made his MLB debut that day as the starting center fielder against the Baltimore Orioles. In the game, he went 0-for-2 before being subbed out for Miguel Sanó. On June 9, Celestino notched his first career hit, a single off of New York Yankees reliever Brooks Kriske.
Dominican Republic roster – 2019 WBSC Premier12 | |
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