Joey Ortiz

BIOGRAPHY

Joey Ortiz was born July 14, 1998, in Garden Grove, California. He is an infielder in the MLB.

Ortiz attended Pacifica High School in Garden Grove, California, where he played baseball and hit .417 with six triples as a senior in 2016. He went unselected in the 2016 Major League Baseball draft and enrolled at New Mexico State University.

As a freshman at New Mexico State in 2017, Ortiz played in 55 games and hit .306 with 14 extra-base hits and 35 RBIs. For the 2018 season, he played sixty games and batted .289 with seven home runs, 54 RBIs, and 13 stolen bases. That summer, he played for the Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League. As a junior in 2019, Ortiz played in 55 games and batted .422 with eight home runs, 84 RBIs, 12 stolen bases, and 25 doubles and was one of five finalists for the Brooks Wallace Award. After the season, he was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the fourth round with the 108th overall selection in the 2019 Major League Baseball draft.

Ortiz signed with the Orioles and made his professional debut with the Aberdeen IronBirds, batting .241 with one home run and 17 RBIs over 56 games. He did not play a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season. He started the 2021 season with Aberdeen and was promoted to the Bowie Baysox during the season, but played in only 35 games between both teams due to a shoulder injury. Over those 35 games, he hit .265 with four home runs and 17 RBIs. He returned to Bowie to begin the 2022 season. In late August, he was promoted to the Norfolk Tides. Over 137 games between both teams, he slashed .284/.349/.477 with 19 home runs, 85 RBIs, and 35 doubles.

On November 15, 2022, the Orioles selected Ortiz's contract and added him to the 40-man roster.