Biography

BIOGRAPHY

Nelson Velazquez was born December 26, 1998, in Carolina, Puerto Rico. He is an outfielder in the MLB.

Velázquez was selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2017 MLB draft. He made his professional debut that year, playing in the rookie-level Arizona League. In 2018, he split time at the Class A Short Season and Class A levels, batting .231 overall for the season; in 103 games, he had 11 home runs and 40 RBIs. In 2019, he mainly played at the Class A level, where he batted .286 with four home runs and 34 RBIs in 72 games. He then played in the Puerto Rican Winter League in the 2019–20 offseason.

Velázquez did not play professionally during 2020, as the minor-league season was canceled. In 2021, he played 69 games for the South Bend Cubs, a High-A team, and 34 games for the Tennessee Smokies, a Double-A team. Overall, he batted .270 with 20 home runs and 73 RBIs in 103 game; he also stole 17 bases. After the regular season, he played for the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League where he batted .366 with nine home runs and 21 RBIs in 26 games. Velázquez was named MVP of the 2021 Arizona Fall League season, and was also added to the Cubs' 40-man roster following the 2021 season.

On July 31, 2023, the Cubs traded Velázquez to the Kansas City Royals for José Cuas.