César Izturis

Signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as an amateur free agent in 1996, Izturis made his debut with Toronto in 2001 and had a .269 average.

During the Winter Meetings after the 2001 season, the Blue Jays traded Izturis and Paul Quantrill to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Luke Prokopec and Chad Ricketts.^[2] Izturis started at shortstop from Opening Day of the 2002 season, and he quickly established himself in the Dodgers' infield. But he showed no patience at the plate, resulting in a decline in average and very few walks. After two years of barely adequate hitting (though compensated by his stellar glovework), he improved markedly in 2004, when he hit .288 with 62 RBI and 25 stolen bases in 159 games. At the end of the season, he earned his first Gold Glove, the first by a Dodger shortstop since Maury Wills' back-to-back honors in 1961 and 1962.

In 2005, Izturis hit .348 through June 1 and led the entire majors in hits. He was selected for the National League All-Star team, but his batting average later dipped all the way down into the .250 range. Curiously, his defense also seemed to suffer. After two trips to the disabled list, Izturis underwent Tommy John surgery in his right elbow, and returned in mid-June 2006.

With the uncertainty around Izturis, the Dodgers acquired shortstop Rafael Furcal in the off-season. That move seemed to have put Izturis' future with the Dodgers in doubt. With a $13 million annual salary, Furcal did not seem a likely candidate to be benched.

At the 2006 trade deadline, the Dodgers traded Izturis to the Chicago Cubs for Greg Maddux and cash considerations.^[3]

On July 19, 2007, Izturis and cash were traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later.

On November 16, 2007, the Pirates declined an option on Izturis, and he became a free agent. Shortly thereafter on November 30, 2007, Izturis signed a one-year, $2.85 million deal with the St. Louis Cardinals.^[4]

On December 16, 2008, Izturis signed a two-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles.^[5]

In 2009, he led all starting shortstops in range factor, at 4.89.^[6]

On December 10, 2010, Izturis re-signed with the Baltimore Orioles to a 1-year contract.^[7]

On December 21, 2011, he signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. He also received an invitation to spring training. On March 29, 2012, Izturis was added to the Major League 25-man roster by the Brewers.

On August 6, 2012, the Washington Nationals claimed Izturis off waivers from the Brewers. He was designated for assignment by the Washington Nationals on August 17, only 11 days after arriving in Washington. On August 20, 2012, he was granted free agency.

On January 14, 2013, the Cincinnati Reds announced that they had signed Izturis to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training.^[8] The Reds selected the contract of Izturis on March 31.^[9]

Izturis signed a minor league deal with the Houston Astros on January 14, 2014. He was released on March 24.

Izturis resides in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, with his wife Liliana and their two children; his son Cesar Daniel (born November 11, 1999) and daughter Daniella (born July 17, 2006).^[10] In 2016, Cesar Daniel signed with the Seattle Mariners as an international free agent.^[11][12] Cesar Daniel is a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder for the Lake Country DockHounds of the American Association of Professional Baseball.

• List of Gold Glove Award winners at shortstop
• List of Major League Baseball players from Venezuela

• Career statistics from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
• Article Baseball Library
• Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics