El Paso Chihuahuas prospect: Infielder Luis Urias has eye on making MLB roster

Felix F. Chavez | El Paso Times

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Baseball fans across El Paso have been fortunate this summer to see one of the top prospects in the San Diego Padres organization in second baseman Luis Urias.

The talented Urias has steadily moved up in the San Diego organization and is in his first full year with the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas.

Urias' play on the field has been impressive enough this season to earn a spot in the July 11, Triple-A All-Star game in Columbus, Ohio. He will be a part of the Pacific Coast League team which will take on a team of All-Stars from the International League.

"It feels good to earn this honor and I'm going to represent the San Diego organization, El Paso, my teammates, my coaches, my family the best I can," Urias said.

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Urias, who just turned 21, began his professional career in 2014 in Rookie ball. He has since moved up to Class A, Class AA and this year he's in first full year of Triple-A baseball. In 2016, he did play three games for the Chihuahuas and had four hits in nine at-bats.

"I've been fortunate enough during the past five years to play in some great cities like El Paso, San Antonio," said Urias, who signed as a free agent with San Diego. "Along the way, it's been a process. I want to help the team win badly wherever I am. I want to get better at what I do in every aspect of the game."

Urias has been strong at the plate wherever he's been. He hit .297 in his first year of professional baseball, then followed that up with a .299 average in 2015, a .333 mark in 2016 and a .297 mark last season at San Antonio, the Double-A affiliate of San Diego.

So far this season with the Chihuahuas, he's hitting .274 with a team-best 48 walks.

"I strive to be consistent all the time," Urias said. "I look to work hard every day. It's my goal to reach the major league level."

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Urias is well thought of among those who follow baseball. He's among the top 100 prospects in all of baseball according to several national publications. He's ranked No. 32 by Baseball America and No. 36 by MLB Pipeline. In addition to being named a Triple-A All-Star, he's earned Texas League All-Star honors and was named the Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year in the California League.

Urias grew up in Magdalena de Kino, Sonora, Mexico, and began playing baseball at the age of six. His older brother, Ramon, is three years older, also a second baseman and is playing in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.

"I grew up watching my brother and learned a great deal from him,” Urias said. "He is a great player and he got a head start on me in terms of professional baseball. I got to see what he went through and he was able to help me learn many things. Where we grew up in Mexico baseball is big and very important to our community."

Luis and Ramon got to spend time together recently when the Memphis Redbirds played El Paso at Southwest University Park, June 16-19.

"It was great to see him, my mom and my dad," Urias said. "It's great to have both of us playing professionally and it was good to have my family here."

Urias is a sound defensive player as well and has made several major league quality plays at second base all season long. He has also played shortstop and third base at times during his career. When he has played second base this year, his fielding percentage is near perfect at nearly 99 percent with just three errors. His defensive prowess was evident during a recent game with at home vs. Albuquerque when he made a nice backhanded grab in short right field on a defensive shift and threw out the Isotopes runner at home plate.

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El Paso starting pitcher Brett Kennedy has played with Urias for the past three years in minor league baseball and has seen Urias grow tremendously as a player.'

"As a pitcher, it's great to have someone like Luis playing defense behind your," Kennedy said. "He makes so many great plays. We have him, Javy Guerra and Dusty Coleman in the middle of the infield and they do a great job. Luis works hard and he gets better each year. He has a bright future ahead of him. He swings the bat well and he just loves the game."

Urias is considered by many to be the future second baseman for the San Diego Padres, but the humble and hard-working native of Mexico, knows the hard work must continue if he wants to realize his ultimate dream.

"Nothing easy in this game," Urias said. "I can't take anything for granted, I can't stop working. Baseball is fun for me, it's been a great ride so far."

Felix F. Chavez may be reached at 546-6167; fchavez@elpasotimes.com; @Fchavezeptimes on Twitter.

Luis Urias bio

Who: Luis Urias

What: Second baseman for the El Paso Chihuahuas

Of Note: the 5-foot-9, 185-pound Urias is one of the top prospects in the San Diego Padres organization...Turned pro in 2016...Was a Texas League All-Star in 2017 in Class AA.