Machado spent most of that time in the minors. He played nearly 1,300 minor league games, more than half of them at the Triple-A level. The Venezuelan-born infielder played four years in the MLB with the Tigers from 2015 to 2018. He spent the ’19 campaign in the Cubs system before moving to Korea for two seasons as a member of the Lotte Giants. Machado returned to affiliated ball in 2022 and briefly returned to the major leagues that year, appearing in five games as a member of the San Francisco Giants.
That would be Machado’s last MLB work, at least as a player. He has spent the last three years in Triple-A on minor league contracts with the Astros and Cubs. He played in 84 games for Chicago’s top team in Iowa last season, hitting .221 with four home runs. Instead of continuing to seek minor league contracts, he will turn to coaching as he approaches his 34th birthday.
Machado appeared in 177 Major League games. He hit .226/.285/.292 with a pair of home runs and 107 hits. Machado was a .256 hitter in just over 3,000 Triple-A plate appearances, hitting .279/.357/.392 during his two years in the KBO. The Cubs apparently valued him as an organizational mentor, as they signed him to a trio of minor league contracts despite never calling him. They will keep him around for his first coaching stint, where he will lead a rookie ball team that will consist mostly of teenagers they signed out of Latin America. Congratulations to Machado on a long playing career and all the best in the next chapter of his career.
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