Veteran outfielder Nomar Mazara didn’t break camp with the Padres and opted for Triple-A El Paso before being called up in early June. With starting right fielder Wil Myers with a knee injury, Mazara has noticed more playing time and has a base percentage ofArray356 andArray789 OPS to display. Expelled from the Dominican Republic at the age of 16, Mazara made his major league debut with the Texas Rangers when he was just 20 and is now in his seventh year in the primary leagues. After 4 years with the Rangers, he had disappointing seasons with the Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers and last season he chose to work with a hitting coach in Miami than play another year in the minors. He attributes this work to the production he has now.
Union-Tribune: Since joining the Padres in early June, what idea do you have of your compatibility with this team and the opportunity you have here?
Mazara: I’m glad I was given the opportunity. I went to Triple-A to get consistent paces and show that I’m in a position to be back here where I belong. They needed me at some point, they told me. I just have to be patient. And my time came here and I got here here. And every time I get the chance, I just check back to give as much of a contribution as I can. I’m not looking to exaggerate. And thank God I see the effects right away, and I’m here to help the team in any way I can. . . Obviously, he wasn’t satisfied that he got down to Triple-A. which once happened. Because if I had started here in the big leagues, I probably wasn’t going to play every day. And I had consistent bats there.
U-T: The other, more productive thing that’s happened to you turns out to be going to Miami last season in checkers with a betting coach in the minors. How did you make that decision?
Mazara: You know, I’m wrong. My swing is not smart. Mentally, I’m wrong. We, as baseball players, as human beings, must be intelligent. But no matter how hard we work, that doesn’t (guarantee) that you’re going on to see effects there. It’s like the first time I’ve felt frustrated in my career. After the Tigers let me through, it didn’t help me move (to Triple-A) and keep doing the same thing. . . . I didn’t take any time off. Alone, to play. I went to Miami and worked hard with this guy. I worked with him for two months. I tried. And when he felt like he was fit to see live guns and throws, I went to winter ball in the Dominican Republic and played about 30, 40 games. And I felt pretty smart. I saw the effects immediately. My great swing. I normal each and every day. And I’m happy. I the old Nomar even better. Sometimes things happen for a reason.
U-T: It appeals to you, because in the four years you’ve been with the Rangers, you’ve been batting pretty well. When did things change for you?
Mazara: The first 4 years with the Rangers, yes, very smart years. But it all went wrong when the pandemic hit when I was with the White Sox. You know, everything stopped. Then I went back to spring school in Chicago for the time being and two days before the start of the season, I was put on sick leave. They were very strict about it that season. I was quarantined for 2 1/2 weeks without catching a bat. or anything. I was sitting in my house, watching the games, going crazy. It was hard.
U-T: It was the first time you went through adversity in your career, wasn’t it?
Mazara: Of course. It was a year in which each and every thing changed. And when I cleared all that, I went to their exchange site and trained for 3 days, begging myself that I was ready, just because it was such a short season. I sought to show them what I have, what I am capable of. And I went to the 3 days of practice and I said, yeah, I was great, but no, I wasn’t. So I went back to the White Sox and tried to be there every single day. I knew I was wrong. I was running really, really hard. Every day I was the first guy with José Abreu in the hitting machine. But I was like, hey, I don’t feel good, man. I did a hundred swings each and every day. And nothing clicked. I didn’t play well there for 20 games. Enthusiasts no longer like me there, which I understand. But I made it to the playoffs. I help them with each and every thing that I can. So difficult season. I put that in the afterlife and the following year I went with the Tigers. I started well, then they gave me pity. And when I came back here, the same thing: my swing was not there. And after that, I was like, OK, fix that. I have to do something about it.
U-T: You left the Dominican Republic in 2011 at the age of 16. At the time, it was the largest signing bond ever issued from the Dominican Republic (more than $5 million according to reports). How has it replaced your life?
Mazara: It was my dream to play and become a professional athlete. People still don’t know me at that time. I was 16 years old and I didn’t care about money. He was satisfied that he had earned this kind of money. But I thought, I just need to do it. He was a miner at the time, so he couldn’t see that kind of money. Thank God I have smart parents. They were the ones who took care of it. So every time he needed something, he communicated it to him. But I didn’t put it in my head. I just went down and worked. And I did it at such a young age in the primary leagues, thank God.
U-T: Yes, you were 20 years old when you started.
Mazara: All Of Me in Iowa. I played 3 Triple-A games that year. I scratched the spring training. And they didn’t need to fire me. But they had Shin-so Choo making $20 million a year in right field. Then I understood. They said, ‘Hey, they gave you a guy who makes $20 million in front of you. ‘I have coaches who fight for you, but there’s nothing we can do about it. I went down to Triple-A and they gave me up in the big leagues. I think I’m going to be there all year round. I like it, OK, I’m going to focus on my thing here and make it happen. And I left in 3 days, and unfortunately, Shin-so Choo got hurt. It’s a crazy component of the game of baseball. This is how opportunities open up. My third game in Iowa, I think I hit a home run and a double, then I got called out again. “Hey, you’re going to go to the big leagues. ” My beginnings were in Anaheim. April 10, 2016. I was 3 out of four that day. And I’m here now.
U-T: When you were in the Dominican Republic, was it A. J. Preller who saw you at the time?
Mazara: Yes. He and Mike Daly (now the Padres’ farm assistant).
U-T: There are some players who have come here since the Rangers. Why do you think so many players need to play for him again?
Mazara: I mean, he noticed me since he was 14 years old. He was inside me. When they changed (Jorge) Alfaro here, we have the same agent. He was like, ‘Hey, tell Nomar, let’s go. ‘ . . . He knows what I’m capable of, and he knew that if I was going to click on what I was doing, I would help the team in each and every one. time that would give me the opportunity. When you have guys like that and they in you, still in you, and they know how hard you work, it means a lot to me, that he gives me the opportunity.
U-T: So you’re 16 and you’re leaving the Dominican Republic. First time you’re out and about. New language, new food, new logo. What’s the hardest part?
Mazara: Tout. La culture, the food, everything. I was picky at the time. Like anything now. But it’s a delight that everyone has to have. It’s not easy, that’s for sure. You just have to move on.
U-T: Do you watch your games?
Mazara: All games. And if I don’t do good, my father says, “Hey, what’s wrong?What’s the matter?” Thank God this year is another situation (laughs).
U-T: Baseball in the Dominican Republic is so important. Was it inevitable that you would play?
Mazara: I first started betting basketball, which is crazy. And he was smart. I didn’t need to do that for my career, but I liked it better. I started betting when I was four and until I was four because I was on one of the most productive teams. My dad was arrested because I guess someone told him how smart I was in baseball too. And that was our only chance to get out of (the Dominican) and become a professional. With basketball, you have to go through another process; with baseball, it was easier.
U-T: Your father is a retired general in the Dominican Republic Navy. How did you do?Was he strict?
Mazara: The strict one was my mom (laughs). No, it was strict. But he was silent. He’s quiet like me. I kept running and my mom was home the whole time. It was the strictest.
U-T: Your nickname is “The Big Chill. “
Mazara: In Double-A. Il there is an explorer, he goes there and watches over all the other young men in the Ranger organization. And he saw that I, a 6-foot-5-inch child, was still silent. I enjoyed the way I played and came up with that nickname. And he stayed.
U. T. : What motivates you?
Mazara: I am the one who motivates me every day. Because if we don’t motivate ourselves, no one will. Just be here each and every day and party. Because that’s what we dream of and not each and every one has the opportunity we have. many paintings difficult to be here. It is a complicated and complicated procedure and not everyone does it. Just to see my circle of family members satisfied and that I am here to provide each and every one of them with what they need. What I do satisfied
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