Dodgers are promoting multi-sport Olympic gold medalist Eddy Alvarez as a replacement for the injured Edwin Rios

USATSI

The Los Angeles Dodgers have promoted utility infielder and multisport Olympic gold medalist Eddy Alvarez to the majors to replace infielder Edwin Rios, according to Fabian Ardaya. Rios, who hit .244/.293/.500 (118 OPS+) in 27 games with seven home runs this season, recently suffered a hamstring tear that will sideline him for several weeks.

Alvarez, 32, previously played in the majors with the Miami Marlins in 2020 and 21. In 115 plate appearances, he hit .188/.287/.287 (57 OPS+) with a home run and three stolen bases (on three tries). He signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers during the owner-imposed lockout and hit .304/.430/.500 with five home runs in 43 Triple-A contests.

“I want to take a moment and thank the Miami Marlins for making a hometown [kid’s] A dream come true,” Alvarez wrote in an Instagram post announcing his deal with the Dodgers. “Stepping onto my first big league field while wearing a varsity that I’ve adored since childhood was probably one of the most incredible feelings of my athletic career. I literally played in mine [backyard!]”

Alvarez is best known for his efforts at the Olympics. At the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, he won a silver medal and finished second in the men’s 5,000 meter relay in speed skating. He won his second silver medal last summer at the Tokyo Olympics when he and the rest of the men’s baseball team lost to Japan in the Gold Medal Game. It should be noted that Alvarez is one of two people chosen by the Team USA athletes to carry the American flag during the opening ceremony. (The other was women’s basketball legend Sue Bird.)

In addition to the Marlins and now the Dodgers, Alvarez was also a member of the Chicago White Sox organization.