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By Kevin Messina A deep drive to center field, Ayala is back at the track and makes the fantastic leaping catch to end the inning! On the Somerset Patriots roster there is one person listed as a utility player, however the best word to describe Elliott Ayala is versatility. The All-Star utility player can do it all. He makes fantastic plays in the field at any position; he’s a consistent hitter and in his spare time he can even do a little acting.  Drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1998 out of Northeast Texas CC, Ayala has been playing professional baseball for ten years. For the first five years of his career he was part of the Brewer’s organization playing for four of their minor league affiliates. He was drafted as a shortstop and in 1999 became a utility player because of his ability to play second base and third base on top of his primary position. It wasn’t until his 2004 season that teams discovered he could play the outfield as well as he played the infield. Ayala has played in 639 career minor league games. He has played 224 games at second base, 119 games at shortstop, 116 games in the outfield and 105 games at third base. He has turned 188 double plays in his career. He is a career .284 hitter with a .350 on base percentage that lead to him crossing the plate 373 times. He has 639 hits including 124 doubles, 15 triples, ten home runs and 218 RBI in his career. Ayala also prides himself on his speed, which helped him steal 88 bases. Ayala had the best year of his career in 2007, batting .305 with 123 hits, 22 doubles, four triples, four home runs, and 58 RBI as a member of the Somerset Patriots. The Patriots picked up Ayala during the 2006 season, and he has been with the team ever since. He has played in over 160 games as a Patriot and has become one of the team’s strongest players in the field and at the plate. Off the field Ayala is just as versatile as he is on it. He was born in Humacao, Puerto Rico on November 7, 1978, and moved to the Bronx as a child. He is bilingual, speaking fluently in English and Spanish. He is a longtime New York Mets  fan and the great Pittsburgh Pirate, Roberto Clemente, is his baseball hero. In his spare time Ayala enjoys seafood and he has even started an acting career, but never strays far from his first love baseball. In 2007 Ayala made his acting debut in ESPN’s mini series, “The Bronx is Burning,” a story of the 1977 World Champion New York Yankees. Ayala played outfielder Roy White, a teammate of Patriot’s manager and former Cy Young award winner, Sparky Lyle. Ayala and the Patriots are currently in the middle of their 2008 season, with the best record in the Atlantic League. Ayala has helped the team tremendously with his 44 hits, nine doubles, two triples and one home run leading to 25 RBI. Ayala has also stolen nine bases so far this season. He has played shortstop, center field and right field showing he is as versatile as ever. |
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