César Salazar

Nationality

Mexico

Born

1996-04-15

Height

5' 8"

Weight

198 lbs

Number

#18

César Salazar (born March 15, 1996) is a Mexican professional baseball catcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). From Hermosillo, Mexico, Salazar moved to Tucson, Arizona, when he was 16 and later attended the University of Arizona, where he played college baseball for the Wildcats. The Astros selected him in the seventh round of the 2018 MLB draft and he made his MLB debut in 2023. Early life César Salazar moved to Arizona from Hermosillo, Sonora, in Mexico when he was 16, and attended Sahuaro High School in Tucson. As a youth, Salazar played soccer and tennis in addition to baseball. As a senior in 2015, he earned the Hal Eustice Award for baseball player of the year after hitting .612 in 62 at bats with 16 runs batted (RBI) and 4 home runs. He played college baseball for the Wildcats at the University of Arizona. While at Arizona, he played collegiate summer baseball for the La Crosse Loggers of the Northwoods League, and in 2017 for the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod Baseball League.