Two-time Olympian Eddy Alvarez’s winding journey takes him back to Camelback Ranch
by Rowan Kavner
Eight years ago, months after returning from the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi with a silver medal in speed skating, a chance encounter on the opposite side of the Dodgers’ Spring Training complex set two-time Olympian Eddy Alvarez’s professional baseball career in motion.
Alvarez, who grew up traveling between skating competitions and baseball tournaments, shifted his focus toward the latter sport upon returning from Russia. Former Major League pitcher Carlos Castillo, a mentor and high school teammate of Alvarez’s older brother, helped him train.
While Alvarez was in Arizona working out for Major League scouts, Castillo figured he’d say hello to his former White Sox coaches. The duo paid a visit to Camelback Ranch three hours before Alvarez’s flight home to Miami.
Castillo convinced Mike Gellinger, a coach in the White Sox organization, to put Alvarez through some drills. The 5-foot-9-inch Olympic skater had only one year of junior college baseball experience at Salt Lake Community College, but Gellinger obliged. The informal workout included fielding ground balls, running the bases and hitting in the cage. It wasn’t enough to get drafted, but the White Sox were intrigued.
Alvarez received a phone call the morning after. The free agent was on a flight back to Arizona the next day to start his minor league career. In just two years, Alvarez made it to Triple-A. When his career stalled, he kept battling and made his Major League debut with the Miami Marlins in 2020.
“Stepping on a Major League field is like, ‘Man, I’ve dreamt about this since I can remember,’” Alvarez said. “So, stepping on a Major League field for my hometown team, that was crazy. But something about playing at the Olympics while wearing your country’s colors, it hits different.”
Alvarez has a rare perspective in that regard.
He is one of three United States Olympians to medal in both the Summer and Winter Games and the first Cuban-American male speed skater to make the U.S. Olympic team. Alvarez earned his latest silver medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo as an infielder for Team USA. The accomplishments on the ice rink and the baseball field had one main similarity.
“In the sense that I felt like I lost,” said Alvarez, who keeps his medals in his sock drawer and his competitiveness on his sleeve. “You’ve got to lose to get silver, which is crazy to think, but it’s very similar feelings.”
Standing on deck when Japan beat USA, Alvarez’s mind flashed back to the 2014 Winter Olympics when Russia crossed the finish line first. But he also felt tremendous pride competing for his country.
It is not unlike the sensation he has now on a minor league contract fighting for a coveted spot on a deep Dodger roster.
“I honestly believe right now that if I get the opportunity to play in the big leagues for the Dodgers, I’m going to get a little of that feeling,” Alvarez said. “It’s the history. To put a Dodger uniform on and walk through that hall, like I’ve been told with all the trophies as you’re headed out to the dugout, it hits different.”
Two years before medaling in the Winter Olympics, Alvarez couldn’t even sit in a chair. He was bedridden for more than a month.
Years of wear and tear forced the multi-sport athlete to get patellar tendon surgeries on both knees in March 2012. He wouldn’t have been able to train for the Olympics without the procedure. At the same time, doctors couldn’t promise he would bounce back.
“Those were some dark days,” Alvarez said. “I’ve always heard that athletes die twice in their lifetime. I understood it then.”
Seven months passed before he could cruise around the ice, yet he still made his first World Cup Team by December 2012. Fourteen months later, Alvarez was on the Olympic ice medaling in the 5,000-meter relay.
“Just that comeback alone to be one of the top skaters in the U.S. going into the Olympics and a medal contender in such a short time, I almost had a cheat sheet when I came over to baseball because I understood the process getting there,” Alvarez said.
All his life, Alvarez had juggled both sports. He would play for his middle school baseball team, practice skating for a couple hours, finish his day practicing with his travel ball team and do his homework in the car or before school.
He had also given up both sports at various times. Alvarez dropped skating for three years in high school after winning a world championship. He had planned to play baseball in college at St. Thomas University in Miami, but a voice in the back of his head told him to get back on the ice. He didn’t want to live with regrets.
After missing out on the 2010 Olympics, playing junior college ball in 2011 and undergoing his knee surgeries in 2012, Alvarez told himself whatever happened in 2014 would officially mark the end of his skating career. He kept to his word after medaling.
“I truly, 100 percent believe the only reason why I’m able to say I’m a Major League Baseball player is because of that path,” Alvarez said.
His baseball journey has taken him back to Camelback Ranch, now on the Dodgers’ side of the facility, where the memories of the past come flooding back. Alvarez’s free agency this offseason came with choices, but he appreciated the attention to detail the Dodgers had toward developing his swing.
“Seriously, they knew me more than I knew myself,” Alvarez said. “It was eye-opening, and just feeling wanted for the first time, this was a no-brainer decision for me to come here.”
Alvarez played in 12 games for the Marlins in 2020 and 24 last year, notching a combined 19 hits including seven extra-base hits.
Dodgers director of player development Will Rhymes saw a fit with Alvarez’s athleticism, versatility and defense. Alvarez, who plays both middle infield spots, had a .949 OPS in Triple-A last year and a .967 OPS two years prior.
“It just hadn’t translated quite at the Major League level yet, but we saw some levers to pull in his swing that we thought we could get something out of him,” Rhymes said. “What we didn’t know is he’s an 80-makeup guy, and the way he learns and practices is a total difference-maker too. We really like the player, but it’s the kind of player who can maximize himself here with the resources. It’s an incredible fit.”
Despite Alvarez’s minor league success, he said he considered himself a bit of “a lost puppy” at the plate when he arrived to the Dodgers in that he relied primarily on natural ability and self-teaching. He believes he is gaining a better understanding of his swing mechanics and how to properly do damage now.
“I think I surprised them a little bit of how attentive I am or analytical when it comes to seeing people and how the body moves,” Alvarez said. “Working with Will Rhymes and a lot of the hitting coaches, something has clicked. It’s been a lot of fun stepping into the box so far.”
Alvarez has a .994 OPS through 10 Cactus League games. As the Spring Training roster dwindles, he has survived the first few rounds of cuts on one of the best rosters in baseball.
Whatever happens next, the 32-year-old former Olympic speed skater doesn’t second guess a thing. Being a long shot has never stopped him before.
“We go back to the regret thing I learned early on,” Alvarez said. “I would’ve regretted not taking this chance.”
