Flavio Alfaro facts for kids

Flavio Roman Alfaro (born October 26, 1961 – died January 27, 2021) was an American baseball player. He was known for playing as a shortstop and second baseman. Alfaro was a special member of the U.S. Olympic baseball team in 1984. His team won a silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

Early Life and College Baseball

Flavio Alfaro was born in Los Angeles on October 26, 1961. He went to Poly High School in San Fernando, California, where he played on the school's baseball team.

After high school, he studied at the College of the Canyons from 1981 to 1982. During his two years there, he had very good batting averages of .361 and .369. People also thought he was a great defensive player.

Later, he moved to San Diego State University. He played for the San Diego State Aztecs baseball team in 1983 and 1984. His coach was Jim Dietz. While playing for the Aztecs, he batted .387. He also hit 11 home runs, 14 doubles, and had 52 runs batted in (RBI).

Playing Career

The 1984 Olympics

While still playing for the Aztecs, Alfaro was chosen for the United States national baseball team. He joined the team to play in the 1984 Summer Olympics. He played alongside many future famous Major League Baseball players. Some of these included Mark McGwire, Barry Larkin, and Will Clark.

In the team's first game against Chinese Taipei, Alfaro reached base because of an error. He then scored the winning run in the seventh inning, helping his team win 2–1. In the second game against Italy, he hit the ball to bring in one run. His team won that game easily, 16–1.

In the semifinals against South Korea, Alfaro scored a run after a home run by Oddibe McDowell. The U.S. team made it to the final game. However, they lost 6–3 to Japan. In that game, Alfaro's slight delay in covering second base allowed a Japanese player to steal third and then score. Even with the loss, the team earned a silver medal.

Minor League Baseball

After the Olympics, the Atlanta Braves baseball team chose Alfaro in the 4th round of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. He played only one season in Minor League Baseball. He played for the Class-A Durham Bulls team in the Carolina League.

For the Bulls, he batted .193. He hit 3 home runs, had 34 RBIs, and stole 29 bases in 110 games. He mostly played as a second baseman. In March 1986, he was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. This trade involved other major league players.

However, Alfaro retired from baseball soon after. He had a back injury and a disagreement with the Brewers. They couldn't agree on which level of the minor leagues he would play. He was the first player from the 1984 Olympic team to stop playing professional baseball. Alfaro later said that he struggled to hit with wooden bats. College teams used aluminum bats, and some players found it hard to switch to wood bats in professional baseball.

Later Life

After he stopped playing baseball, Flavio Alfaro moved to Sacramento, California. He became a chestnut farmer.

Flavio Alfaro passed away on January 27, 2021. He was 59 years old. He had been suffering from pancreatic cancer before his death.

See also

• Flavio Alfaro (beisbolista) para niños (In Spanish)

Images for kids

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  Flavio Alfaro playing baseball.

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  A robot for kids.