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Josue De Paula

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Josue De Paula
DePaula with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 95
Outfielder
Born: (2005-05-24) May 24, 2005 (age 21)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
MLB debut
September 11, 2026, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
MLB statistics
(through 2026 season)
Batting average.323
Home runs1
Runs batted in7
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams

Josue De Paula (born May 24, 2005) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2026.

Early life

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De Paula was born and raised in Coney Island, Brooklyn,[1] New York, where he lived until he was 15 years old.[2] He briefly attended Benjamin N. Cardozo High School, but only played in a single high school baseball game before the school shifted to virtual learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.[3]

Looking for an opportunity to play baseball year-round while New York City sports were shut down, his family relocated to the Dominican Republic in 2020, where he lived with his paternal uncles in Santo Domingo and enrolled in the El Niche Baseball Academy there.[3][4]

Because his father is a native-born Dominican citizen, Josue was legally eligible to become a Dominican citizen by descent under Dominican law.[5][6] Having Dominican citizenship was very beneficial to him, because it allowed him to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers as an international free agent in 2022, without needing international student or athletic visas to stay in the Dominican Republic.[6][5]

Career

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De Paula signed a $397,500 contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers on January 15, 2022, while playing out of El Niche Academy in the Dominican Republic.[7][8]

De Paula began his professional career with the Dominican Summer League Dodgers in 2022, hitting .349 in 54 games with five homers and 30 RBI[9] and earning a spot on the post-season all-star team.[8] He was promoted to the Single-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes right after his 18th birthday in May 2023.[10] He played in 74 games for the Quakes, hitting .284 with two homers and 40 RBI.[9]

De Paula was selected to participate in the inaugural "Spring Breakout" minor league showcase during spring training 2024.[11] On June 25, 2024, he was promoted to the High-A Great Lakes Loons.[12] Between the Quakes and Loons, he played in 107 games, with a .268 batting average, 10 homers, 62 RBI and 27 stolen bases.[9] Starting the season as the 12th overall prospect in the Dodgers' system by MLB.com, he jumped 10 spots to become the 2nd overall prospect in the Dodgers' system by the end of the season.[13]

De Paula returned to Great Lakes to start the 2025 season, and playing for two minor league teams in the season batted .250 in 360 at bats.[9][14] He was selected to represent the Dodgers organization at the 2025 All-Star Futures Game,[15] where he hit a three-run home run and won the game's MVP Award.[16] In 98 games for the Loons, De Paula batted .263 with 12 home runs and 44 RBI[9] and earned Midwest League All-Star honors.[17] He was promoted to the Double-A Tulsa Drillers for the last couple weeks of the season,[18] but was hitless in 18 at-bats, with five strikeouts, in the four games he played.[9] He was expected to play for the Glendale Desert Dogs in the Arizona Fall League, but did not play a single game due to a hamstring injury.[19] He ended the season as the first overall prospect for the Dodgers and 12th overall in all of Major League Baseball (MLB).[20] He returned to Tulsa for 2026[21] where he batted .303 with 27 home runs and 104 RBI in 124 games.[9] After the season he was named as the MVP of the Texas League.[22]

De Paula was called up to the Dodgers on September 11, 2026, and made his MLB debut as the designated hitter against the Miami Marlins.[23] On September 13, he hit a three-run home run off Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez for his first Major League hit.[24]

Personal life

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On his mother's side, De Paula is a second cousin of former National Basketball Association point guards Stephon Marbury and Sebastian Telfair.[7][2][4]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ Tallarini, Matt. "Josue Briceno, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Jesus Made and Josue De Paula Shine in 2025 MLB All-Star Futures Game as NL Wins 4-2". World Baseball. Retrieved 27 September 2026.
  2. 1 2 McCullough, Andy (September 16, 2026). "'I just want to feel saucy': Inside Josue De Paula's fearless style". The Athletic.
  3. 1 2 Dykstra, Sam (September 17, 2024). "Road to The Show™: Dodgers' De Paula". MLB.com.
  4. 1 2 Callis, Jim (September 10, 2026). "What to expect from Dodgers prospect Josue De Paula in MLB". MLB.com.
  5. 1 2 Paredes, Perla (September 14, 2026). "De Paula's family a central piece in shaping special baseball journey". MLB.com.
  6. 1 2 Shusterman, Jordan (September 11, 2026). "Who is Josue De Paula? Maybe the next homegrown Dodgers star". Yahoo Sports.
  7. 1 2 "Josue De Paula – The Next Potential Dodger Superstar???". Dodger Chronicles. February 25, 2023. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Josue De Paula Stats". milb.com. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Josue De Paula Minor League Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Dodgers' Josue De Paula: As advertised at Single-A". CBS Sports. July 12, 2023. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  11. ↑ Toribio, Juan (March 7, 2024). "Here's the Dodgers' 2024 Spring Breakout roster". mlb.com. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  12. ↑ Stephen, Eric (June 26, 2024). "Dodgers minors: Kody Hoese, Diego Cartaya, Alexander Albertus". SB Nation. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  13. ↑ Gilberto, Gerard (September 17, 2024). "Road to The Show™: Dodgers' De Paula". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 17, 2025.
  14. ↑ Stephen, Eric (April 3, 2025). "Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Kendall George highlight High-A Great Lakes roster". SB Nation. Retrieved April 4, 2025.
  15. ↑ Dykstra, Sam (June 30, 2025). "2025 All-Star Futures Game rosters revealed". mlb.com. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
  16. ↑ Stephen, Eric (July 12, 2025). "Josue De Paula homers in Futures Game, wins Larry Doby Award as MVP". SB Nation. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  17. ↑ "De Paula and George Recognized as 2025 Midwest League All-Stars". milb.com. September 17, 2025. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  18. ↑ "Drillers Add Top Prospects, De Paula and Hope, to Roster". milb.com. September 9, 2025. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  19. ↑ Callis, Jim (November 17, 2025). "Here's how Dodgers prospects fared in the Arizona Fall League". MLB.com. Retrieved November 17, 2025.
  20. ↑ Hoornstra, J.P. (August 21, 2025). "Dodgers Prospect Vaults to No. 12 in MLB in Revised ESPN Rankings". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  21. ↑ "Drillers Announce Initial 2026 Roster". milb.com. March 31, 2026. Retrieved April 4, 2026.
  22. ↑ Weinrib, Ben (September 21, 2026). "Here are the 2026 Double-A All-Stars and award winners". mlb.com. Retrieved September 21, 2026.
  23. ↑ Callis, Jim (September 10, 2026). "What to expect from Dodgers top prospect De Paula in The Show". mlb.com. Retrieved September 11, 2026.
  24. ↑ Paredes, Perla (September 13, 2026). "De Paula scorches no-doubter for 1st career hit before Marlins walk it off". mlb.com. Retrieved September 14, 2026.
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