Mariners' Jose Godoy Makes MLB History as 20,000th Player to Debut in Majors
May 22, 2021
There wasn't much for the Seattle Mariners to celebrate during Friday's 16-1 loss to the San Diego Padres, but backup catcher Jose Godoy's appearance in the game marked a milestone in Major League Baseball.
Per ESPN, Godoy became the 20,000th player in MLB history when he replaced starting catcher Tom Murphy in the bottom of the sixth inning.
There had been a social media countdown to MLB's 20,000th player thanks to Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman, who run the Cespedes Family BBQ Twitter account.
Since the start of the season, they have honored every player who makes their MLB debut with a synopsis of their career. Here is what they posted about Godoy on Friday night:
Céspedes Family BBQ @CespedesBBQ20,000th player in MLB history: José Godoy<br><br>- signed w/ STL in July '11 out of VZ; $200K signing bonus<br>- spent 9 years w/ STL; reached Triple-A in '19; at alt site in '20<br>- elected FA, signed w/ SEA in Nov. '20<br>- OF COURSE THE 20,000TH PLAYER IN MLB HISTORY IS A BACKUP CATCHER!!! pic.twitter.com/YC8TlMuttL
Mintz and Shusterman noted April 1, Opening Day, when they started the countdown that 19,902 players had played at least one game in Major League Baseball.
Godoy, 26, played 468 games in the minors, posting a solid .275/.362/.360 slash line.
In two plate appearances Friday, Godoy went 0-for-1 with one walk.
