Pedro Manuel Álvarez Jr. (born February 6, 1987), nicknamed "El Toro" (Spanish for "The Bull"), is a Dominican-American former professional baseball designated hitter and infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles. Álvarez stands and weighs . A third baseman until late 2014, Álvarez transitioned to first base for the Pirates in 2015, and in 2016 became a designated hitter for the Orioles. On June 19, 2018, he was designated for assignment by the Orioles. Early life Álvarez was born in the Dominican Republic to Pedro and Luz Álvarez. As a young boy, he grew up in the Washington Heights neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan. High school career Álvarez first attended the Mott Hall School for gifted and talented students in Morningside Heights, where he was an A student. He then attended the prestigious Horace Mann School in the Bronx, choosing a school known for its high-level education but not for its sports programs. Álvarez holds numerous baseball records there, most notably home runs, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and RBIs. Álvarez was named Athlete of the Year his senior season. Though he attended a private school, Álvarez's abilities attracted the attention of scouts throughout the New York City area, especially after he led his club team, the Bayside Yankees, to a national title in 2005. In recognition of his success, Louisville Slugger crowned him the Player of the Year in New York and also named him to its All-America team. Vanderbilt career After graduating from high school, Álvarez was drafted in the 14th round of the 2005 Major League Baseball draft by the Boston Red Sox. Though offered a substantial signing bonus, Álvarez instead chose to play college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores of the Southeastern Conference. Álvarez started slowly at Vanderbilt but eventually became an integral member of the lineup, setting a single-season school record in home runs (22). This production earned Álvarez National Freshman of the Year honors from several publications, including Baseball America. Álvarez was then selected to the USA National team, leading the team in batting average. Baseball America ranked him as the second-best pro prospect on the squad. In addition, Sports Illustrated ranked him as the best pro prospect on the team and said that he was the "early favorite to be drafted first in 2008", due to his impressive performance over