Full name is Mariekson Julius Gregorius…was born in the Netherlands, but has spent most of his life in Curaçao…his first language is Papiamento, but he also speaks English, Spanish and Dutch…according to Baseball-Reference, was one of five players born in Europe to appear in a Major League game in 2016, joining Aaron Altherr (Germany), Edwin Jackson (Germany), Max Kepler (Germany) and Bruce Maxwell (Germany). Has had the nickname, Didi, since he was young…his father and his brother are each also referred to as Didi. Growing up, played basketball, soccer and swam competitively…enjoys snorkeling. Is an accomplished artist…regularly edits video, paints and sketches on road trips. His mother, Sheritsa Stroop, was a national softball player…his father, Johannes Gregorius, Sr., pitched in one of the top Dutch leagues…his older brother, Johannes Gregorius, Jr., is a former pitcher in the Orioles organization. Spent two weeks in January 2017 giving baseball clinics in three different New Zealand cities…the program, arranged in conjunction with Baseball New Zealand, was developed to help increase excitement about baseball and build the sport in a country where rugby, softball and cricket have dominated historically. Was named the Yankees' "Heart and Hustle Award" nominee for 2016…the award is presented annually by the MLB Players Alumni Association to honor one player from each team who demonstrates a passion for baseball and embodies the values, spirit and tradition of the game…was also named the team's 2016 Hank Aaron Award nominee, recognizing the most outstanding offensive performers in each league. Became a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau in Curaçao as a reward for being part of the Netherlands team that won the 2011 International Baseball Federation World Cup in Panama…the Netherlands went 11-1, defeating Cuba in the finals. Made his first trip to the United States in the early 2000s when Andruw Jones (also from Curaçao) invited his baseball team to see the Braves play in Atlanta.

2017

Hit .287 (153-for-534) with 73R, 27 doubles, 25HR and 87RBI in 136 games with the Yankees (132 starts at SS, 1 at DH)…received one eighth-place vote and one 10th-place vote in AL Most Valuable Player balloting... Set a Yankees franchise record for home runs in a season by a shortstop, surpassing Derek Jeter (24HR in 1999)…among shortstops, tied for second in home runs, ranked third in RBI and was fourth with a .478 SLG…his 87RBI were fifth-most by a Yankees shortstop in a season (min. 50.0% of games at SS)... Established career highs with 73R, 25HR and 87RBI (in 534AB), surpassing his previous bests (68R, 20HR and 70RBI in 562AB in 2016)…had a team-leading 44 multi-hit games, despite missing the first month of the season…hit a team-best .304 (45-for-148) with RISP…had a career-best 3.9 WAR... Ranked 10th in the Majors (sixth in the AL) with a .321 (87-for-271) batting average on the road…had 25 multi-hit games on the road, second-most by a Yankee in 2017 (Brett Gardner-26)... Had an 8.14 PA/K ratio (570PA, 70K), the highest by a Yankee since Ichiro Suzuki in 2013 (8.81)... Started in the cleanup spot in the lineup 42 times (41 times as SS, 1 as DH)…his 41 starts as a SS batting fourth were the most ever by a Yankees shortstop (credit: Elias)…has started at SS and hit cleanup 54 times in his career (including 13 times in 2016)…from 1913-2015, a Yankees shortstop batted cleanup only 28 times (Peckinpaugh-10, Lazzeri-7, Tresh-5, McDougald-4, Boyer-1, Jeter-1)... Had 19RBI in 15 games vs. the Orioles, just the third Yankees shortstop since 1932 to record at least 19RBI vs. a single opponent in a single season…joined Phil Rizzuto (21RBI vs. St. Louis in 1949) and Derek Jeter (19RBI vs. Texas in 1998, 19RBI vs. Baltimore in 2004) on the list... Was placed on the 10-day disabled list on 4/2 (retroactive to 3/30) with a right shoulder strain…suffered the injury while playing for the Netherlands in an exhibition game against Arizona during the WBC…in five rehab games with Single-A Tampa, hit .444 (8-for-18) with 2R, 1