College career

Borbon attended the University of Tennessee. In 2005, Borbon helped the Volunteers reach the College World Series and was third on the team with a .350 batting average. His teammates that year included current major leaguers Chase Headley of the San Diego Padres and Luke Hochevar of the Kansas City Royals. Borbon led the Volunteers with a .366 batting average and 19 stolen bases in 2006 and in 2007, his final season, had a .345 batting average.

Professional career

Texas Rangers

Borbon entered the Major League Baseball Draft in 2007. Heading into the draft, he was ranked the 19th overall prospect by Baseball America. In the draft, he was taken in the supplemental round by the Texas Rangers as the 35th overall pick.

On August 16, 2007, Borbon signed a four-year major league contract worth $1.3 million, with a $800,000 signing bonus. Because he was signed to a major league contract, Borbon was placed on the Rangers 40-man roster and was optioned to Single-A Spokane. At Spokane, he played in 7 games and had a .172 batting average. He was then sent to play rookie ball for the Surprise Rangers and played two games for them.

On June 29, 2009, Borbon made his major league debut with the Rangers. He hit his first major league home run on August 20 of that year. On September 8, he had his first multi-homer game in an 11-9 win over the Cleveland Indians.

Chicago Cubs

On April 19, 2013 the Chicago Cubs claimed Borbon off waivers. He was designated for assignment on August 2, 2013.

Baltimore Orioles

On December 12, 2013, Borbon was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft. He was assigned to AAA Norfolk Tides. He elected free agency on November 6, 2015.

On March 12, 2016, Borbon signed a minor league deal with the Baltimore Orioles.

Personal

Julio was born in Mississippi while his father attended Mississippi State University. He attended high school at De La Salle in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, graduating in 2004. After high school he attended the University of Tennessee on a baseball scholarship. He left Tennessee after his junior year and was taken by the Texas Rangers with the 35th pick in the 2007 MLB draft. His brother, Edwin Borbon, plays college baseball at Trevecca Nazarene University prior to his first two years at Tennessee junior college, Chattanooga State.

Off-season

During the off-season, he plays for the Tigres del Licey in the Dominican Republic.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]