UCF 3B Kendrey Maduro Discusses Journey to America, College Career, and More!

University of Central Florida third baseman Kendrey Maduro was WBN’s inaugural International College Player of the Week.

Maduro was born in Aruba and moved to Florida when he was 16. He is also half Venezuelan due to his mother. Maudro, 20, is in his first season at UCF and has dreamed of signing with an MLB team since childhood. Below is his player biography on UCF Baseball’s website.

Maduro spoke to World Baseball Network about his journey from Aruba to Division I baseball.

“I wanted to get signed out of Aruba when I was 16, and I had a tryout for MLB teams there,” Maduro told World Baseball Network.

His father, Magtulis Maduro, was a key influence in his life, and he introduced Kendrey to baseball when he was just three years old. The older Maduro took his son to the field, and Kendrey picked up a ball and a bat and started playing.

Maduro was inspired by Arubian legend and San Diego Padres infielder Xander Bogaerts, who signed out of Aruba with the Boston Red Sox when he was 16 years old in 2009.

“I admired that he took the hard route, signing when he was 16 and playing with the Red Sox minor league affiliate in the Dominican Republic at age 17,” Maduro told World Baseball Network. “I looked up to him because he went all the way to the Florida Complex League, through the minor leagues, and all the way to MLB.”

Maduro points to his coach, Randolph Oduber, who coached him growing up in Aruba. Oduber helped him land a spot on Team Netherlands when he was 18 in 2022. Maduro first played with Team Netherlands in the U18 European Championship from August 13 to 20 in the Czech Republic. They had a good showing and took second place, losing 6-2 to Team Spain in the gold medal game.

“Playing for the Netherlands and representing Aruba was really nice to play on a big stage in front of all those people,” Maduro said. “They really liked me, and they wanted me to keep playing, but I couldn’t play on the U23 team because of school.”

Here is a snippet of the interview on World Baseball Network’s Instagram.

He also played for Team Netherlands in the 2022 WBSC U18 World Cup, which was hosted in Florida at Bradenton and Sarasota.

Once he left Aruba, Maduro attended TNXL Academy in Ocoee, Florida, for two years and graduated in 2022. He then decided to go the JUCO route at Northwest Florida State to give himself a chance to get drafted quicker than going to a D1 Baseball college. After two seasons, he didn’t get drafted and decided to transfer to UCF. He will be eligible to be drafted in the upcoming 2025 MLB Draft in July.

UCF is off to a fast start at 6-2, and Maduro is making the most of his opportunity and has high goals for this season.

“It’s been really cool with all those fans and the people that come to the game,” Maduro said. “All those kids that come out they see as big leaguers already.”

His numbers this season are one home run, three RBI, seven hits, a .292 batting average, and an OPS of .778 in 24 at-bats.

“My main goal is to help the team get as far as they can, and of course, the goal is Omaha and to get a championship,” Maduro told World Baseball Network. “I want to do everything possible to be a better player for me and my team, while doing the best I can everyday on and off the field.”

His transition to the United States was easy, except the language barrier from his native language, Papiamento, to English. Having some Venezuelan friends in Florida and the warm weather helped him feel at home. He was also able to learn English and keep getting better on the diamond.

Another transition he is still going through is the one from JUCO at Northwest Florida State to UCF.

“The biggest difference I’ve noticed is the speed of the game. The pace of the game is faster with the pitch clock and warmups,” Maduro told World Baseball Network. “We get a lot more done at practice in less time at UCF.”

Maduro credits his teammates and hitting coaches, Norberto Lopez and Ted Tom, for making his transition to D1 Baseball as smooth as possible.

In his spare time, Maduro likes to stay active. He played volleyball in high school and still enjoys beach volleyball. He also likes to golf and play pickleball.

Maduro’s next game will be on February 28, when UCF will play USF at 6:30 p.m. EST at USF Baseball Stadium in Tampa, Florida.