Ignacio Baez

Ignacio (Nacho) Baez

Personal information
Date of birth	August 12, 1959 (1959-08-12)
Place of birth	Mexico
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position	Midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1976–1978	Club América
1978–1979	Portland Timbers
1978–1979	Cruz Azul
1979	Club Irapuato
1988–1989	Portland Timbers
1990	New Mexico Chiles
Teams managed
1995	Oregon Surge
	Yakima Reds
2006–2009	Blanchet Catholic School
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Ignacio Baez (born August 12, 1959 in Mexico) is a former Mexican-American soccer midfielder who played professionally in Mexico and the United States first divisions. He has coached in the U.S. lower divisions and coached at the Blanchet Catholic School.

Playing

Baez signed his first professional contract with Mexican powerhouse Club América at 15. Two years later, he moved to the United States and signed with the Portland Timbers of the North American Soccer League as a seventeen year old midfielder. Baez never broke into the first team and he returned to Mexico to play for Cruz Azul and Club Irapuato. In 1988, he signed with F.C. Portland of the Western Soccer Alliance. He remained with the team in 1989, now renamed the Portland Timbers. In 1990, he moved to the New Mexico Chiles of the American Professional Soccer League.

Coaching

In 1995, Baez became the head coach of the Oregon Surge, an expansion team in the USISL. He also spent time as the head coach of the Yakima Reds. In 2006, Baez was hired as the head coach of Blanchet Catholic School soccer team. At some point in his career, he was also the Director of Coaching for Leon. He also coaches two local club teams in Salem, Oregon. He coaches the U-15 CFC Boca Juniors and U-17 CFC Atlas. He made these teams State Champions in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. In February 2012, Baez was named the Oregon Youth Soccer Association coach of the year for 2011.

External links

• Portland Timber (NASL) statistics
• F.C. Portland photo and stats