Salas was drafted out of Nogales High School in La Puente, California by the St. Louis Cardinals in the eighteenth round of the 1979 Major League Baseball draft. After five seasons in their farm system, Salas debuted with the Cards on June 19, 1984 against the Montreal Expos. With one out in the ninth, Salas connected for a pinch hit double. He collected his first career run batted in in his next game against the Chicago Cubs. From there, Salas fell into an 0 for 17 slump, and was demoted to the triple A Louisville Redbirds. After the season, he was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the rule 5 draft.\n', '

Upon his arrival in Minnesota, Salas displaced All-Star catcher Dave Engle behind the plate (Engle was used primarily as a designated hitter in 1985). He hit his first major league home run off Hall of Famer Don Sutton on April 27, 1985, on his way to nine on the season. He also batted an even .300 with 41 RBIs and five triples in what would turn out to be his best season.\n', '

His 1986 season was interrupted in late May by a toe injury. He returned strong, batting .303 through July 1, but fell off after that. His batting average for the season was .233, however, he still produced 33 RBIs with eight home runs and four triples. Salas began the 1987 season splitting time with Tim Laudner behind the plate. He batted .378 with three home runs through June 6 when he was traded to the New York Yankees for starting pitcher Joe Niekro.\n', '

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