Chad Michael Paronto (born July 28, 1975) is an American former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

player. Paronto attended the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...

before being drafted by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

in the eighth round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft. Paronto's best pitches include a 90–94 mph

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. " Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have t ...

and a heavy sinker which he uses mainly with men on base.

High school years

Paronto attended Woodsville High School in Woodsville, New Hampshire and was a letterman in soccer,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

, and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

. In basketball, he won All-State honors and scored more than 1,000 points during his high school career. In baseball, he won All-State honors and was named the New Hampshire Player of the Year. Paronto graduated from Woodsville High School in 1993.

Professional career

Baltimore Orioles

In his debut year with the Orioles, Paronto went 1–3 with a 5.00

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA) and 16 strikeouts in 24 games.

Cleveland Indians

On November 19, 2001, Paronto was claimed off waivers by the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...

. Paronto had a decent year in 2002 with Cleveland, compiling an 0–2 record, and a 4.04 ERA and 23 strikeouts. After going 0–2 with a 9.45 ERA and six strikeouts in 6⅔

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning ...

St. Louis Cardinals

Paronto became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in the 2003 off-season and signed with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals h ...

. He never made it to the Major Leagues with the Cardinals.

Milwaukee Brewers

Paronto signed as a free agent with the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. The Brewers are named for the city's association wi ...

in December 2004. Paronto began the 2005 season with the Triple-A affiliate of the Brewers, the

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the city's association with the music industry, ...

. With the Sounds, he went 3–1 with a 2.75 ERA and four

save Save, SAVE, or Saved may refer to: Places *Save (Garonne), a river in southern France *Save River (Africa), a river in Zimbabwe and Mozambique *Sava, a river in Eastern Europe also known as Save *Savè, Benin, a commune and city *Save, Govuro ...

s in 27 relief appearances. However, Paronto was released by Milwaukee on June 17.

Atlanta Braves

Paronto signed with the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in B ...

on June 21, 2005, and was assigned to the Triple-A

Richmond Braves The Richmond Braves were an American minor league baseball club based in Richmond, Virginia, the Triple-A International League affiliate of the Atlanta Braves from 1966 to 2008. Owned by the parent Atlanta club and colloquially referred to as the ...

. On May 9, 2006, the Braves called Paronto back up to the Majors. He finished the season with a 2–3 record and a 3.18 ERA. In his first four appearances with Atlanta, he allowed one

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop grou ...

. On

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

2007, Paronto recorded his first career save in a 5–3 extra-inning victory over the

Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Ci ...

. On July 31, Paronto was optioned to Triple-A Richmond to make room on the roster for newly acquired

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the major ...

Mark Teixeira Mark Charles Teixeira ( ; born April 11, 1980), nicknamed "Tex", is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels of Anahei ...

. He finished the season with a 3–1 record and 3.57 ERA. On October 25, the Braves designated Paronto for assignment. Paronto refused an assignment to Triple-A and became a free agent.

Houston Astros

On December 18, 2007, he signed with the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

. On March 28, 2008, he was sent outright to the minors. He was called up to the majors on July 6, 2008, but was designated for assignment on July 31. He became a free agent after the season. Paronto was re-signed to a minor league contract with the Astros on January 14, 2009, and was invited to spring training. Paronto's contract was purchased from Triple-A Round Rock on July 17, 2009.

Boston Red Sox

On January 20, 2010, Paronto signed a minor league contract with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eig ...

Pittsfield Colonials

Paronto pitched for the

Pittsfield Colonials The Pittsfield Colonials were a baseball team in the independent Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, based in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The team was previously known as the American Defenders of New Hampshire (often simply ref ...

of the

Can-Am League The Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, commonly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional, independent baseball league with teams in the Northeast United States and Eastern Canada, founded in 2005 as a reorganization of ...

in 2011, his final professional season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paronto, Chad 1975 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from New Hampshire Baltimore Orioles players Cleveland Indians players Atlanta Braves players Houston Astros players UMass Minutemen baseball players Rochester Red Wings players Akron Aeros players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Memphis Redbirds players Nashville Sounds players Richmond Braves players Round Rock Express players Pawtucket Red Sox players Pittsfield Colonials players People from Woodsville, New Hampshire American expatriate baseball players in Australia