Joshua William Lueke (born December 5, 1984) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

and

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

, and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the

Tokyo Yakult Swallows The Tokyo Yakult Swallows () are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams in Tokyo, the other being the Yomiuri G ...

. His impending retirement from professional baseball was announced prior to the upcoming 2022-2023 winter season of the

Mexican Pacific League The Mexican Pacific League (, or LMP), also known as the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico for sponsorship reasons, is a professional baseball Winter league baseball, winter league based in Northwestern Mexico. The league comprises 10 teams. It wa ...

Professional career

Texas Rangers

Lueke was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 16th round of the

2007 Major League Baseball Draft The 2007 Major League Baseball draft, was an annual choosing of high school and college baseball players, held on June 7, 2007 and June 8, 2007. The first day session of the draft included the first 25 rounds and was scheduled to be broadcast "l ...

. He played for the

Spokane Indians The Spokane Indians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Spokane Valley, the city immediately east of Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest. The Indians are members of the High-A Northwest League (NWL) as an affiliate of the Co ...

Clinton LumberKings The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest Leag ...

, and

Bakersfield Blaze The Bakersfield Blaze were a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California. They played in the California League at the Class A-Advanced level, hosting home games at Sam Lynn Ballpark. Opened in 1941, the stadium is well known for facing ...

Seattle Mariners

On July 9, 2010, Lueke was traded to the

along with Justin Smoak and fellow prospects Matt Lawson and

Blake Beavan Blake William Beavan (born January 17, 1989) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A first-round draft pick in the 2007 MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers, Beavan was traded to the Seattle Mariners in 2010 in a package of prospects fo ...

for

Cliff Lee Clifton Phifer Lee (born August 30, 1978) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher who played for 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Between 2002 and 2014 he played for the Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, S ...

and Mark Lowe. On April 3, 2011, he made his Major League debut for the Mariners against the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

. He threw two-thirds of an inning giving up four runs on two hits. He also had two walks and two strikeouts.

Tampa Bay Rays

On November 27, 2011, Lueke and a player to be named later were traded to the

in exchange for John Jaso. On March 16, 2013, the Rays optioned Lueke to their Triple-A team, the

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened ...

. On May 10, 2013, Lueke was recalled to join the Rays major league club. He pitched 1 innings in his season debut against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

, striking out two. Lueke was recalled by the Rays on September 1, 2013. Lueke was designated for assignment on June 7, 2014. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A on June 9.

Foreign & Independent Leagues

On February 4, 2015, Lueke signed with the Delfines del Carmen of the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. Lueke played with the

for the 2016 and 2017 seasons. On March 22, 2018, Lueke signed with the Generales de Durango of the

Mexican Baseball League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

. On April 21, Lueke was traded to the

Acereros de Monclova The Acereros de Monclova (English: Monclova Steelers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports l ...

of the

. On February 26, 2019, Lueke was traded to the Pericos de Puebla. He was released on May 22, 2019. On May 27, 2019, Lueke signed with the

Long Island Ducks The Long Island Ducks are an American professional minor league baseball team based on Long Island in Central Islip, New York. The Ducks compete in the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB), an independent "par ...

of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

. On June 27, 2019, his contract was purchased by the

Leones de Yucatán The Leones de Yucatán (English: Yucatán Lions) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League. The team plays its home games at Parque Kukulcán Alamo in Mérida, Yucatán. The Leones have won the Mexican League title five times in 1957 ...

of the

. Lueke did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Mexican League season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. In 2021, Lueke posted a 2.17 ERA and earned 12 saves for

Yucatán Yucatán, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate municipalities, and its capital city is Mérida. ...

, operating as the team's closer. He became a free agent following the season. On January 13, 2022, Lueke signed with the Algodoneros de Unión Laguna of the

for the 2022 season. The Algodoneros released Lueke on September 23, 2022. He finished with the second-most saves in the league for the season, with 22.

Retirement

Lueke informed Algodoneros general manager Francisco "Chipper" Méndez that he was to retire following the winter season of the

. Lueke signed with the Charros de Jalisco on August 2, 2022, for his final season.

Legal history

While in the Rangers organization Lueke was arrested following a May 2008 incident and charged with having committed rape and non-consensual

sodomy Sodomy (), also called buggery in British English, principally refers to either anal sex (but occasionally also oral sex) between people, or any Human sexual activity, sexual activity between a human and another animal (Zoophilia, bestiality). I ...

. During the investigation Lueke lied to the police by denying he had sexual contact with the victim (an assertion proven false by DNA testing), and he pleaded

no contest ''Nolo contendere'' () is a type of legal plea used in some jurisdictions in the United States. It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. It is a plea where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge, serving as an ...

to lesser charges of false imprisonment with violence and was sentenced to 42 days in jail, time served prior to making bail. An additional 20 days were discounted due to good behavior and Lueke received three years of felony probation. After the July 9, 2010 trade that sent Lueke to the Seattle Mariners, team president Chuck Armstrong denied having any knowledge of Lueke's criminal past, and stated if he had known, he would have stopped the deal with Texas. Up to that point, the Mariners organization had a long history of supporting groups who oppose violence against women, running a campaign called "Refuse to Abuse" and had previously suspended and traded reliever Julio Mateo, who was accused of beating his wife. After an interview with Lueke, Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik reported that he was "satisfied with the interview and it's an issue that's behind us." Former Mariners pitching coach Rick Adair later told reporters that he had informed Zduriencik of Lueke's legal troubles, and that Rangers GM

Jon Daniels Jon Daniels (born August 24, 1977) is an American professional baseball executive senior advisor for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously served as president of baseball operations for the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texa ...

had made a standing offer to take Lueke back on the night of the trade. Adair had been the Rangers minor league pitching coordinator in 2008, when Lueke was charged.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lueke, Josh 1984 births Living people Acereros de Monclova players American expatriate baseball players in Japan American expatriate baseball players in Mexico American sportspeople convicted of crimes Bakersfield Blaze players Clinton LumberKings players Delfines de Ciudad del Carmen players Durham Bulls players Frisco RoughRiders players Generales de Durango players Hickory Crawdads players Leones de Yucatán players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Long Island Ducks players Major League Baseball pitchers Mexican League baseball pitchers Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Northern Kentucky Norse baseball players Peoria Javelinas players Pericos de Puebla players Seattle Mariners players Spokane Indians players Baseball players from Covington, Kentucky Tacoma Rainiers players Tampa Bay Rays players Tokyo Yakult Swallows players Toros del Este players West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx players