Raúl Valdés Rubio (born November 27, 1977) is a Cuban- Dominican 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 ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. 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

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

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

and

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

, 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

Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011 ...

Professional career

Chicago Cubs

In 2003, Valdés defected from Cuba, where he was a member of the Cuban National team. He signed with the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

as a non-drafted free agent in 2004, and was assigned to the Cubs farm team of the

Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League (DSL) is a branch of affiliated Minor League Baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. After the demise of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2015 season, it is the only ...

. He posted a 7–2 record with a 0.51

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 number ...

in 16 games for the Dominican Cubs, holding the opponents to a .127

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

. He also saw action as an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

, batting .241 with 12 doubles and 26

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

in 50 games, and was selected for the DSL Post-Season All-Star. Valdés opened 2005 with the Double-A

West Tenn Diamond Jaxx The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Marin ...

, but was promoted rapidly to the Triple–A

Iowa Cubs The Iowa Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in Des Moines, Iowa, and are named for their Major League Baseball (MLB) affiliate. T ...

on May 9. He went 2–0 in five starts, struck out 18 batters and issued just three walks over 23 innings of work for West Tenn. While in Iowa, he was 6–7 with a save in 25 appearances (17 starts), working six or more innings in six of his starts, ending 5–0 with a 2.15 ERA in those outings. In 2006, Valdés dropped to 1–3 with a 7.59 ERA in 32 innings for Iowa before being released.

Independent leagues

Valdés joined the independent Can-Am League, going 2–1 with a 5.09 ERA in four games for the Nashua Pride and 7–3 with a 2.81 ERA in 17 games, including 12 starts, for the New Jersey Jackals.

New York Mets

Valdés signed a minor league contract with the

after the end of the season. He started 2007 with the High–A St. Lucie Mets and later was promoted to the Double–A Binghamton Mets. He combined for a 0–2 record with a 4.17 ERA and one save in 23 games (one start), before being released. Since 2008, Valdés has pitched winter baseball for the Gigantes del Cibao of the Dominican League and

Navegantes del Magallanes Navegantes del Magallanes B.B.C., commonly known as Navegantes del Magallanes (; ''Strait of Magellan, Magellan Navigators''), or simply Magallanes, are a professional baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP), based in ...

of the Venezuelan League. He represented the Dominican team in the 2010 Caribbean Series, in which he led all pitchers in wins (two) and strikeouts (13) and was selected to the All-Star Team. Valdés was invited to spring training with the Mets in 2010. He was sent to the Triple–A

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

to start the season, but was quickly promoted to the major leagues. On May 11, Valdés got his first major league victory in an 8–6 win over the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

. On July 6, Valdés was called back as the Mets placed Fernando Tatís on the 15-day disabled list. On August 13, Valdés was optioned to Triple–A along with Ryota Igarashi to make room for Pat Misch and Francisco Rodríguez. On November 5, Valdés was sent outright to Buffalo and became a free agent after refusing the minor league assignment.

St. Louis Cardinals

On November 23, 2010, Valdés signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the

. Valdés made seven appearances for St. Louis, pitching in innings and allowing two earned runs on six hits. He was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

on August 12, 2011.

New York Yankees

On August 16, 2011, Valdés was claimed off waivers by the

. On August 18, he was assigned to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. Valdés declared for free agency on October 11.

Philadelphia Phillies

On November 10, 2011, Valdés signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the

. After opening the season with the Triple–A

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and they are named in reference to pig iron, used ...

, Valdés' contract was purchased by the Phillies on May 11, adding him to the club's 25-man active roster.

Houston Astros

Valdés was claimed off waivers by the

on October 2, 2013. He was designated for assignment on March 27, 2014. Valdés had his contract purchased by the Astros on April 17, and was placed on the club's 25–man roster. He was designated for assignment on May 4, and sent outright to the Triple–A

Oklahoma City RedHawks Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

on May 6.

Toronto Blue Jays

Valdés was traded to the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

on May 19, 2014, for a player to be named later or cash considerations, and he was assigned to the Triple-A

. He elected free agency after the season ended.

Chunichi Dragons

On the December 2, 2014, Valdés signed a $400,000, one–year contract with the

. On September 26, 2017, it was announced that Valdés had been released by the Dragons.

Saraperos de Saltillo

On April 3, 2018, Valdés signed with the Saraperos de Saltillo 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 ...

. In 9 starts for the team, he compiled a 7–1 record and 2.50 ERA with 53 strikeouts across 54 innings of work. Valdés was released by Saltillo on July 3.

Toros de Tijuana

On October 16, 2018, Valdes signed with the Toros de Tijuana of the

for the 2019 season. On April 30, 2019, during a game against the Saraperos de Saltillo, umpires detected a foreign substance on his left arm, which appeared to be pine tar. He was ejected from the game, and later suspended for 10 games and fined an undisclosed amount for the incident. Valdés was released on November 28.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Valdes, Raul 1977 births Living people New York Mets players St. Louis Cardinals players New York Yankees players Philadelphia Phillies players Houston Astros players Binghamton Mets players Iowa Cubs players Nashua Pride players New Jersey Jackals players St. Lucie Mets players West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Memphis Redbirds players Navegantes del Magallanes players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Toros de Tijuana players Toros del Este players Trenton Thunder players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players Oklahoma City RedHawks players Saraperos de Saltillo players Major League Baseball players from Cuba Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Cuban expatriate baseball players in Japan Chunichi Dragons players Defecting Cuban baseball players Baseball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in baseball Olympic bronze medalists for the Dominican Republic Olympic baseball players for the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Japan Gigantes del Cibao players Leones del Escogido players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Cuban expatriate baseball players in Mexico Tomateros de Culiacán players La Habana (baseball) players Tigres del Licey players Cuban emigrants Immigrants to the Dominican Republic Naturalized citizens of the Dominican Republic Baseball players from Havana