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Shawn Anthony Chacón (born December 23, 1977) 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 ...
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
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
,
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 ...
,
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...
, 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 ...
. During his career, he threw an 88–92 mph sinker, a big curveball, a slider, and a changeup.


Early years

Chacón was born in
Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the List of cities in Alaska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of ...
, but has only dim recollection of his biological mother and none of his father (he believes his biological father was African-American and his mother was Hispanic). His mother placed him in a
Greeley, Colorado Greeley is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,795 at the 2020 United States census, an increase of 17.12% since the ...
, foster home when he was aged four, and he was adopted by Tony and Blanca Chacón. Chacón was recruited by Arizona State, but chose to play professionally after he was drafted by the
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
in the third round of the amateur draft. He signed on June 18, 1996.


Professional career


Colorado Rockies

Chacón made his MLB debut in as a member of the Rockies. In his first start, Chacon allowed seven runs in innings while striking out eight en route to a 14–7 win. By the end of the 2001 season, Chacón made 27 starts and recorded a record of 6-10 for the Rockies. In 2002, Chacón battled inconsistency and injuries throughout the season. He pitched in 13 starts in the first half, going 3-6 while having a stint on the DL. Once he returned, his season took a turn for the worse. In the second half he amassed an ERA of 7.00 in eight starts and was demoted to AAA. Chacón never was recalled back to the majors and finished the season with a record of 5-11 while walking 60 batters in 119 innings. Chacón was Colorado's All-Star representative, having won 11 games before the All Star break; the only other Rockies pitchers to have done so through 2015 are Aaron Cook (2008), Jason Marquis (2009), and Ubaldo Jiménez (2010). He never got to pitch in the All-Star game due to a nagging elbow injury. He returned after the All-Star break and was winless in six starts, going 0–4. Chacon was then shut down for the rest of the season. He wound up finishing 11–8 with a 4.60
ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...
. The next year, due to a necessity at the closer role, he was converted into the Rockies closer for the 2004 season. Chacón put up one of the most bizarre stat lines in baseball history for a closer. Chacón was ninth in the National League with 35 saves but was also tied with a league leading nine blown saves. His record was 1–9 and his ERA 7.11. His home/road splits were even odder, as he was 1–5 at home with a 6.81 ERA and 20 saves. He allowed more hits than innings pitched, and while on the road his ERA was even worse, standing at 7.56 and notching only 15 saves. In 2005, Chacón was 1–7 with a career low 4.09 through 13 games before being traded mid season to the Yankees, ending his five-year tenure with the Rockies. A few months prior to the trade, Chacon told a sports reporter that nobody wanted to pitch at high altitude
Coors Field Coors Field is a baseball stadium in downtown Denver, Colorado. It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies. Opened in 1995 Major League Baseball season, 1995, the park is located in Denver's LoDo, Lower Downtown neighborhood, ...
because the ball would not curve in the light air. After Chacon went to the Yankees, Rockies manager Hurdle said that a player unhappy with the Rockies would leave quickly. He finished 24–45 in 150 games with 35 saves for the Rockies.


New York Yankees

The Rockies traded Chacón to the
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 ...
in July 2005 for minor league pitchers Ramón Ramírez and Eduardo Sierra. Many
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
fans and members of the tough New York media criticized the trade, calling it a bandage and not a solution, much like how the Yankees saw starts from Tim Redding,
Darrell May Darrell Kevin May (born June 13, 1972) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. Career May's professional baseball career began when the Atlanta Braves drafted him in the 46th round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft. ...
and Sean Henn in 2005. Chacón was excited to be coming to New York, and he did not waver under the initial pressure and criticism. In his first start as a Yankee, he pitched six
inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...
s without allowing an
earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an erro ...
against the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
. He finished 7–3 with a 2.85 ERA for the Yankees. Chacón made his postseason debut in Game 4 of the 2005 American League Division Series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He pitched 6⅓ innings and allowed just 2 runs in a Yankee win. Before the season, sportswriters thought that Chacón would be a big key to the Yankee rotation. Chacón, however, got off to a slow start, but started pitching well in late April. On May 16, the Texas Rangers scored 7 runs off Chacón. After the terrible start, Chacón went on the 15-day
disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...
. Chacón came off the DL on June 11. After coming off the DL, Chacón could not pitch 5 innings, forcing the Yankees to use their tired bullpen. On July 6, Chacón was sent to the bullpen after giving up seven runs in 1⅓ innings against 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) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...
on July 4. He was replaced in the rotation by Kris Wilson.


Pittsburgh Pirates

During the July 31, 2006, mid-season non-waiver trade deadline, Chacon was dealt for Craig Wilson. Chacón started for the Pirates, making nine starts and going 2–3 with a 5.48 ERA. In , Chacón was mainly used as a reliever by the Pirates, but also made four starts. He went 5–4 with a 3.94 ERA in 64 games for the Pirates in 2007. Chacón was granted free agency after the season.


Houston Astros

On February 20, 2008, Chacón signed a one-year deal with the
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 ...
worth $2 million. On May 16, Chacón set a major league record by recording 9 consecutive no-decisions to begin a season. On June 25, 2008, the Astros announced that Chacón was suspended indefinitely for insubordination after a physical altercation with Astros
General Manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
Ed Wade. The incident began after Chacón repeatedly refused to leave the team dining room to speak with Wade in his office. Chacón claimed that Wade raised his voice and verbally attacked him, telling him to "look in the mirror", though Wade has denied raising his voice or verbally attacking Chacón. In a fit of rage Chacón grabbed the much smaller Wade by the neck and threw him to the ground. When Wade tried to get up Chacón repeatedly knocked him back down before other players could intervene to stop the assault. On whether he regretted the incident Chacón stated "If there's any regret, I just wish they had just let me alone". Wade was not injured by the assault. The next day, Chacón was placed on waivers by the Astros and after clearing waivers, his contract was terminated with cause, meaning that Chacón forfeited $983,607 in salary (this move was appealed by the MLB Players' Association, but the termination with cause was upheld by an arbitrator in August 2010). Chacón did not pitch again in 2008.


Newark Bears/Oakland Athletics

On May 1, 2009, Chacón signed a one-year deal with the
Newark Bears The Newark Bears were an American independent league professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They were a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and, later, the Canadian American Association of Professional Bas ...
of the Atlantic League and started seven games, pitching to a 4.29 ERA with a 3–3 record. His performance with the Bears earned him a minor league contract with 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 ...
organization on June 18, 2009. Pitching for the Triple-A
Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...
, went 8–4 in 14 appearances (12 starts) with an ERA of 6.29.


Legal troubles

On October 5, 2009, Chacón was arrested at a bowling alley in
Greeley, Colorado Greeley is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,795 at the 2020 United States census, an increase of 17.12% since the ...
, on charges related to unpaid gambling markers in
Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
,
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
. He faced a
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...
charge in connection with three bad checks written for $50,000 to
Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...
. He was released from jail on October 6, after Las Vegas authorities decided not to extradite him.


References


External links


Baseball Almanac Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chacon, Shawn 1977 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Colorado Rockies players New York Yankees players Pittsburgh Pirates players Houston Astros players African-American baseball players Asheville Tourists players Carolina Mudcats players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Baseball players from Anchorage, Alaska Sportspeople from Greeley, Colorado Baseball players from Denver American adoptees Newark Bears players Portland Rockies players Arizona League Rockies players Salem Avalanche players Trenton Thunder players Sacramento River Cats players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen African American adoptees