César Valdez

César Miguel Valdez (born March 17, 1985) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2010. He previously played for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland Athletics, and Toronto Blue Jays.

César Valdez
Valdez with the South Bend Silver Hawks in 2007
Baltimore Orioles – No. 62
Pitcher
Born: (1985-03-17) March 17, 1985
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 3, 2010, for the Arizona Diamondbacks
MLB statistics
(through 2020 season)
Win–loss record3–4
Earned run average6.23
Strikeouts46
Teams

Career

Arizona Diamondbacks

Valdez signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 2, 2005, as an international free agent.[1]

He played at various levels of their minor league organization until 2010, when he was called up to the Majors on May 3 and made his Major League Baseball debut later that day. Valdez was designated for assignment on September 13.[2] He made nine appearances for the Diamondbacks in 2010, and posted a 1–2 win–loss record, 7.65 earned run average (ERA), and 13 strikeouts in 20 innings pitched.[1]

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 9, 2010, Valdez was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates as the player to be named later(PTBNL) in the trade for Zach Duke.[3]

Florida Marlins

On July 5, 2011, he was traded to the Florida Marlins organization for a PTBNL or cash considerations.[4]

Toronto Blue Jays

On July 28, 2011, Valdez was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays organization and assigned to the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s, but released the following day.[1] During the offseason, Valdez played for the Águilas del Zulia of the Venezuelan Winter League and the Gigantes de Carolina of the Puerto Rican Winter League.[5]

Vaqueros Laguna

In 2012, Valdez joined the Vaqueros Laguna of the Mexican League. He made 24 appearances and pitched to an 11–8 record, 5.27 ERA, and 84 strikeouts in 135 total innings.[5] In the offseason, he returned to the Águilas del Zulia and later made five relief appearances for the Tigres del Licey of the Dominican Winter League.[5]

In 2013, Valdez returned to the Vaqueros Laguna, making 12 starts before being released on May 30.[6]

Rieleros de Aguascalientes

On June 22, 2013, he signed with the Rieleros de Aguascalientes, and was released on June 27 after making one start for the team.[6] After another offseason playing in the Venezuelan and Dominican Winter Leagues, Valdez did not play regular season baseball in 2014.[5] He made seven appearances for the Bravos de Margarita during the 2014 offseason.

Olmecas de Tabasco

In 2015, he signed with the Olmecas de Tabasco. In 23 starts, Valdez went 13–8 with a 2.63 ERA and 161 strikeouts in 160​2⁄3 innings pitched.[5] Valdez made five starts for the Tigres de Licey in the offseason.[5]

Houston Astros

On January 1, 2016, he signed a minor league contract with the Houston Astros and was invited to spring training.[1] He spent the entire 2016 season with the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, and posted a 12–1 record, 3.12 ERA, and 114 strikeouts in 138​1⁄3 innings.[5]

Oakland Athletics

In November 2016, he signed a minor league contract with the Oakland Athletics.[7]

In 2017, Valdez began the season with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, but was recalled on April 21. After appearing in four games for Oakland with a 9.64 ERA, Valdez was designated for assignment on May 3.[8]

Toronto Blue Jays

On May 5, 2017, Valdez was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays and optioned to the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons.[9] He was recalled on May 20.[10] In July, Valdez was recalled by the Blue Jays and added to the starting rotation after Aaron Sanchez was placed on the disabled list. On July 25, Valdez earned his first MLB win in over seven years, defeating the Oakland Athletics 4–1.[11] In 2017 he threw a changeup 49.4% of the time, tops in MLB.[12] Valdez was outrighted to Triple-A Buffalo on November 1, 2017,[13] and elected free agency the following day.[14]

Return to Tabasco

On March 16, 2018, Valdez signed with the Olmecas de Tabasco of the Mexican League.[15] He was released on May 1, 2018.

Leones de Yucatán

On July 29, 2018, Valdez signed with the Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League.[16] In 2019, he pitched to a 15–2 record with a 2.26 ERA and 122 strikeouts across 147.2 innings, winning the league's pitcher of the year award.[17] On January 4, 2020, Valdez requested and was granted his release in order to pursue an opportunity with an MLB-affiliated organization.

Baltimore Orioles

Valdez signed a minor-league deal with the Baltimore Orioles on January 10, 2020.[18] Valdez was promoted to the active roster when the Orioles selected his contract on August 27.[19] He pitched three scoreless innings in relief in his first MLB appearance in three seasons in a 5–0 loss to the Blue Jays at Sahlen Field two nights later on August 29.[20] He earned his first MLB save with two shutout innings in a 6–3 win over the New York Yankees in the nightcap of a twi-night doubleheader at Camden Yards on September 4.[21] In 2020 for the Orioles, Valdez pitched to an excellent 1.26 ERA with 12 strikeouts over 9 appearances.[22]

Pitching style

He primarily throws a changeup which drops 8.5 inches more than the average for that type of pitch according to Statcast. He also has a sinker and a fastball, both of which top out at 86 miles per hour, and a slider which he rarely uses.[18]

References
  1. "Cesar Valdez Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  2. "D-backs add Schmidt to expanded roster". Archived from the original on 2014-01-12. Retrieved 2010-09-13.
  3. "Pirates and Diamondbacks complete trade; right-handed pitcher Cesar Valdez acquired by Pittsburgh". MLB.com. December 9, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  4. Nicholson-Smith, Ben (July 5, 2011). "Minor Moves: Cesar Valdez". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  5. "Cesar Valdez Minor, Winter, Fall & Mexican Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  6. "Cesar Valdez Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  7. Eddy, Matt (November 21, 2016). "Minor League Transactions: Nov 12-18". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  8. Todd, Jeff (May 3, 2017). "Athletics Place Sean Doolittle On 10-Day DL, Designate Cesar Valdez". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  9. "Blue Jays designate right-hander Mat Latos for assignment". Sportsnet. May 5, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  10. Polishuk, Mark (May 20, 2017). "Blue Jays Place Aaron Sanchez On 10-Day DL; Designate Mike Ohlman For Assignment". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  11. Nicholson-Smith, Ben (July 26, 2017). "Successful spot start 'very emotional' for Blue Jays' Valdez". Sportsnet. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  12. Statcast Pitch Arsenals Leaderboard | baseballsavant.com
  13. Chisholm, Gregor (November 1, 2017). "Blue Jays drop 2 pitchers, outfielder from roster". MLB.com. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  14. "International League Transactions". MiLB.com. p. November 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  15. "Vuelve César Valdez a Tabasco para la campaña 2018 en LMB". quisqueyanosports.com (in Spanish). March 16, 2018. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
  16. "El ex big leaguer César Valdez, nuevo refuerzo de los Leones" (in Spanish). July 29, 2018. Archived from the original on July 30, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  17. "Era "bola cantada": César Valdez, pítcher del año de la LMB". peninsuladeportiva.com (in Spanish). December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  18. Trezza, Joe. "Valdez baffling hitters with 'the dead fish,'" MLB.com, Sunday, September 13, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020
  19. Kubatko, Roch. "Orioles decide to play tonight after emotional team meeting (updated),'" Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Thursday, August 27, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020
  20. Kubatko, Roch. "Orioles shut out for third time with 5-0 loss (updated),'" Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), Saturday, August 29, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020
  21. Trezza, Joe. "Mountcastle busts out as O's end skid vs. NY," MLB.com, Saturday, September 5, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020
  22. https://www.mlb.com/player/cesar-valdez-491624
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