Jesús Luzardo
Jesús G. Luzardo (born September 30, 1997) is a Venezuelan-Peruvian professional baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Jesús Luzardo | |||
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![]() Luzardo at the 2018 All-Star Futures Game | |||
Oakland Athletics – No. 44 | |||
Pitcher | |||
Born: Lima, Peru | September 30, 1997|||
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MLB debut | |||
September 11, 2019, for the Oakland Athletics | |||
MLB statistics (through 2020 season) | |||
Win–loss record | 3–2 | ||
Earned run average | 3.68 | ||
Strikeouts | 75 | ||
Teams | |||
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Career
Personal life
Luzardo was born to Venezuelan parents[1] in Lima, Peru,[2] although Luzardo identifies as Venezuelan.[3] He moved to South Florida at the age of 1 and later attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
Washington Nationals
He was drafted in the third round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft by the Washington Nationals, making him the first Peru-born player drafted by an MLB team since at least 1990.[1][4]
Luzardo tore his ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching arm and underwent Tommy John surgery, performed by Dr. James Andrews, in March 2016.[5] The Nationals, who drafted him, were known for taking chances on players who had already undergone or needed to have Tommy John surgery, and they committed to completing his rehabilitation. Luzardo forwent a commitment to the University of Miami to sign with the organization.[1] Luzardo made his professional debut on June 28, 2017, with the GCL Nationals against the GCL Marlins, reportedly hitting 98 miles per hour (158 km/h) with his fastball.[6]
Oakland Athletics
The Nationals traded Luzardo, Sheldon Neuse, and Blake Treinen to the Oakland Athletics on July 16, 2017, for Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson.[7] After joining Oakland, he played for the Arizona League Athletics and the Vermont Lake Monsters. In 12 total games between the Nationals, Athletics, and Lake Monsters, he posted a 2–1 record with a 1.66 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 43 1⁄3 innings.[8]
Luzardo was ranked among the top prospects in the minor leagues prior to 2018.[9] He started the season with the Stockton Ports and was promoted to the Double-A Midland RockHounds early on in the season.[10][11] He made his Triple-A debut with the Nashville Sounds on August 6.[12] Across three levels in 2018, Luzardo combined for a 10–5 record with a 2.88 ERA and 129 strikeouts.[8] His performance was recognized by being named to the Texas League's mid and post-season All-Star teams and being selected to participate in the All-Star Futures Game.[8]
Entering 2019, Luzardo was in competition for a spot on the A's Opening Day roster. In 9 2⁄3 innings over 4 spring starts, he held batters to 2 hits and 4 walks while striking out 15. A strained left rotator cuff late in spring training resulted in him being shut down and missing the start of the season.[13] On June 11, 2019, Luzardo returned to the mound with Class A-Advanced Stockton, and allowed one run over seven innings spanning two outings with 11 strikeouts before being promoted to Triple A-Las Vegas. [14] Unfortunately, he exited his third outing in Las Vegas with a lat strain, putting his plans to join the A's rotation on hold. [15]
The Athletics selected Luzardo's contract and promoted him to the major leagues on September 9, 2019.[16] He made his major league debut on September 11 versus the Houston Astros, pitching three innings in relief.[17][18] He appeared in 6 games in September for Oakland.
On July 7, 2020, it was announced that Luzardo had tested positive for COVID-19. The diagnosis forced the A's to put Luzardo in the bullpen to begin the season, but he only needed two relief appearances before making his first big league start on August 4 against the Texas Rangers. Luzardo got his first big league win in his next start on August 9 against the Houston Astros. He finished the season with a record of 3-2 and an ERA of 4.12 in 12 games (9 starts).
References
- Janes, Chelsea (June 20, 2016). "Nationals third-round draft pick Jesus Luzardo hopes to become first Peruvian-born big-leaguer". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
- "Jesus Luzardo". SportsNet. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
- "Jesus Luzardo". twitter.com. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
- Furones, David (June 9, 2016). "Douglas LHP Jesus Luzardo drafted by Nationals in third round". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
- Belinsky, Hudson (March 22, 2016). "JESUS LUZARDO HAS TOMMY JOHN SURGERY". Baseball America. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
- Taylor, Coach (June 28, 2017). "@Baby_Jesus9 getting his first start today for the @Nationals". twitter.com. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
- "Nats acquire Doolittle, Madson from A's". MLB.com. July 16, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
- "Jesus Luzardo Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
- Gallegos, Martin (March 7, 2018). "A's pitching prospect leaves Bob Melvin excited about the future". The Mercury News.
- Lockard, Melissa (April 23, 2018). "Down on the farm: A's top prospect Jesus Luzardo is movin'..." The Athletic. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
- Hall, Alex (April 24, 2018). "A's prospect watch: Jesus Luzardo first member of High-A Stockton rotation to move up". SBNation. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
- "Athletics' Jesus Luzardo: Solid in Triple-A debut". CBS Sports. August 7, 2018. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
- Bumbaca, Chris (March 21, 2019). "A's Luzardo Shut Down With Shoulder Strain". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
- Bloss, Joe (June 8, 2019). "Report: Puk to Make 2019 Debut With Ports". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
- https://www.sfexaminer.com/sports/athletics-top-prospect-jesus-luzardo-suffers-injury-setback/
- Susan Slusser (September 8, 2019). "A's to call up top prospect Jesús Luzardo; Matt Harvey won't join team". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
- Ben Ross (September 11, 2019). "A's top prospect Jesús Luzardo lives up to hype in sparking MLB debut". NBC Sports Bay Area. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- "Athletics vs. Astros - Game Summary - September 11, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Jesús Luzardo on Twitter