Anthony Loza Reyes (born October 16, 1981) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

who played five seasons in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He pitched primarily as a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

for the

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 (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

and

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) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

. Reyes attended the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

(USC), before the Cardinals selected him in the 15th round of the 2003 MLB draft, and made his major league debut on August 9, 2005. During his playing career, Reyes threw and batted right-handed, stood tall, and weighed . A native of

Whittier, California Whittier () is a city in Southern California in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, part of the Gateway Cities. The city had 87,306 residents as of the 2020 United States census, an increase of 1,975 from the 2010 United States ...

, Reyes became the Cardinals' top prospect in their

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

system. As a rookie, he was a member of the Cardinals'

2006 World Series The 2006 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2006 season. The 102nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Detroit Tigers and the National Leag ...

championship team, including starting Game 1. Following his playing career, he became a

firefighter A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions also ...

for the

Los Angeles County Fire Department The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) provides firefighting services as well as technical rescue services, hazardous materials response services and emergency medical response services for the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County ...

High school

Reyes attended California High School in

. He was once considered too small to be a pitcher, but proved the coaches wrong and played varsity and went on to USC. He goes back to California High during the off season to practice and stays in touch with the coaches.

College career

Reyes spent his college years at the

from 2000 to 2003, and though he was selected by the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in the 13th round of the amateur draft, he elected to return to school for his senior year. He was on several USC teams with

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 (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

pitcher

Mark Prior Mark William Prior (born September 7, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and current coach. A onetime top prospect of the Chicago Cubs, he pitched for the team from 2002 to 2006 in a career that was marred by injuries. In ...

. In four seasons with the Trojans, Reyes compiled a 17–16 record and earned Pac-10 honors three times. He was drafted in the 15th round by the

in .

Professional career

Reyes was eventually considered the top pitching prospect in the St. Louis farm system. He spent the season initially with the

Palm Beach Cardinals The Palm Beach Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in the town of Jupiter in Palm Beach County, Florida, and play their home games at Roge ...

, where he compiled a 3-0 record with a 4.66

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Comp ...

, and then later with the

Tennessee Smokies The Tennessee Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Kodak, Tennessee, a suburb of Knoxville. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They play at Smokies Stadium, directly off Int ...

, where he achieved a 6-2 record with a 2.91 ERA. After a solid season with the Triple-A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...

, Reyes was given a chance to prove himself in the major leagues. On August 9, at

Miller Park American Family Field is a retractable roof stadium used primarily for baseball. It is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, just southwest of the intersection of Interstate 94 and Brewers Boulevard. It is the home of Major League Baseball's Milwauk ...

, Reyes threw 6 innings in his debut start against the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

, earning the win and giving up just two runs on two

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

. He was demoted immediately after the game, having fulfilled his role of giving the regular rotation an extra day's rest by manager

Tony La Russa Anthony La Russa Jr. (; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. His MLB career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland At ...

. Reyes opened the season with Memphis. He was recalled to St. Louis June 23 when

Mark Mulder Mark Alan Mulder (born August 5, 1977) is an American former professional baseball player. A left-handed starting pitcher, Mulder pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals. He is a two-time All-Sta ...

was placed on the

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 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

. As a result, Reyes was asked to start the final game of a three-game series against the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

. In the previous two games, the White Sox scored 33 runs against the Cardinals. In the third game Reyes threw 90 pitches, 67 for strikes, had six

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s and no walks, and carried a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

into the seventh inning. The only White Sox hit was a home run by

Jim Thome James Howard Thome (; born August 27, 1970) is an American former professional baseball corner infielder and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 22 seasons (1991–2012). He played for six different teams during th ...

. The Cardinals offense could not respond in kind and the White Sox won, 1–0. Reyes pitched an eight inning

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

and took the

loss Loss may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Loss'' (Bass Communion album) (2006) * ''Loss'' (Mull Historical Society album) (2001) *"Loss", a song by God Is an Astronaut from their self-titled album (2008) * Losses "(Lil Tjay son ...

despite giving up only the one hit (albeit a home run) to Thome. During the Cardinals' 2006 playoff run, Reyes was left off the roster for the

National League Division Series In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series (NLDS) determines which two teams from the National League will advance to the National League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring e ...

against the

. However, after advancing to the

National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two National ...

against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, the Cardinals added him to the roster in place of

Jason Marquis Jason Scott Marquis (; born August 21, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals, Arizona ...

. Reyes started Game 4 of the series and pitched four innings, taking a no-decision. He started the first game of the

against fellow rookie

Justin Verlander Justin Brooks Verlander ( ; born February 20, 1983) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros. From Manakin-Sabot, ...

and earned the win, pitching eight innings and retiring 17 consecutive batters from the first through the sixth inning; a World Series record for a rookie. Reyes gave up two runs and earned player of the game honors. The Cardinals went on to win the series, defeating the Detroit Tigers four games to one. After starting the season 0–8 with a 6.08 ERA (although he had the worst run support in the majors), the Cardinals optioned him to Memphis on May 27. Todd Wellemeyer replaced him in the Cardinals starting rotation. He made three strong starts for the Redbirds and was recalled to St. Louis June 16, but was optioned back to Memphis again on July 2. Reyes was called up again from Memphis to make a spot start in a doubleheader against Milwaukee. He pitched well allowing 2 runs on two hits. Reyes began the season in St. Louis's bullpen, going 2–1 with a 4.91 ERA before being demoted to Triple-A Memphis. He went 2–3 with a 3.25 ERA in 11 starts at Memphis. On July 26, 2008, Reyes was traded to the

for right-handed reliever Luis Perdomo and cash. On August 8, 2008, the Indians promoted Reyes from Triple-A Buffalo. That same day, he made his first start for Cleveland, going 6 innings, allowing just 1 run, and picked up the win. Reyes was non-tendered by the Indians on December 12, 2009, making him a free agent. He was re-signed to a minor league contract on December 13. During spring training his contract was purchased by the Indians, at which time he was placed on the 60-day disabled list, while recovering from Tommy John surgery. After spending the entire 2010 season on the disabled list, Reyes was outrighted to the Triple-A

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, mercha ...

on October 29, 2010. After electing free agency, Reyes signed a one-year minor league contract with the Indians on November 15. His contract includes a non-roster invitation to the Indians' 2011 spring training camp. Reyes spent the 2011 season rehabbing his injured elbow, never appearing on the 40-man roster. He was released by the Indians on August 5, 2011, and retired after a season in the

organization.

Personal life

Reyes has a younger brother, Erik, who pitched for

Concordia University Irvine Concordia University Irvine is a private Lutheran university in Irvine, California, United States. It was established in 1976 to provide a Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod college to serve the Pacific Southwest and provide training for pastors, ...

in . Reyes became a

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

in March 2017, and was pressed into action to combat the

wildfires in California A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...

later that year.

References

External links