Edinson Vólquez (; born July 3, 1983) is a Dominican 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 ...
. He played 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) for the
Texas Rangers,
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
,
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 penn ...
,
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
,
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 (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
,
Kansas City Royals and
Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.
The franc ...
.
Vólquez signed with the Rangers in 2001 under the name of Julio Reyes. He went by Edison Vólquez after 2003, before adding an ''n'' to his first name in 2007.
Early life
Vólquez grew up in the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
and started playing baseball when he was 9 or 10 with the support of his parents. "It was good for me because my mom and dad always took care of me... The only thing I did was go to school and play baseball."
Professional career
Texas Rangers
Vólquez was signed as an amateur free agent by the
Texas Rangers in the Dominican Republic in 2001. Together with
John Danks
John William Danks (born April 15, 1985) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox.
Personal life
Danks graduated from Round Rock High School in Texas in 2003 and wa ...
and
Thomas Diamond
Thomas Nicklaus Diamond (born April 6, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs.
College & draft
Diamond starred at the University of New Orleans. As a junior, he we ...
, Vólquez was one third of the "DVD" trio of Rangers pitching prospects.
After spending four years in the Rangers' minor league system, Vólquez made his Major League debut on August 30, 2005, in a start 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 ...
. He
lost
Lost may refer to getting lost, or to:
Geography
*Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland
* Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US
History
*Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
all three Major League games he started that season, as well as one of the three games in which he appeared as a reliever, and posted a 14.21
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 ...
. He spent the first five months of the 2006 season with the
Oklahoma RedHawks
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...
of the
Class AAA
Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL). ...
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
until he was recalled to the majors in September. This time, he fared better,
winning
Winning may refer to:
* Victory
Film
* ''Winning'' (film), a 1969 movie starring Paul Newman
* '' Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman'', a 2015 documentary by Adam Carolla and Nate Adams
Music
* ''Winning'', an album by Ten Foot Pole, 2022 ...
one of his eight starts and posting a 7.29 ERA.
The Rangers were dissatisfied with the results shown by one of their top pitching prospects, so in 2007 they tried an unconventional tactic. Vólquez was demoted to the
Bakersfield Blaze
The Bakersfield Blaze were a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California. They played in the Class A – Advanced California League. They played their home games at Sam Lynn Ballpark. Opened in 1941, the stadium is well known for facin ...
of the
Class A-Advanced
High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...
California League, to work on his control. As Vólquez progressed, he was slowly promoted up through the minor league system until he reached the big leagues in September. This tactic had been used by
Mark Connor
Mark Peter Connor (born May 27, 1949 in Brooklyn, New York) is a former pitching coach for the Baltimore Orioles and Texas Rangers. Before his coaching career, he was a minor league pitcher from 1971 through 1972 who batted and threw right-hand ...
, the Rangers' pitching coach, once before. Vólquez showed much improvement in his big league performance that season, posting a 2–1 record and 4.50 ERA in six starts. Vólquez later said about the time in the minors, "At the time, I didn't understand, because if I play in the Big Leagues, why do I have to go all the way back to Single-A?... It made me better. It made me a better person."
[
]
Cincinnati Reds
On December 21, 2007, the Rangers traded Vólquez to the Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
, along with Daniel Ray Herrera
Daniel Ray Herrera (born October 21, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers and New York Mets.
Herrera became well known among baseball fan ...
, in a deal for Josh Hamilton
Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from to , most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers teams that won two consecutive Americ ...
. Vólquez made his Reds' debut on April 6, 2008, in a game against the Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
in Cincinnati. In innings of work, he allowed only five hits, one 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 ...
and two walks while striking out
''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...
eight batters in an 8–2 victory.
Vólquez started 2008 with a 7–1 record and a 1.33 ERA in nine starts, and allowed no more than one earned run in all but one of these starts (in which he allowed two). He became the only Reds pitcher to accomplish this since 1912. On May 18, 2008, Vólquez participated in a pitching matchup with 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) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
' Cliff Lee
Clifton Phifer Lee (born August 30, 1978) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher who played for 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Between 2002 and 2014 he played for four teams, most notably the Philadelphia Philli ...
, who at that point led the American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
with an ERA of 0.67. It was the third time in MLB history that the ERA leaders of each league had faced each other. Vólquez won the contest by a score of 6–4, improving to 7–1. Lee's loss, his first of the season, left him with a 6–1 record.
Vólquez was selected to represent the National League in the 2008 MLB All-Star Game. By the All-Star Break, Vólquez had a 12–3 record with a 2.29 ERA and 126 strikeouts. Vólquez finished the season with a 17–6 record and an 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 ...
of 3.21 in 196 innings, 8th-best in the National League. His 206 strikeouts tied for second-most in the National League with Johan Santana
Johan Alexander Santana Araque (; born March 13, 1979) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball starting pitcher. Santana pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins from 2000 to 2007 and for the New York Mets from 2008 ...
and Dan Haren
Daniel John Haren (born September 17, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Haren played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Wa ...
, behind the Cy Young
Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered th ...
winner Tim Lincecum
Timothy Leroy Lincecum ( ; born June 15, 1984), nicknamed "The Freak", "The Franchise", "The Freaky Franchise" and "Big Time Timmy Jim", is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San ...
, and his 9.46 K/9 rate was also second in the league behind Lincecum. Vólquez threw changeup
A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball.
The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced speed ...
s 31.9% of the time in 2008, more than any other starter.
After the season, the Baseball Writers' Association of America
The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) is a professional association for journalists writing about Major League Baseball for daily newspapers, magazines and qualifying websites. The organization was founded in 1908, and is known ...
put Vólquez on the ballot for National League Rookie of the Year Award
In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...
voting, an award for which he was not eligible. He subsequently received three second place votes for the award, which went to Geovany Soto
Geovany Soto (born January 20, 1983) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher from 2005 to 2017, most prominently as a member of the Chicago Cubs where he appeared in the MLB ...
.
Vólquez did not follow up his 2008 All-Star campaign with the same success. In 2009 with Cincinnati, Vólquez posted a 4–2 record with a 4.35 ERA through June 1. He was placed on the 15-day DL with elbow pain on June 2, and then eventually moved to the 60-day DL in preparation for Tommy John surgery, which ended his season.
On April 20, 2010, he received a 50-game suspension for use of performance-enhancing drugs
Performance-enhancing substances, also known as performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), are substances that are used to improve any form of activity performance in humans. A well-known example of cheating in sports involves doping in sport, where bann ...
. Vólquez made his 2010 debut with the Reds on July 17, 2010, vs the Colorado Rockies with an 8–1 win. Vólquez held the Rockies to one earned run and three hits in six innings with 9 strikeouts and 2 base on balls. However, his next several starts were unimpressive, and for the second time in his career, he was demoted straight to single-A (the Dayton Dragons
The Dayton Dragons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Dayton, Ohio, and play their home games at Day Air Ballpark, formerly known as Fifth Third Field. In 2 ...
). He was recalled on September 7 and finished the season with a 4–3 record and 4.31 ERA over 62.2 innings. He started Game 1 of the 2010 National League Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
and lost, allowing four earned over 1.2 innings with Roy Halladay
Harry Leroy "Roy" Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nicknam ...
throwing a no-hitter.
Vólquez was the Reds' Opening Day starter in 2011 and finished the season 5–7 with a 5.71 ERA in 20 starts for Cincinnati. He also spent time in the minor leagues, going 4–2 with a 2.37 ERA for Triple-A Louisville.
San Diego Padres
On December 17, 2011, Vólquez, Yonder Alonso
Yonder Alonso (born April 8, 1987) is a Cuban former professional baseball first baseman and current MLB Network analyst. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Cl ...
, Yasmani Grandal
Yasmani Grandal (born November 8, 1988) is a Cuban-born American professional baseball catcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Milwaukee Bre ...
, and Brad Boxberger
Bradley George Boxberger (born May 27, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks, Kansas ...
were traded by the Reds to the 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 penn ...
for Mat Latos
Mathew Adam Latos ( ; born December 9, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padre ...
. Vólquez was the Padres' Opening Day starter for the 2012 season, losing 5–3 to the Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
. Vólquez, along with Clayton Richard
Clayton Colby Richard (born September 12, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, and Toronto Blue Jays.
High school
Richard w ...
, was a mainstay of the Padres 2012 rotation, making 32 starts and pitching innings. His highlight game of the season came on July 19 when he pitched a one-hit shutout
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
at home against the Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
. Vólquez finished the season 11–11 with a 4.14 ERA. He collected 174 strikeouts, but issued a league-leading 105 walks.
Vólquez was again the Padres' Opening Day starter in 2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
. On June 2, Vólquez hit his first career home run, a 3-run homer off 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) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
pitcher Ramón Ortiz
Ramón Diógenes Ortiz (born May 23, 1973) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Anaheim Angels, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies, Los Angele ...
. Despite his home run, the Padres lost the game 7–4. The Padres designated Vólquez for assignment on August 24, a day after he gave up six runs while only recording two outs in a start against the Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
. At the time, Vólquez led the NL with 95 earned runs. He was released three days later. In 27 starts for the Padres in 2013, Vólquez went 9–10 with a 6.01 ERA.
Los Angeles Dodgers
On August 30, 2013, Vólquez signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
on a Major League contract. Vólquez appeared for the Dodgers that night, pitching one scoreless inning in relief against his former team, the Padres. He joined the Dodgers rotation soon after and made 5 starts in September for them. He was 0–2 with a 4.18 ERA for the Dodgers in 2013.
Pittsburgh Pirates
After the 2013 season, Vólquez signed a one-year deal worth $5 million with the 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 (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
. Volquez experienced a career rebirth with the Pirates, going 13–7 with a 3.04 ERA and 140 strikeouts in 32 games (31 starts), pitching innings. On October 1, 2014. Vólquez started the 2014 National League Wild Card Game for the Pirates against the San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
. Vólquez would not come through however, giving up 5 ERs, including a grand slam
Grand Slam most often refers to:
* Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves
Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to:
Games and sports
* Grand slam, winning category te ...
to Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford
Brandon Michael Crawford (born January 21, 1987) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Crawford played college baseball for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). H ...
, in 5 innings pitched. The Pirates would go on to lose 8–0, eliminating them from the playoffs in the process. The Wild Card Game would prove to be Volquez's last game as a Pirate, as he became a free agent after the 2014 season.
Kansas City Royals
On December 29, 2014, the Kansas City Royals announced that they had signed Vólquez to a 2-year, $20 million contract. During a game 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 ...
on April 23, 2015, Vólquez was ejected for his role in the brawl. Two days later, he was suspended five games. He had the option to appeal the suspension but dropped it on April 27, 2015, which made the suspension apply effective immediately. After finishing the regular season 13–9 with a 3.55 ERA in a career-high innings, Vólquez started Game 1 of the 2015 World Series, giving up three runs in six innings and receiving a no-decision. The Royals would go on to win, 5–4, in 14 innings. Vólquez pitched the game unaware that his father had died (his wife found out before the game and instructed the coaching staff and the press not to let Vólquez know of that until he was done pitching for the night). Vólquez got the nod to start in Game 5 against Matt Harvey
Matthew Edward Harvey (born March 27, 1989), nicknamed The Dark Knight, is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds, ...
, where he gave up 2 earned runs on only 2 hits in 6 innings with a no-decision. The Royals again forced the game into extra innings before defeating the 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 ...
to win the World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
.
On June 24, 2016, Vólquez experienced one of the worst starts of his career as he allowed 12 runs (11 earned) in the first inning. He only lasted one inning as the Royals lost to the Houston Astros 13–4. On November 4, Vólquez declined his option to remain with the Royals and became a free agent.
Miami Marlins
On November 28, 2016, Vólquez agreed to a two-year, $22 million contract with the Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.
The franc ...
. The contract became official on December 1. On March 24, 2017, Vólquez was named the Marlins opening day starter for the 2017 season. He was credited with 7 losses and no wins in his first nine starts. He recorded his first win on May 29 in a 4–1 decision against the Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
.[ On June 3, Volquez threw 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 ...
against the Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...
at Miami's Marlins Park
LoanDepot Park is a retractable roof stadium located in Miami, Florida. It is the home of Major League Baseball's Miami Marlins. It is located on on the site of the former Miami Orange Bowl in Little Havana about west of Downtown Miam ...
in a 3–0 decision. Volquez threw 98 pitches, struck out 10 and walked two batters (who were both retired on double plays), facing the minimum 27 batters. It was the sixth no hitter in Marlins history and the first since Henderson Alvarez's in 2013. It was also the first no-hitter ever to have a hit overturned by replay review. Before the game, he dedicated the game to his fallen Royals friend, Yordano Ventura
Yordano Ventura Hernández (; June 3, 1991 – January 22, 2017) was a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Ventura made his MLB debut on September 17, 2013. Known as a power pitche ...
, as well as fallen Marlins ace Jose Fernandez. The game took place on what would have been Ventura's 26th birthday. He was later named the NL Player of the Week for the first time in his career, pitching 15 innings allowing one run (an 0.60 ERA) and four hits with 14 strikeouts in two starts. On August 4, 2017, Volquez underwent Tommy John surgery, putting him down for the remainder of the season. Vólquez was released by the Marlins on December 13, 2017.
Second stint with the Rangers
On February 16, 2018, Vólquez signed a two-year minor league contract with the Texas Rangers, with the 2018 season spent recovering from Tommy John surgery.
On November 20, 2018, Vólquez was added to the Texas Rangers 40-man major league roster for the 2019 season. On April 5, 2019, Vólquez was placed on the 10-day injured list with a sprained right elbow.
Texas re-signed Vólquez to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training on December 16, 2019.
In 2020, he made the Rangers Opening Day roster out of the bullpen. In 7 games, he was 2-1 with a 6.35 ERA in innings.
International career
Vólquez pitched in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He took the loss in the opening game for the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
against the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, giving up three runs (unearned), two hits, two walks and three strikeouts in three innings pitched.
Vólquez again pitched for the eventual champion Dominican Republic in the 2013 World Baseball Classic
The 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, held from March 2 to March 19, 2013. This was the third iteration of the WBC, following the two previous tournaments, held in 2006 and 2009.
Unlike ...
, starting the first game in each of the three tournament rounds. He allowed 5 runs in innings and picked up the win in the semifinal game against the Netherlands.
Scouting report
Vólquez throws 4 pitches: a low to mid-90s fastball, a two-seam fastball that clocks also in the low to mid-90s, a mid-80s changeup and a high-70s curveball. Throughout his career, Vólquez has struggled with command of his pitches.
Personal life
Vólquez makes a home in the Dominican Republic, where he spends four months during the off-season.[ Vólquez's father died on October 27, 2015, the same day he started Game 1 of the World Series. His wife requested that he not be informed mid-game of his father's death, so he had no knowledge of his death during his start. After pitching six innings, Vólquez exited the game and learned about the death in the clubhouse surrounded by his family.
Vólquez's brother, Brandy, was stabbed to death in the Dominican Republic on January 17, 2017.]
Name issues
When he was signed by the Rangers in 2001 at age 17, he went by the name Julio Reyes, but his name was revealed to be Edison Vólquez after an immigration crackdown in 2003. In 2007, he asked the Rangers to add an "n" to his name after checking his birth certificate to find he was born Edinson.
Notes
References
External links
*
:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Volquez, Edinson
1983 births
Living people
Arizona League Rangers players
Azucareros del Este players
Bakersfield Blaze players
Cincinnati Reds players
Clinton LumberKings players
Dayton Dragons players
Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States
Dominican Republic sportspeople in doping cases
Doping cases in baseball
Drugs in sport in the United States
Frisco RoughRiders players
Kansas City Royals players
Los Angeles Dodgers players
Louisville Bats players
Lynchburg Hillcats players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
Major League Baseball players suspended for drug offenses
Miami Marlins players
National League All-Stars
Oklahoma RedHawks players
People from Barahona Province
Pittsburgh Pirates players
San Diego Padres players
Stockton Ports players
Texas Rangers players
Toros del Este players
World Baseball Classic players of the Dominican Republic
2009 World Baseball Classic players
2013 World Baseball Classic players
2017 World Baseball Classic players