Juan Carlos Oviedo (born March 15, 1982Exact birth date is unclear due to name controversy. Some sources like MLB.com list March 15, 1982, while others list August 14, 1983.) is a Dominican former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

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 bats and throws right-handed. At age 17, he began using the name Leo Núñez, although his true identity was revealed in 2011. 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

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

Florida 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 ...

and

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

Early life

Oviedo was born in

Bonao Bonao is a city in the Cibao region of Dominican Republic. It is the capital of the Monseñor Nouel Province, Monseñor Nouel province. The city is located in the center of the country, to the northwest of the national capital Santo Domingo. The ...

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 ...

. At age 17, Oviedo assumed the identity of his 16-year-old best friend, Leo Nunez, in order to receive a more lucrative contract. In 2011, Marlins reliever

Edward Mujica Edward José Mujica (; born May 10, 1984) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, San Diego Padres, Florida/Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, Oak ...

, a close friend of Oviedo's, said that " 17 years old, you maybe lose $100,000 or $150,000 when you sign ompared to a 16-year-old with the same skills And if you're like 18, you might sign for $5,000 and maybe they give you an opportunity."

Professional career

Minor Leagues

Oviedo was originally signed by 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 ...

as an undrafted

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

on February 16, 2000. From 2001 to 2004, he was mainly used 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 ...

in the Pirates system. On December 16, 2004, he was traded to the

for

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

Benito Santiago Benito Santiago Rivera (born March 9, 1965), is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1986 to 2005, most prominently as a member of the San Diego Padres, with whom he was a fou ...

. After being traded to the Royals, he was converted to a full-time

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

. He began the 2005 season with the Single-A

High Desert Mavericks The High Desert Mavericks were an American Minor League Baseball team in Adelanto, California, that played their home games at Heritage Field at Stater Bros. Stadium. They played in the Class A-Advanced California League. The franchise had eight ...

. He was promoted to the Double-A

Wichita Wranglers The Wichita Wranglers were a minor league baseball team based in Wichita, Kansas. The team, which played in the Texas League, was the Double-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's San Diego Padres from 1987 to 1994 and the Kansas City Royals fro ...

after posting a 9.00

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 ...

in eight games.

Kansas City Royals

He had his contract purchased by the big league club on May 9, 2005, and made his major league debut on the same day. Along with teammates

Ambiorix Burgos Ambiorix Burgos (born April 19, 1984) is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who last played for Vaqueros Laguna of the Mexican League. Career In , Burgos made his major league debut with the Kansas City Royals and appeared in ...

and

Andrew Sisco Andrew Frank Sisco (born January 13, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He has played in Major League Baseball for the Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox, in the Korean Professional Baseball League for the KT Wiz, an ...

, they were the first trio of rookie pitchers in major league history to throw at least 50.0 innings each without making a start. Oviedo finished the 2005 season with a 3–2 record and a 7.55 ERA in 41 games. In 2006, Oviedo played for the Double-A Wranglers, Triple-A

Omaha Royals Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County, Nebraska, Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. List of ...

, and at the major league level. He only played in seven major league games in 2006, with a 4.73 ERA. In 2007, he was converted back into a starting pitcher. On June 22, 2007, Oviedo would have been traded to the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

for

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Milton Bradley Milton Bradley (November 8, 1836 – May 30, 1911) was an American business magnate, game pioneer and publisher, credited by many with launching the board game industry, with his eponymous enterprise, which was purchased by Hasbro in 1984, and ...

. However, according to the Royals report, Bradley was injured at the time, and the trade was voided.

Florida/Miami Marlins

After the 2008 season, Oviedo was traded by the Royals to the Florida Marlins for

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Mike Jacobs Mike Jacobs may refer to: *Mike Jacobs (first baseman) (born 1980), American baseball player; first North American in professional sports to be tested positive for HGH *Mike Jacobs (shortstop) (1877–1949), played for the Chicago Cubs *Mike Jacobs ...

. In 2009, he became the Marlins closer after

Matt Lindstrom Matthew Raymond Lindstrom (born February 11, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Colorado Rockies, Baltimore Orioles, Arizona Diamondbacks ...

was placed on the disabled list in late June. He finished the season with 26 saves. On April 1, 2012, MLB announced that they would suspend Oviedo for 6 weeks after he was removed from the restricted list. Oviedo had to get a visa to be removed. On May 28, Oviedo was suspended for 8 extra weeks for age and identity fraud. He would be eligible for one rehabilitation assignment in the minor leagues for a maximum of 16 days. He was eligible to play for the Marlins in the Major League on July 23. During a triple-A rehab game on July 16, Oviedo sprained his right elbow's

ulnar collateral ligament Ulnar collateral ligament (or UCL), may refer to: * Ulnar carpal collateral ligament * Ulnar collateral ligament of elbow joint The ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) or internal lateral ligament is a thick triangular ligament at the medial aspec ...

and was later placed on

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 ...

. On September 6, 2012, Oviedo underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

Tampa Bay Rays

On January 22, 2013, Oviedo signed a minor league deal for the

. He had his contract selected on March 31, 2013. Oviedo began the 2013 season on the 60-day disabled list still recovering from the Tommy John surgery he previously had. After missing all of the 2013 season, Oviedo had his $2 million club option for 2014 declined, and was instead paid a $30,000 buyout, making him a free agent. The Rays later re-signed him for the 2014 season. He was designated for assignment on July 26, 2014 and released on August 3.

Texas Rangers

On January 5, 2015, Oviedo signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers. He was released by the Rangers on March 28.

Name controversy

On September 22, 2011, the Florida Marlins placed Oviedo on the restricted list without listing a reason. The Associated Press reported that his real name was Juan Carlos Oviedo, that he was a year older than listed, and that he returned to the Dominican Republic to deal with the issue.Wine, Steven

,

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

, September 22, 2011. Accessed September 22, 2011. Dominican Central Electoral Commission President Roberto Rosario said that Oviedo signed a sworn statement saying he used fake identification documents.

Notes

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oviedo, Juan Carlos 1982 births Living people Age controversies Águilas Cibaeñas players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Republic fraudsters Florida Marlins players Gigantes del Cibao players Gulf Coast Pirates players Hickory Crawdads players High Desert Mavericks players Jupiter Hammerheads players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic New Orleans Zephyrs players Northwest Arkansas Naturals players Omaha Royals players Tampa Bay Rays players Wichita Wranglers players Williamsport Crosscutters players