Luis Francisco Ortiz (born September 22, 1995) is an American

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 ...

for 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 ...

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). The Texas Rangers selected Ortiz in the first round of the

2014 Major League Baseball draft The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...

. He made his MLB debut in 2018. He has previously played in MLB for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

and

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 ...

Career

Ortiz is of

Mexican American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

descent.

High school and international

Ortiz attended

Sanger High School Sanger High School is a public high school located in the city of Sanger, Texas, in Denton County, United States and classified as a 4A school by the UIL. It is a part of the Sanger Independent School District located in north central Denton Co ...

Sanger, California Sanger is a city in Fresno County, California, United States. The population was 26,617 at the 2020 census, up from 24,270 at the 2010 census and 18,731 at the 2000 census. Sanger is located east-southeast of Fresno, at an elevation of 371 f ...

. In his senior season he had a 1.04 ERA with 72 strikeouts and 7 walksin 43.2 innings, while missing a few starts due to forearm strain. He was a closer for the 18-and-under USA Baseball national team that won a gold medal, and Ortiz won the World Cup MVP award. He had a win and three saves in five games with the team. ESPN.com's Keith Law ranked him No. 10 on his top-100 prospects list. In November 2013, he committed to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Fresno State University California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bache ...

Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers selected Ortiz in the first round of the

. He signed on June 11 for a

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

of $1.75 million. Texas Rangers general manager

Jon Daniels Jon Daniels (born August 24, 1977) is an American baseball executive senior advisor for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He recently served as the President of Baseball Operations for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (M ...

said "

e has E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plura ...

good pure stuff and is a strike thrower with a big

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

with life. His out pitch is a power

slider Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * '' The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * ...

. He has a repeatable delivery. He's a big-time competitor." Ortiz reported to the 2014

AZL Rangers The Arizona Complex League Rangers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Texas Rangers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. The team is composed ...

. After posting a 2.03 ERA in 13.1 innings in which he had 15 strikeouts, he was promoted to the

Hickory Crawdads The Hickory Crawdads are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League (SAL) and the High-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Hickory, North Carolina, and play their home games at L. P. Frans Stadium, which opened i ...

where he posted a 1.29 ERA in seven innings in which he had four strikeouts. He spent 2015 with Hickory, going 4-1 with a 1.80 ERA in 13 games started, pitching 50 innings in which Ortiz had 46 strikeouts. He was named a

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

Mid-Season All Star. He was on the disabled list for over two months with right forearm strain. He pitched for Surprise in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...

, and had a 1.80 ERA in five innings of relief. After being ranked the #4 prospect in the Rangers system by ''Baseball America'', Ortiz started 2016 with the

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 ...

going 3-2 with a 2.60 ERA in 27.2 innings in seven games (six starts). He was then promoted to the

Frisco RoughRiders The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Frisco, Texas, and are nam ...

, where he was 1-4 with a 4.08 ERA in 9 games (8 starts).

Milwaukee Brewers

On August 1, 2016, the Rangers traded Ortiz, outfielder

Lewis Brinson Lewis Lamont Brinson (born May 8, 1994) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Miami Marlins ...

, and outfielder Ryan Cordell to 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 ...

for catcher

Jonathan Lucroy Jonathan Charles Lucroy (born June 13, 1986) is a former American professional baseball catcher. Between 2010 and 2021, he spent 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) playing for the Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, Oakl ...

and pitcher

Jeremy Jeffress Jeremy Ross Jeffress (born September 21, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers, ...

. He was assigned to the

Biloxi Shuckers The Biloxi Shuckers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Biloxi, Mississippi, and are named in reference to the city's oyster industry and seafood heri ...

. In 22 games between High Desert, Frisco, and Biloxi, Oritz posted a 6-8 record with one save and a 3.08 ERA in 22 games (20 starts). At the time his pitching repertoire consisted of a 93-96 mph plus fastball with some movement, an above-average 83-85 mph slider, and an average changeup. After being ranked the #3 prospect in the Brewers system by ''Baseball America'', Oritz returned to Biloxi in 2017. He pitched to a 4-7 record and 4.01 ERA in 94.1 innings pitched in 22 games (20 starts).

MLB.com MLB.com is the official site of Major League Baseball and is overseen by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P. (a subsidiary of MLB). MLB.com is a source of baseball-related information, including baseball news, statistics, and sports column ...

ranked Ortiz as Milwaukee's fifth-best prospect going into the 2018 season, and Baseball America ranked him its #4 prospect. He began the season with Biloxi. In July, he represented the Brewers in the 2018

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League ...

Baltimore Orioles

On July 31, 2018, Ortiz,

Jonathan Villar Jonathan Rafael Villar Roque (born May 2, 1991) is a Dominican professional baseball second baseman who is a free agent. He has previously played in MLB for the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles, Miami Marlins, Toronto Bl ...

and Jean Carmona were traded to the

in exchange for

Jonathan Schoop Jonathan Rufino Jezus Schoop ( ; born October 16, 1991) is a Curaçaoan professional baseball second baseman for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, and Minnesot ...

. Pitching for AAA Norfolk (with whom he was the youngest player on the team's roster at 22 years of age) and AA Biloxi in 2018, he was a combined 5-5 with two saves and a 3.70 ERA as in 22 games (17 starts) in 99.2 innings he gave up 26 walks and had 86 strikeouts. Ortiz had his contract selected on September 4, 2018. He pitched 2.1 major league innings in 2018. In 2019, Ortiz was optioned to the

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesapea ...

to open the season. After being put on the injured list on July 4, he made only one appearance the rest of the season. Ortiz was outrighted off the Orioles roster on October 30, 2019. He became a free agent on November 2, 2020.

Texas Rangers (second stint)

On December 16, 2020, Ortiz signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers. Ortiz spent the 2021 season with the Triple-A

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home games at the Dell Diamond. The team is named ...

. He made 28 appearances (4 starts), going 2–2 with a 4.60 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 44 innings. He became a free agent on November 17, 2021.

San Francisco Giants

On February 2, 2022, Ortiz signed a minor league contract with the

. Pitching for AAA Sacramento in 2022, he was 4-3 with two saves and a 4.54 ERA in 35 games (four starts), as in 67.1 innings he had 13 walks and 72 strikeouts. In 2022 with the Giants, he was 0-0 with a 1.04 ERA in 8.2 innings.

Philadelphia Phillies

On November 9, 2022, Ortiz was claimed off waivers by the

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ortiz, Luis 1995 births Living people People from Sanger, California Baseball players from California American baseball players of Mexican descent Major League Baseball pitchers Baltimore Orioles players San Francisco Giants players Arizona League Rangers players Hickory Crawdads players Surprise Saguaros players High Desert Mavericks players Frisco RoughRiders players Biloxi Shuckers players Norfolk Tides players Round Rock Express players Sacramento River Cats players