Raisel Iglesias (born January 4, 1990) is a

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

professional baseball pitcher for the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bost ...

of Major League Baseball (MLB). In 2014, Iglesias signed with the Cincinnati Reds. He previously played in MLB for the Reds and Los Angeles Angels.

Career

Cuban career

Iglesias played for the

Piratas de Isla de la Juventud Piratas de Isla de la Juventud, or simply Piratas de la Isla is a baseball team in the Cuban National Series. Based in Nueva Gerona, Isla de la Juventud, the Piratas reached the Finals of the 54th Cuban National Series, remaining as runners-up. ...

in the Cuban National Series, and played for the

Cuban national baseball team The Cuba national baseball team (Spanish: ''Selección de béisbol de Cuba'') represents Cuba at regional and international levels. The team is made up from the most professional players from the Cuban national baseball system. Cuba has been des ...

, appearing 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 ...

and

2013 World Port Tournament The 2013 World Port Tournament was an international baseball competition held at the DOOR Neptunus Familiestadion in Rotterdam, the Netherlands from June 30 through July 7, 2013. It was the 12th edition of the tournament and featured teams from C ...

. In September 2013, Iglesias attempted to defect from Cuba. He hid in the mountains of

Isla de la Juventud Isla de la Juventud (; en, Isle of Youth) is the second-largest Cuban island (after Cuba's mainland) and the seventh-largest island in the West Indies (after mainland Cuba itself, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, and Andros Islan ...

, but was caught and was detained. In November of that same year, Iglesias successfully defected from Cuba. He established his residency in

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

, held an open tryout in Mexico in December 2013.

Cincinnati Reds

On June 27, 2014, Iglesias signed with 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 ...

, to a seven-year contract worth $27 million. The Reds formally added him to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, and ...

when he arrived in the United States on August 12. In

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

in 2015, the Reds evaluated Iglesias 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 ...

. He started the season in the Reds'

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

starting rotation, and made his MLB debut on April 12. He had a couple of stints 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 ...

, limiting him to just 18 games, 16 of them starts. His record was 3–7 with 104 strikeouts. The following season, after beginning the season in the rotation, Iglesias was moved to the bullpen. Iglesias served as setup man and closer for the Reds, finishing with six saves in 37 games. In 2019, Iglesias started the season as the Reds closer and ended the year with career-highs in saves (34) and appearances (68) and a 4.16 ERA. On August 8, 2020, Iglesias earned his 100th MLB career save against the Brewers. In 2020, Iglesias pitched to a 4-3 record and 2.74 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 23.0 innings of work.

Los Angeles Angels

On December 7, 2020, Iglesias was traded to the Angels for

Noé Ramirez Noé Ramirez (born December 22, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He previously in MLB played for the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Arizona Diamondbacks. The Red Sox selected Ramirez in th ...

and Leo Rivas. With the Angels, Iglesias was named American League Reliever of the Month for July 2021. Iglesias finished the 2021 season with a 2.57 ERA, 103 strikeouts and 34 saves. The 34 saves tied his career high and he came up one strikeout short of tying his career high at 104. On December 1, 2021, Iglesias re-signed with the Angels on a four-year, $58 million contract. On June 26, 2022, after the brawl between the Angels and the Seattle Mariners, Iglesias threw a tub of sunflower seeds and a bucket of gum onto the infield. This was also the first ejection of his career.

Atlanta Braves

The Angels traded Iglesias to the Atlanta Braves for

Jesse Chavez Jesse David Chavez (born August 21, 1983) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Atlanta Braves organization. He played college baseball at Riverside Community College, and was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 42nd round of the 2 ...

and

Tucker Davidson Joseph Tucker Davidson (born March 25, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels. Davidson played co ...

on August 2, 2022.

Personal life

Iglesias had a son during the 2018 season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Iglesias, Raisel 1990 births Living people Atlanta Braves players Cincinnati Reds players Defecting Cuban baseball players Louisville Bats players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Cuba Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States National baseball team players People from Isla de la Juventud Surprise Saguaros players Toronjeros de Isla de la Juventud players 2013 World Baseball Classic players