Robinson Garcia Tejeda (born March 24, 1982) 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 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

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 ...

, Texas Rangers and

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 ...

Baseball career

Philadelphia Phillies

Tejeda was first signed as an amateur

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 ...

by the

on November 24, . He made his professional debut the following year with the

GCL Phillies The Florida Complex League Phillies are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Phillies. The team plays ...

. Tejeda spent the , , and seasons with the Single-A

Lakewood BlueClaws The Jersey Shore BlueClaws (formerly Lakewood BlueClaws) are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Lakewood, New Jersey, and are named for their locat ...

and

Clearwater Threshers The Clearwater Threshers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Clearwater, Florida, and have played their home games at BayCare Ballpark since 2 ...

before being promoted to the Double-A

Reading Phillies Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in . In , Tejeda made the jump to the major league club. Starting with his debut 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 ...

on May 10, 2005, he appeared in 26 games – half of those as a starter. Tejeda was a former member of the Dominican Republic team in the

2006 World Baseball Classic The 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was the inaugural tournament between national baseball teams that included players from Major League Baseball. It was held from March 3 to 20 in stadiums that are in and around Tokyo, Japan; San Juan, Puerto ...

. He only made two appearances during the tournament, a

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 ...

inning against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and a rough ninth-inning appearance in the Dominican Republic's first game against

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Texas Rangers

Just prior to the start of the season, Tejeda was dealt by the Phillies to the Texas Rangers along with

Jake Blalock Hank Joe Blalock (born November 21, 1980) is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays. High school Blalock attended Rancho Bernardo High School in ...

(the brother of

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

Hank Blalock Hank Joe Blalock (born November 21, 1980) is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays. High school Blalock attended Rancho Bernardo High School in ...

) in exchange 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 ...

David Dellucci David Michael Dellucci (born October 31, 1973) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for seven teams. High school Dellucci graduated from Catholic High in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

. He started the season with the Triple-A

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 ...

, but was called up to the Rangers at the end of April. His first outings were shaky, and he was quickly reassigned back to Oklahoma. Aside from an emergency call-up in June, Tejeda stayed with the RedHawks until he was recalled for good in mid-August. Tejeda was in excellent form for the latter third of the season, going 4-1 over eight starts, with an

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. Compa ...

of 2.01. Tejeda earned a spot in the starting rotation for the season, but poor performance in July resulted in his demotion back to Triple-A.

Kansas City Royals

On June 24, , the Kansas City Royals claimed Tejeda off waivers from the Rangers. Tejeda throws a quality

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 ...

(96 mph) and

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 ...

, and is developing a useful

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...

. In spring training in 2009, Tejeda led all players in walks, with 17 (in 17.1 innings). On May 26, 2011, Tejeda was designated for assignment by the Royals. He elected free agency after the season on October 7.

Cleveland Indians

On January 3, 2012, Tejeda signed a minor league contract 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 ...

. He also received an invitation to spring training. Tejeda was released by the Indians' organization on May 16, 2012.

Mexican League

On July 4, 2013, Tejeda signed with the Rojos del Águila de Veracruz of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

Independent leagues

Tejada signed with the

Joplin Blasters The Joplin Blasters were an American professional baseball team based in Joplin, Missouri. The Blasters were members of the South Division of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. The team's home games were played at a rec ...

of the

American Association of Independent Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tejeda, Robinson 1982 births Living people Arizona League Rangers players Azucareros del Este players Clearwater Phillies players Columbus Clippers players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Florida Complex League Phillies players Kansas City Royals players Lakewood BlueClaws players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Mexican League baseball pitchers Northwest Arkansas Naturals players Oklahoma RedHawks players Omaha Royals players Omaha Storm Chasers players People from Baní Philadelphia Phillies players Reading Phillies players Rojos del Águila de Veracruz players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons players Texas Rangers players Tigres del Licey players Toros del Este players World Baseball Classic players of the Dominican Republic 2006 World Baseball Classic players