Antonio C. Santillan (born April 15, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher for 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 ...

of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Amateur career

Santillan attended Seguin High School in

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...

. He committed to play college baseball at Texas Tech University. He was selected by the

in the second round of the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks ...

Professional career

After signing, Santillan made his professional debut with the

Arizona League Reds The Arizona Complex League Reds are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Arizona. The team is composed m ...

and spent all of his first professional season there, pitching to an 0–2 record and 5.03 ERA in innings pitched. He pitched 2016 with both the

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Dehler ...

and Dayton Dragons, compiling a combined 3–3 record, 5.19 ERA, and 1.43 WHIP in 15 games started between both teams, and spent 2017 back with Dayton, posting a 9–8 record and 3.38 ERA in 25 games (24 starts). He started 2018 with the Daytona Tortugas and was promoted to the Double–A Pensacola Blue Wahoos during the season. In 26 combined starts between the two clubs, he was 10–7 with a 3.08 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He spent 2019 with the Chattanooga Lookouts, going 2–8 with a 4.84 ERA over 21 starts, striking out 92 over innings. On November 20, 2019, the Reds added Santillan 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 ...

to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 12, 2021, Santillan was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. Santillan made his MLB debut the next day as the starting pitcher against the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

, pitching innings of 1-run ball with 5 strikeouts. He recorded his first career strikeout versus Rockies shortstop Trevor Story. He finished his debut campaign making 26 appearances and posting a 1–3 record and 2.91 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 43.1 innings pitched. In 2022, Santillan pitched in 21 games for the Reds, registering a 5.49 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 19.2 innings of work. He was placed on the 60-day injured list with a lower-back strain on July 4, 2022, and was later ruled out for the remainder of the season. On April 28, 2023, Santillan was placed on the 60-day injured list. He had initially began the year on the injured list with a back injury, but suffered a knee injury while on rehab assignment, thus extending his stay. Santillan was activated from the injured list on July 6. In 3 games for the Reds, he logged a 2.70 ERA with 1 strikeout in innings pitched. On August 29, Santillan was designated for assignment by Cincinnati. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple–A Louisville on September 1. He re-signed with Cincinnati on a new minor league contract on November 9. Santillan began the 2024 campaign with Triple–A Louisville. In 38 relief appearances, he compiled a 3.49 ERA with 53 strikeouts and 16 saves across innings pitched. On July 13, 2024, the Reds selected Santillan's contract, adding him to their active roster.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Santillan, Tony 1997 births Living people Arizona League Reds players Baseball players from Fort Worth, Texas Billings Mustangs players Chattanooga Lookouts players Cincinnati Reds players Dayton Dragons players Daytona Tortugas players Louisville Bats players Major League Baseball pitchers Pensacola Blue Wahoos players Baseball players from Arlington, Texas