José Antonio Rijo Abreu (born May 13, 1965) is a
Dominican former
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...
in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) who spent the majority of his career with the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
(1988–1995 and 2001–2002). Signed by the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
as an amateur
free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager 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 a contract at present ...
in 1980, Rijo made his MLB debut with them in 1984, and also played in MLB for the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
. He pitched and batted right-handed, stood tall, and weighed during his playing career.
The most notable success of Rijo's career came as a member of the Reds, where each year 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 ...
from 1988 to 1993, he posted an
earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
(ERA) below 3.00. He led the Reds to the
1990 World Series title and was named
World Series MVP as Cincinnati swept the defending champion
Oakland A's
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
.
In 1993, he led the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
in strikeouts and
Wins Above Replacement (WAR), at 10.6. He was named to the
All-Star Game
An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...
in
1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
.
Elbow injuries sidelined Rijo for most of the 1995 season and the entire 1996−2000 seasons. In 2001, he returned to the Reds as a
relief pitcher
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...
. By doing so, he became the first player to appear in a game after receiving a
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
vote since
Minnie Miñoso in 1976.
Rijo won the
Tony Conigliaro Award in 2002. He retired after that season, and was elected to the
Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 2005.
Playing career
Plagued by injuries during his career, he left the major leagues at age 30 before returning six years later for seasons.
Rijo is perhaps best known for his performance in the
1990 World Series, when he recorded two
victories in a four-game sweep over the defending champion
Oakland A's
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
, including a two-hitter in the final Game Four.
Rijo's performance earned him the
World Series MVP Award as the Reds won their first championship in 14 years.
When Rijo broke into the majors with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
in 1984, he was 18 years old and the youngest player in either league.
The previous year, he'd had a 15–5 record in the Florida League with a 1.68 ERA.
But he did not have a good rookie season, and some observers (notably
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
) commented that Yankee owner
George Steinbrenner
George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...
had orchestrated the call-up, hoping to create a
phenom along the lines of the crosstown
Mets' 1984 rookie sensation
Dwight Gooden.
On December 5, 1984, the Yankees traded Rijo with
Eric Plunk,
Tim Birtsas,
Jay Howell, and
Stan Javier to the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
for
Rickey Henderson
Rickey Nelson Henley Henderson (December 25, 1958 – December 20, 2024), nicknamed "Man of Steal", was an American professional baseball left fielder who played 25 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, inc ...
,
Bert Bradley, and cash.
While with the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
, he struck out 16
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...
on April 16, 1986,
setting a club record.
In his next start, he struck out 14 in a 2-hitter against the same Mariners organization, despite losing the game.
But his time in Oakland was otherwise largely nondescript, with just 17 wins in three seasons.
Even so, Rijo was still considered enough of a prospect for the Reds to acquire him in exchange for aging slugger
Dave Parker
David Gene Parker (born June 9, 1951), nicknamed "the Cobra", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right fielder from 1973 to 1991. A seven-time All-Star, Parker won two National League ba ...
,
who'd had 338
runs batted in
A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...
over the previous three seasons.

Rijo's age eventually caught up to his talent. He was a member of the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
All-Star Team in 1994.
Rijo also led the league in 1993 and 1994 in
games started
In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games pitched, games that a pitcher has starting pitcher, started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opp ...
.
He led the NL in 1993 in
strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...
s and
strikeouts per nine innings, and in 1991 he led the NL in winning percentage.
Rijo was 3–0 in the 1990 postseason,
including two World Series wins against Oakland, the team that had traded him away three years before.
After winning Game One by a 7–0 score, he shut down the A's on two hits in Game Four (both in the first inning), ending the Series with a 0.59
earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
and 15 strikeouts in innings.
It was the only postseason experience of his entire career.
Rijo pitched a one-hitter 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
in
1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
.
The year after his All-Star season (1995), Rijo was sidelined with a serious elbow injury.
Despite several comeback attempts, his elbow troubles kept him out of baseball for five full years.
Rijo made an unexpected comeback to the game in 2001, returning to Cincinnati as a reliever.
In doing so, Rijo became the first major league player to appear in a game after having received a
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
vote since
Minnie Miñoso (who received six Hall of Fame votes in 1969) appeared for the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...
in 1976 and 1980.
In 2008, Rijo was again on the Hall of Fame ballot; he received no votes.
In 2002, his final season, Rijo received the
Tony Conigliaro Award.
He made a handful of starts that year, including a win in his first start since 1995, and the last game at
Riverfront Stadium
Riverfront Stadium, also known as Cinergy Field from 1996 to 2002, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 Cincinnati Reds season, 1970 through 2002 Cincinna ...
.
Rijo was on the 2003 Reds roster, but he suffered an elbow injury causing him to miss the entire season, and retired soon thereafter.
Life after retirement
Rijo used to work as a special assistant to general manager
Jim Bowden of the
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...
baseball team.
Starting in February 2009, he took a leave of absence from his position after it was discovered that one of Rijo's scouting finds, shortstop
Esmailyn Gonzalez, was actually named Carlos David Alvarez Lugo and was four years older than the Nationals believed when they signed him.
On February 25, Rijo was dismissed from the Nationals' organization and his Dominican baseball academy closed down.
In 2013, the Nationals filed suit against an insurance company to recoup $1 million of the signing bonus; Lugo had testified that "he kicked back $300,000 of his bonus to Jose Rijo" (in January 2011 Rijo had denied receiving any money).
In December 2011, the Dominican Republic's Anti-Money Laundering sought to question Rijo in relation to his business dealings with Matías "Daniel" Avelino Castro, a drug trafficker who was alleged to be the mastermind of the murder of journalist
José Agustín Silvestre de los Santos. In July 2012, he was charged with money laundering;
[ according to a prosecutor, "about 80 percent of the assets of fugitive drug suspect Avelino Castro were in Rijo's name", including two hotels. Prosecutors did not issue an arrest warrant, but asked a court to order Rijo to stay in the country. A hotel Rijo claimed he owned, formerly owned by Castro, had tested positive for cocaine.
Rijo was once married to Juan Marichal's daughter, Rosie.]
Rijo had a supporting role in the 2008 baseball film ''Sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose
Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...
''.
Rijo became eligible for the National Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...
in 2001. 75% of the vote was necessary for induction, and 5% was necessary to stay on the ballot. He received 0.2% of the vote, and was dropped off the BBWAA ballot. He again became eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2008 since he played in 2001 after a six-year hiatus. He received no votes and fell off the ballot.Hall of Fame voting, 2008
/ref>
Awards and achievements
;Awards
* MLB Pitcher of the Month (September 1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
)
* 2× MLB Pitcher of the Month (May 14, 1989; September 23, 1990)
* Tony Conigliaro Award (2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
)
;National League statistical leader
* 2× Games started leader (1993, 1994)
* Strikeouts leader (1993)
* Strikeouts per 9 innings pitched leader (1993)
* Walks plus hits per inning pitched
In baseball statistics, walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) is a Sabermetrics, sabermetric measurement of the number of Baserunning#Becoming a runner, baserunners a pitcher has allowed per Innings pitched, inning pitched. WHIP is calculate ...
leader (1991)
* Winning percentage leader (1991)
* Wins Above Replacement leader (1993)
;American and National League statistical top ten
* 6× Adjusted ERA+ (1988, 1990−94)
* 6× Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
(1988, 1990−94)
* 3× Games started (1992−94)
* 2× Innings pitched
In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...
(1993, 1994)
* 6× Strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...
s (1986, 1990−94)
* 7× Strikeouts per 9 innings pitched leader (1986, 1988, 1990−94)
* 3× Walks plus hits per inning pitched (1991−93)
* 3× Wins (1990−92)
* 4× Wins Above Replacement (1990−93)
See also
* List of Major League Baseball annual strikeout leaders
* List of Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
References
External links
Washington Nationals official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rijo, Jose
1965 births
Living people
Azucareros del Este players
Chattanooga Lookouts players
Cincinnati Reds players
Columbus Clippers players
Dayton Dragons players
Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States
Fort Lauderdale Yankees players
Gulf Coast Yankees players
Louisville RiverBats players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
20th-century Dominican Republic sportsmen
Nashville Sounds players
National League All-Stars
National League strikeout champions
New York Yankees players
Oakland Athletics players
Paintsville Yankees players
Baseball players from San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic
Tacoma Tigers players
World Series Most Valuable Player Award winners