René Arocha
Encyclopedia
René Arocha is a former MLB baseball
player.
in Havana. After graduating from high school, Arocha became a member of Cuba's famed national baseball team.
In 1991, during an international competition, Arocha defected
, opting for a life in the United States
and the chance at playing in the Major Leagues. His story became known across the States when Hispanic
media began talking about him, and Arocha was the subject of many television
reports on Telemundo
and Univision
.
In 1991, Arocha was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals
, and assigned to the Cardinals' farm team in Louisville, Kentucky
. As a pitcher in Louisville in 1992, Arocha posted 12 wins and 7 losses, with an earned run average of 2.70. These numbers prompted the Cardinals to bring Arocha to the Major Leagues, and he debuted with the Cardinals in 1993, winning 11 games and losing 8, while striking out 96 opponents and accumulating an ERA of 3.78.
The 1994 and 1995 seasons were marred for Arocha by injuries, and he only won 7 games in those two years combined, while also losing 7. Arocha was then waived by the Cardinals, becoming a free agent
.
In 1997, Arocha was traded to the San Francisco Giants
, and he went to the Giants' Pacific League farm team, the Phoenix Firebirds
. He won 7 games with the Firebirds that year, while losing only 3. He was then assigned to the Columbus
team of the International League. After winning one game there, Arocha returned to the major leagues, pitching ten innings for the Giants before the 1997 season was over. He did not win or lose any games for the Giants.
Arocha finished his professional baseball career with a team in New Orleans
in 1998 at the age of 32.
Arocha had 18 wins and 17 losses in the major leagues, with an ERA of 4.11 and 190 strikeouts in four seasons, three with the Cardinals and one with the Giants.
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
player.
Biography
René Arocha studied as a teenager at the Regla high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in Havana. After graduating from high school, Arocha became a member of Cuba's famed national baseball team.
In 1991, during an international competition, Arocha defected
Defection
In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...
, opting for a life in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the chance at playing in the Major Leagues. His story became known across the States when Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
media began talking about him, and Arocha was the subject of many television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
reports on Telemundo
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
and Univision
Univision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
.
In 1991, Arocha was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
, and assigned to the Cardinals' farm team in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. As a pitcher in Louisville in 1992, Arocha posted 12 wins and 7 losses, with an earned run average of 2.70. These numbers prompted the Cardinals to bring Arocha to the Major Leagues, and he debuted with the Cardinals in 1993, winning 11 games and losing 8, while striking out 96 opponents and accumulating an ERA of 3.78.
The 1994 and 1995 seasons were marred for Arocha by injuries, and he only won 7 games in those two years combined, while also losing 7. Arocha was then waived by the Cardinals, becoming a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
.
In 1997, Arocha was traded to the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
, and he went to the Giants' Pacific League farm team, the Phoenix Firebirds
Phoenix Firebirds
The Phoenix Firebirds, formerly the Phoenix Giants, were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Phoenix, Arizona, USA from 1958-1959, and 1966 until 1997....
. He won 7 games with the Firebirds that year, while losing only 3. He was then assigned to the Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
team of the International League. After winning one game there, Arocha returned to the major leagues, pitching ten innings for the Giants before the 1997 season was over. He did not win or lose any games for the Giants.
Arocha finished his professional baseball career with a team in New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
in 1998 at the age of 32.
Arocha had 18 wins and 17 losses in the major leagues, with an ERA of 4.11 and 190 strikeouts in four seasons, three with the Cardinals and one with the Giants.