Ricardo Rincón Espinoza (born April 13, 1970) was a Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 relief pitcher

Relief pitcher

A relief pitcher or reliever is a baseball or softball pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, fatigue, ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as being substituted by a pinch hitter...

.

Rincón was a left-handed specialist

Left-handed specialist

In baseball, a left-handed specialist is a left-handed relief pitcher who specializes in pitching to left-handed batters, or to switch-hitters who bat poorly right-handed...

 who spent nearly his entire career as a middle reliever and setup pitcher

Setup pitcher

In baseball, a setup pitcher is a relief pitcher who regularly pitches before the closer. They commonly pitch the 7th and/or 8th innings, with the closer pitching the 9th....

. In his 10-year career, Rincón never started a game and only accumulated 21 saves. Rincón played for several teams in Mexico before being signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...

 in , breaking into the major leagues at the relatively advanced age of 27. On November 18, 1998 he was traded to the Cleveland Indians

Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

 for outfielder Brian Giles

Brian Giles

Brian Stephen Giles is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. During his career he played for the Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres...

. He later to pitched for the Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

 and 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...

.

Rincón played for his native Mexico in the 2006 World Baseball Classic

2006 World Baseball Classic

---------Pool B:-------------Pool C:-------------Pool D:-------------Pool 1:-----------------Pool 2:-------------Finals:-Semifinals:-Final:-Final standings:...

, appearing in four games. Shortly after the Classic and five games into his Cardinal career, Rincón experienced shoulder pain and later underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum and rotator cuff

Rotator cuff

In anatomy, the rotator cuff is the group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the shoulder. The four muscles of the rotator cuff, along with the teres major muscle, the coracobrachialis muscle and the deltoid, make up the seven scapulohumeral muscles of the human body.-Function:The...

. He also had Tommy John surgery

Tommy John surgery

Tommy John surgery, known in medical practice as ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, is a surgical procedure in which a ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with a tendon from elsewhere in the body...

 on his left elbow, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season. He played in 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....

 organization in . On January 25, , Rincón signed with the New York Mets. He was loaned to the Mexico City Red Devils

Diablos Rojos del México

Diablos Rojos del México is a professional baseball team in the Mexican League.This team is located in Mexico City. The team name, Diablos Rojos del México, means Mexico City Red Devils. It is often believed that they are named after the Cincinnati Reds. That is, however, not the case...

 for the 2008 season, and was returned on August 28 and assigned to Triple-A New Orleans

New Orleans Zephyrs

The New Orleans Zephyrs are a minor league baseball team based in Metairie, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans. The Zephyrs play in the Pacific Coast League and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. The Zephyrs play their home games at Zephyr Field....

.

Rincón was part of a combined no-hitter

No-hitter

A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...

 on July 12, 1997. After Francisco Cordova

Francisco Cordova

Francisco Córdova is a former Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates from - and who is currently playing in the Mexican Triple-A League for the Petroleros de Minatitlán.-Career:On January 18, 1996, Córdova was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as...

 threw nine inning

Inning

Inning is a municipality in the district of Erding in Bavaria in Germany....

s of no-hit ball, Rincón relieved him and pitched a scoreless 10th. Teammate Mark Smith

Mark Smith (baseball outfielder)

Mark Edward Smith is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder.-Professional career:Mark Smith played between 1994 and 2003 for the Baltimore Orioles, Pittsburgh Pirates, Florida Marlins, Montreal Expos and Milwaukee Brewers...

 then hit a three-run walk-off home run

Walk-off home run

In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. It must be a home run that gives the home team the lead in the bottom of the final inning of the game—either the ninth inning, or any extra inning, or any other regularly scheduled final inning...

 in the bottom of the 10th to give Rincón the win

Win (baseball)

In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...

. To date, it is the last no-hitter in Pirates history. http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/gallery/featured/GAL1137746/11/26/index.htm

He throws a four-seam fastball

Fastball

The fastball is the most common type of pitch in baseball. Some "power pitchers," such as Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, have thrown it at speeds of 95–106 mph and up to 108.1 mph , relying purely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit...

, slider

Slider

In baseball, a slider is a pitch that breaks laterally and down, with a speed between that of a curveball and that of a fastball....

, changeup

Changeup

A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball. Other names include change-of-pace, Bugs Bunny change-up, the dreaded equalizer, and simply change. The changeup is sometimes called an off-speed pitch, although that term can also be used simply to mean any pitch that is slower than a fastball...

, and two-seam fastball.

He is currently married to his wife Jaqueline, they have two children, a daughter; Damaris (born 5-24-93), and a son, Ricardo, Jr. (born 7-4-98).

External links