José Rijo

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José Antonio Rijo Abreu (born May 13, 1965 in San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic) is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the Cincinnati Reds (1988-1995 and 2001-2002).

Plagued by injuries during his career, he left the major leagues at age 30 before returning six years later for one and a half seasons. Rijo is 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, 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 fifteen years.

When Rijo broke into the majors with the New York Yankees 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 commented that Yankee owner George Steinbrenner had orchestrated the call-up, hoping to create a phenom along the lines of the crosstown Mets' 1984 rookie sensation Dwight Gooden. When this did not happen, Rijo was sent to the Oakland A's as part of a trade package for Rickey Henderson.

While with the Oakland Athletics he struck out 16 Seattle Mariners on April 16, 1986, setting a club record. But his time in Oakland was 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, who'd had 338 runs batted in over the previous three seasons.

Rijo's age eventually caught up to his talent. He was a member of the National League All-Star Team in 1994. Rijo also led the league in 1993 and 1994 in games started. He led the NL in 1993 in strikeouts 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 and 15 strikeouts in 15-1/3 innings. It was his only postseason experience.

He pitched a one-hitter against the Colorado Rockies in 1993. 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 vote since Minnie Miñoso (who received six Hall of Fame votes in 1969) appeared for the Chicago White Sox in 1980. In 2008, Rijo was again on the Hall of Fame ballot; he got 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. Rijo currently works as a special assistant to general manager Jim Bowden of the Washington Nationals baseball team.

On March 30, 2008 Rijo warmed up the president before he threw out the traditional first pitch for the Washington Nationals' home opener.

Rijo was once married to Juan Marichal's daughter.

[edit] See also

• List of Major League Baseball strikeout champions

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Washington Nationals official site
• 1969 BBWAA Hall of Fame Balloting