Jonathan Gomes

Jonathan Johnson Gomes is a professional baseball player from the United States of America and plays as an outfielder. At the Casa Grande High School, Gomes was an All-League player and was involved in a car accident where his best friend lost his life, right next to him in the back seat. Graduating in 1999, he went to the Santa Rosa Junior College and in 2001, was selected in the 2001 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, in round 18.

In 2002, Gomes had a heart attack due to a clogged artery which existed despite having just 8% body fat. Gomes had felt the symptoms for 27 hours but had chosen to ignore them, even sleeping through it one night. He went to the hospital only after blacking out for a brief period during which he stopped breathing.

In 2003, he made his Major League debut with the Devil Rays but still spent most of his time in the minors. In 2004, he was shuttling between the AAA-league affiliate, the Durham Bulls and the Devil Rays. He was dropped after a short stint and publicly vowed to get back in the best way possible – by smashing down the selection doors. And he did exactly that, batting at .321 with 14 home runs and 46 RBI in just 45 games with the Durham team. In July, the Devil Rays recalled him for good.
At Tampa Bay, Gomes became a regular starter and also one of the most important players in the team. He hit 21 home runs in just 101 games and had a .348 at-bats average. He ended the season in third place for the 2005 American League Rookie of the Year award.

He began 2006 where he had left off, hitting 11 home runs in April alone. However, for the rest of the season, he only managed 9 more to finish with a batting average of .216. An injured shoulder didn't help his cause and he had chosen to play with the injury rather than opt for surgery. He finally decided to go in for surgery in September. In 2007, Gomes didn't receive much playing time and his batting average was at .184.

He was sent down to the AAA-Durham Bulls again but came back with an immediate impact on his selection. He started brilliantly but slowed down and by the end of the season, was batting at .244 with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs. He also holds the unenviable record of being the 'most hit by pitches' with 28 in all.

In 2008, a major brawl between the Devil Rays and New York Yankees broke out, following which he was ejected from the game and was also suspended for the first two games of the MLB season. Later that season, in June, he was again involved in a bench clearing brawl after Coco Crisp rushed the mound on account of being hit by a pitch. Gomes picked up a 5 game suspension after seen punching Crisp.

In August, Gomes was optioned out to the Durham Bulls to create space for Ben Zobrist but was back when the rosters were expanded in September. At the end of the season, he became a free agent and signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds.