Hailing from the Dominican Republic comes a promising pitcher called Johnny Cueto. In 2005, Cueto came to the world of baseball by beginning in the minor leagues. He started off in the Rookie Gulf Coast League where he played for the Gulf Coast Reds. He was considered too small by many to become a pitcher but Cueto continued on his way and soon, with a 5.02 ERA, was promoted to the Sarasota Reds in the Florida State League.
Cueto was made a part of the Cincinnati Reds’ Farm System in 2005 but it wasn’t until 2006 that his actual capability came out. With the Low A-League team, the Dayton Dragons, Cueto came out all guns blazing. He had a 2.61 ERA and was back at the Sarasota Reds in the High A-League.
In 2007, he began with the Sarasota Reds and this time, after just 14 games, Cueto went red-hot. He moved to the AA-League with the Chattanooga Lookouts and then swiftly continued his ascent to the AAA-League with the Louisville Bats.
| Team |
Cincinnati Reds
|
| Position | Pitcher |
| Born | 15 Feb 1986 |
| Nationality |
Dominican Republic
|
| Team History | |
|
Cincinnati Reds
|
2008 - present |
In 2006 and then again in 2007, Cueto won the Minor League Pitcher of the Year award in the Cincinnati Reds’ farm system. In 2008, Cueto finally got his big break into the MLB when he made his debut for the Reds against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cueto pitched 7 innings and struck out 10 while giving away just one run as a homer in the 6th inning. The home run was the only base-hit Cueto gave away in his debut game. He became the first MLB pitcher to have 10 strikeouts and 0 walks in their debut game. Despite being accredited with a win on debut, Cueto’s performance fell and since then, he dropped to a 7-10 win-loss record with a 5.02 ERA.
Cueto has represented the Dominican Republic at the 2009 World Baseball Classic and notched up a win in their third Pool D game.
