Julián Tavárez
Boston Red Sox — No. 51 | |
Relief Pitcher | |
Born: May 22, 1973 | |
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Bats: Left | Throws: Right |
Major League Baseball debut | |
August 6, 1993 for the Cleveland Indians | |
Selected MLB statistics (through 2006) |
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Win-Loss | 77-59 |
Earned Run Average | 4.34 |
Strikeouts | 700 |
Teams | |
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Julián Tavárez is a long relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.
Contents |
Childhood
Julian Carmen Tavárez was born on May 22, 1973 in Santiago, Dominican Republic, and received no formal education. The son of a construction worker living in poverty, Tavárez shined shoes, sold newspapers and helped out at construction sites. He aspired to be a baseball player but contemplated a career in adult films if he had no future in baseball.[1]
Baseball Career
Minor Leagues
Tavárez began his professional career on March 16, 1990, signing a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians organization. For two years he was a starter for the Dominican Summer League Indians. In 1991, he joined the Class A Burlington Indians where he led the league in shutouts and hit batsmen. Tavárez progressed rapidly the following year, playing in Kinston, Canton-Akron, and finally with the Cleveland Indians.
Cleveland Indians
He made his major league debut on August 6, 1993 and received his first win on August 14 against the Texas Rangers. For his time in Canton-Akron, Tavárez won Carolina League Player of the Year honors and was named the league's top prospect by Baseball America. Tavárez was demoted to Class AAA Charlotte in 1994, where he led the International League in wins. He did make one spot start for Cleveland that year. Tavárez was sent to the bullpen in 1995, which was a breakout year for him. He was first in wins, third in innings pitched, and fifth in ERA among American League relief pitchers and threw 4.1 scoreless innings against the Atlanta Braves in the World Series. Tavárez was the Sporting News American League Rookie of the Year but finished sixth in the ballot by the Baseball Writers Association of America. 1996 was Tavárez's final year with Cleveland. He was suspended for three days after a brawl in Milwaukee and spent two weeks in Triple-A Buffalo before appearing in the ALDS.
San Francisco Giants
Tavárez was traded to the San Francisco Giants on November 13, 1996, along with infielders Jeff Kent and Jose Vizcaino and a player to be named (pitcher Joe Roa) in exchange for third baseman Matt Williams and a player to be named (outfielder Trenidad Hubbard). In his first year with the club, Tavárez led the National League with 89 appearances, while also setting a club record in the statistic. He had a stretch of 24 consecutive scoreless games and appeared in all three games of the NLDS against the Florida Marlins. Tavárez recorded his first save on May 14, 1998 with a 3 inning outing against the Montreal Expos. He also made his first appearance on the disabled list after straining a latissimus dorsi muscle and received his second suspension after an argument with umpire . Tavárez again appeared on the disabled list in 1999 due to pneumonia and had two minor league stints.
Colorado Rockies
Tavárez was claimed off waivers by the Colorado Rockies on November 21, 1999. He recorded one of two career major league complete games with a four-hitter against the Chicago Cubs and went on to post an NL best 9-game win streak on his way to a career high 11 wins.
Chicago Cubs
Tavárez signed as a free agent with the Chicago Cubs on November 16, 2000 and set career highs in innings, strikeouts, and games started after returning to a full-time starting role. On April 11, he executed a safety squeeze to record his first RBI. He was suspended from April 29 to May 4 for his part in a bench clearing brawl against the San Francisco Giants. On May 5, Tavárez won a lopsided 20-1 game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He then recorded his first multi-hit game against Pittsburgh on July 24. On October 6 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Tavárez struck out 9 hitters and took a no-hitter into the eighth inning before it was broken up by Mendy Lopez.
Florida Marlins
Tavárez was acquired by the Florida Marlins on March 27, 2002, along with minor league pitchers and Dontrelle Willis and catcher in exchange for pitchers Antonio Alfonseca and Matt Clement. On May 16 he chose to pitch with a shoulder injury and allowed a career high 10 earned runs. It began a stretch of 5 consecutive losses. He allowed 25 runs and had a .391 opponents batting average in the first-inning.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Tavárez was relegated to bullpen duty in 2003 after being signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a minor league free agent on January 28. During the season he compiled a streak of 14.1 consecutive scoreless innings and ended the season with a career-high 11 saves, allowing only 9 of 35 inherited runners to score.
St. Louis Cardinals
Tavárez signed on with the St. Louis Cardinals on January 9, 2004. He earned his first win with St. Louis against the Cincinnati Reds, striking out the side in the 10th inning, and went on to surpass 1000 career innings pitched in August.
Tavárez was ejected from a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 20, 2004 after an accusation of having a "foreign substance" on his cap. He served an 8 day suspension for the incident.
Tavárez posted a 2.61 ERA in nine postseason games but suffered breaks in his left ring finger and fifth metacarpal after punching a bullpen phone in the dugout following being removed from Game 4 of the NLCS. He had allowed a solo home run to Carlos Beltran, issued two walks, and hit a batter. Tavárez played the rest of the 2004 postseason with a protective wrap in his glove, and when the glove was removed his hand was noticeably swollen. Tavárez suffered the loss against the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 of the 2004 World Series, giving up the game-winning home run to Mark Bellhorn in the eighth inning.
Boston Red Sox
A free agent following the 2005 season, Tavárez agreed to a $6.7 million, two-year deal with the Boston Red Sox on January 18, 2006.
On March 27, 2006, Tavárez was suspended for the first ten games of his Red Sox career as a result of a fistfight that broke out between him and Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Joey Gathright during a spring training game. Although he had a poor year as a relief pitcher, injuries forced the Sox to use him as a starter for the last few weeks of the season. In 6 starts, he went 3-0 with a 4.01 ERA, and recorded his second complete game in a 7-1 win against the Toronto Blue Jays.
On March 22, 2007, teammate Jonathan Papelbon was named the team's closer, and Tavárez took his spot in the rotation.
Tavárez called the 2007 Red Sox pitching staff the best he's ever been associated with.[2]
During a game in May of 2007, Tavárez wore shoes emblazoned with the likeness of his teammate David Ortiz.[3]
In Spring Training, it had been assumed that Tavárez was simply holding the fifth spot in the rotation for the Red Sox top pitching prospect Jon Lester while he recovered from cancer. However, with Lester struggling in Triple A and Tavárez pitching well, he kept his spot in the rotation through the All-Star break.
After a stretch of poor starts, 0-4 with a 7.79 ERA, he was moved to the bullpen on July 22, 2007 and replaced in the rotation by Jon Lester.
Tavárez has become a great clubhouse presence in his second year with the Red Sox, and has brought some comical moments to the '07 Red Sox, including rolling the ball to first base on multiple occasions, and directing his infielders on where to throw the ball like a traffic cop.
See also
References
External links
7 J.D. Drew | 10 Coco Crisp | 12 Eric Hinske | 13 Alex Cora | 15 Dustin Pedroia | 17 Manny Delcarmen | 18 Daisuke Matsuzaka | 19 Josh Beckett | 20 Kevin Youkilis | 22 Wily Mo Peña | 23 Julio Lugo | 24 Manny Ramírez | 25 Mike Lowell | 28 Doug Mirabelli | 30 Matt Clement (DL) | 31 Jon Lester | 33 Jason Varitek | 34 David Ortiz | 37 Hideki Okajima | 38 Curt Schilling | 39 Kyle Snyder | 48 Javier López | 49 Tim Wakefield | 50 Mike Timlin | 51 Julián Tavárez | 58 Jonathan Papelbon | 83 Eric Gagné
Manager Terry Francona | Bench Coach Brad Mills | 1st Base Coach Luis Alicea | 3rd Base Coach DeMarlo Hale | Hitting Coach Dave Magadan | Pitching Coach John Farrell | Bullpen Coach Gary Tuck