Former MLB reliever Reyes Moronta, who last pitched in the majors last season, has passed away per an announcement from the Mexican League’s Bravos de Leon. According to a report from Mike Rodriguez, Moronta’s tragic passing came following a traffic accident earlier this evening. Moronta, who pitched for the Giants, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Angels in a big league career that spanned parts of six seasons, was just 31 years old.
Moronta began his pro career in September 2010 at just 17 years old, when he signed with the Giants out of the Dominican Republic on a $15,000 bonus. The righty made his pro debut in the Dominican Summer League the following year and immediately impressed with a 2.13 ERA in 42 1/3 innings of work. He made his stateside debut the following year and slowly climbed his way through the minor leagues before making his MLB debut with San Francisco in 2017 at the age of 24. That first cup of coffee at the big league level ultimately lasted just seven appearances, but he pitched to a strong 2.70 ERA in 6 2/3 innings of work while striking out 37.9% of batters faced.
That strong showing in his first taste of big league action earned Moronta are larger role with the Giants headed into the 2018 season, and over the next two years the righty emerged as one of the most dominant forces in the club’s bullpen with a 2.66 ERA (50% better than league average by ERA+) as he punched out an excellent 29.3% of opponents, more than making up for an elevated 13.8% walk rate. Unfortunately, injury woes began to complicate what was an excellent start to Moronta’s young career when he underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder in September of 2019.
The right-hander missed the entire 2020 campaign while rehabbing following that surgery and returned to the mound in 2021 to kick off his age-28 campaign. The injury bug continued to bite Moronta, however, and he was sidelined after just four innings of work by an elbow sprain that cost him the majority of the 2021 season. Moronta was outrighted off the Giants roster late in the year and elected free agency following the season, eventually signing with the Dodgers on a minor league deal prior to the 2022 campaign. Moronta wasn’t quite as dominant in his age-29 season as he had been earlier in his career with the Giants, but he nonetheless pitched solidly for the Dodgers and Diamondbacks that year with a combined 4.30 ERA in 37 2/3 innings of work, even as he struck out a reduced 23.6% of opponents that year.
Moronta returned to free agency after being non-tendered by Arizona that offseason. He signed with the eventual World Series champion Rangers on a minor league deal and pitched in camp with the club that spring, but was cut loose just before the season began after not making the roster. That allowed him to catch on with the Angels on a minor league deal last May, and he made two appearances at the big league level for the club last year before finishing out the season at Triple-A with a 3.32 ERA and 28.4% strikeout rate in 40 2/3 innings of work. Moronta did not sign with a club in affiliated ball this winter, instead joining the Bravos de Leon for whom he struck out 24 batters in 19 2/3 innings of work this year. Overall, Moronta posted a 3.05 ERA in 170 games during his MLB career while racking up 202 strikeouts and recording three saves.
Those of us at MLBTR extend our condolences to Moronta’s friends, family, former teammates and coaches, as well as all of those mourning his tragic passing.
Rest in peace Reyes Moronta.
Not the news I was expecting to see this evening. Rest in peace big fella
Wow. Terrible news. R.I.P.
So young. RIP.
Enjoy today. Tomorrow isn’t promised.
Sad news. He was a good dude.
RIP, shocked to read this. He was a good Giant
Condolences to the Moronta family this is definitely a tragedy and their lives will never be the same. I lost a brother to a rare form of brain cancer (DIPG) and the loss of a sibling is devastating I can’t imagine what it’s like to lose a spouse, child or parent.
I don’t mean this as crude or insulting at all. I’m just wondering, why do we seem to care when a player passes on it’s not as if they’ve had an effect on our lives, they had a job in entertainment and they did it well. Unfortunately there are many people who pass away daily from unfortunate accidents and we don’t acknowledge their loss or the effect it has on their loved ones. Why when it comes to ball players or entertainers we acknowledge and send condolences? Just a thought to ponder.
We mourn him on this baseball website because he was a baseball player and we are looking for baseball news
I mean, we kind of used to, via the obituary section back when people read local papers. But short of that, there’s really no means by which we hear about the passing of non-famous people. That’s also all part of the deal with being famous. You get celebrated more widely when there’s good news, derided more widely when there’s bad news, and mourned more widely when you pass.
Have you never seen an obituary?
Because we are informed of athlete and entertainer deaths.
And, even if in a trivial way, we spend part of our lives with them. I saw him pitch a few times. I cheered for him, wanted him to do well.
Sorry about your loss of your brother. It sounds like it was untimely and that’s especially rough.
In regards to your question, baseball fans tend to feel connected to the players on their teams. Many people who come to a site like this also have wider interests in baseball as a sport than just in their team. So it is noteworthy and a shocker when a player so young suddenly passes away. RIP to Mr.Moronta, too.
He’s someone we know of and it’s always tragic when someone this young passes suddenly.
1. The family ain’t reading this big dawg.
2. It’s the concept of parasocial relationships. It’s why celebrity is such an enormous business.
In addition to the well-said responses above, I would add that baseball’s charm is that it’s an every man’s game. A giant like Judge can play and succeed, but so can a spark plug like Altuve. Many of us play the game as a kid and not adulthood. There’s a “one of us” feel for baseball players probably more so than the other pro sports.
That being said, it’s sad to hear that “one of us” has passed. RIP to the big man and to his family.
“not adulthood” = “into adulthood”
Dang RIP loved him with the giants thought he was gonna make it big time had such good stuff when he first came up. Injuries got em in the end though. Sad wish his family the best.
Rest in Paradise Mr. Moronta
Rip having a career ERA of 3.05 is something special
Nooo this is so sad to see. This is really odd, but last night I was just thinking about how it’s (thankfully) been a while since any active or very recently active mlb player had passed away. Condolences to his friends and family
Rip he was a great player to watch
RIP Reyes Moronta. So sad and way too young. Thank you for the great memories
RIP TO YOU.
Bless his soul. That is very sad. Condolences to his family and friends.
Aloha folks, enjoyed many games watching him at the Giants park. Too young. RIP Moronta. Mahalo
RIP
Damn he was a really good dude. RIP
Always awful to see a headline like this. RIP Reyes. Always on adventure on the mound.
RIP, Reyes Moronta.
If I can ask a crass question, why do there seem to be so many driving deaths in the Dominican Republic? Oscar Taveras, AndyMarte, Yordano Ventura, Moronta…
Luis Valbuena
Valbuena was Venezuelan
Did this happen in the Dominican? He was playing in Mexico.
Update: he crashed his four wheeler in the Dominican; the Bravos let him go last week
Simple, one can basically drink and drive down in the DR the cops can be paid off most of the times. Most of thr business stay open til very late serving alcohol and well these are the repercussions. I can’t speak for how Mr. Reyes passed
RIP
Wow. Terrible news. RIP and condolences to his family and friends.
SAD news, sincere sympathy and prayers for the family of this young man…
As a senior citizen, I hate to see people that young die. RIP, Mr. Moronta.
RIP
How sad.
Not sure where to post this as MLBTR has not posted an article but former lefty Reliever Doug Creek died today after a short battle with Pancreatic Cancer. Creek was 55 years old