Fausto Carmona
From BR Bullpen
Fausto C. Carmona
born Roberto Hernandez Heredia
- Born August 30, 1980 in Santo Domingo, Distrito Nacional, D.R.
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[edit] Biographical Information
Fausto Carmona is a starting pitcher for the Cleveland Indians. Indians' scout Josue Herrera signed the Dominican native as an undrafted free agent in December 2000. At the time, he was thought to be 17 years old, but it would later be revealed that he was in fact 3 years older and had usurped another person's identity in order to appear a better prospect.
[edit] Minor Leagues
The Indians assigned Carmona to the Dominican Summer League in 2001. He advanced to Burlington in 2002, and put up strong numbers. In 13 games, the future ace owned a 3.32 ERA and walked just 10 opponents. He played for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers at the end of the season. He did not surrender a single run in three appearances with the single-A club.
2003 was Carmona's breakout season in Cleveland's system. He won 17 of his 24 starts for the Lake County Captains. In 148 innings, the sinker-baller's ERA was 2.07, and his WHIP was 0.89. The South Atlantic League named Carmona the circuit's "Most Outstanding Pitcher". In one start with the double-A Akron Aeros, he tossed 6 innings and allowed 3 runs. After the season, Baseball America ranked Carmona the third best prospect in the Indians' organization. He was also named the organization's "Player of the Year".
Carmona was sent to Kinston in 2004. He posted a 5-2 record for the club and his ERA was 2.83. In June, the Indians promoted their young arm to Akron. In 15 starts for the Aeros, Carmona's record was 4-8, his WHIP was 1.55, and his ERA soared to 4.76. Carmona made one start for the Buffalo Bisons, and allowed four runs in six innings. He also won two International League playoff games for Buffalo. Carmona won 13 games between Akron and Buffalo in 2005. His ERA between the two teams was 3.68, his WHIP was 1.21, and he walked just 35 in 173 2/3 innings. Baseball America deemed him the fifth best Indians prospect.
[edit] Indians: 2006-Present
Carmona started the 2006 season in triple-A, but was soon called up to the Indians. He debuted on April 15th against the Detroit Tigers. The outing was a success: he held Detroit to one run in six innings, and struck out four. He spent most of the season as a reliever, and Cleveland even experimented with using Carmona as a closer. This plan failed during a four-game stretch in which Carmona blew three saves and took a loss. He allowed 11 runs in just 2 2/3 innings during the disastrous four-game period. He finished out the season with a 1-10 record, and a 5.42 ERA.
Cliff Lee was sidelined with an injury during spring training in 2007, and a spot in Cleveland's rotation opened for Carmona. The Chicago White Sox pounded the young pitcher for 6 runs in 4 1/3 innings on April 13th, but Carmona rebounded nicely. He finished April with a 3.76 ERA, and was 4-0 in May. On May 17th, Carmona tossed a complete game shutout against the Minnesota Twins. He was 9-4 with a 2.26 ERA in the second half of the season. Carmona's 19 wins and 3.06 ERA both ranked second in the American League. He allowed just one run in nine innings during his first postseason start, facing the New York Yankees; the Indians won the game in 11 innings, and won the ALDS in four games. The Boston Red Sox fared much better against Carmona, who totaled only six innings over the course of two ALCS starts. He surrendered eleven earned runs on ten hits and nine walks in the two outings.
Carmona's next two seasons were a lot less successful hower. In 2008, he made only 22 starts due to various ailments and ended up 8-7, 5.44. 2009 was even worse. In 24 starts, he was 5-12, and his ERA jumped all the way to 6.32. He did pitch well in 7 minor league starts, though, and it was a sign of better things to come. Just when the Indians were about to throw in the towel in his case, he bounced back with a healthy and productive season in 2010. In spite of pitching in front of a poorly competitve team, he was 13-14, with a solid 3.77 ERA, amking 33 starts and pitching over 210 innings. He was Cleveland's lone representative at the 2010 All-Star Game. He then regressed in 2011, even though the team improved and he was healthy enough to make 32 starts. His ERA rose to 5.25 and his won-loss record fell to 7-15. He did not register a complete game, and in one less start than the previous year, pitched 22 fewer innings but gave up two more hits. However, the Indians still decided to pick up his option for the following year.
On January 19, 2012, Carmona was arrested while leaving the United States Consulate in the Dominican Republic capital of Santo Domingo and accused of using a false identity to acquire a U.S. visa. His real name was said to be Roberto Hernandez Heredia and at the time he was 31, instead of his listed age of 28. He was released on bail the next day. Carmona's arrest was part of a joint crackdown between U.S. immigration authorities and the Dominican police, aimed at stopping visa fraud. Countryman Leo Nunez had been identified the previous September as another player who had used a false identity to sign his first professional contract, and to have continued using it for a number of years.
Carmona was born in the capital, according to his falsified papers, which did not square well with his story of growing up impoverished on a farm in the countryside. In fact, his mother had spilled the beans when interviewed about her son on a local radio program earlier, which got wind of the fraud to authorities, who then waited for the appropriate time to effect an arrest. Contrary to Nunez's case, Carmona's could not as easily be characterized as a one-time mistake by a young man, since he had reportedly continued to pay a yearly sum to the family whose son's identity he was using. The family had become greedy, asking for ever-increasing amounts of money, and Carmona had apparently balked at making further payments. On January 26th, the Indians placed Carmona on the restricted list while waiting for the situation to be sorted out. On March 12th, it was announced that he had struck a deal with prosecutors, who agreed to drop criminal charges against him in return for his performing work of communal benefit. He still needed to obtain a visa however, and he and Nunez faced a six-week suspension from Major League Baseball before being allowed to resume their careers. The Indians also restructured his contract to reflect his new reality.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 2003 Pitcher of the Year, South Atlantic League, Lake County Captains
- AL All-Star (2010)
- 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (2007)
- 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 2 (2007 & 2010)
