Mario Soto
From BR Bullpen
Mario Melvin Soto
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
[edit] Biographical Information
Mario Soto was a big star in the 1980s before coming down with injuries that ended his career at a fairly young age.
Born in the Dominican Republic, he was signed by the Cincinnati Reds at a young age in 1973, and broke in with the Reds at age 20 in 1977. His big years were from 1980 to 1984, when he earned 71 victories.
He was an All Star from 1982 to 1984, and four times was in the top ten in Cy Young Award voting. In 1983 he was second in the voting even though he pitched for a dreadful team. A top strikeout artist, in 1982 he had 9.57 strikeouts per nine innings to lead the league. That performance put him in the top 70 single-season performances of all time.
He tried a comeback with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but did not succeed. The result was that his entire major league career (12 years) was with the Reds.
The most similar player at age 31 (his last year) is Chuck Finley. Since Finley went on from that point to win many more games, getting up to 200 victories, it is fair to say that Soto might have also gotten to 200 victories had injuries not prematurely ended his career.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 3-time NL All-Star (1982-1984)
- 2-time NL Complete Games Leader (1983 & 1984)
- 15 Wins Seasons: 2 (1983 & 1984)
- 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 4 (1982-1985)
- 200 Strikeouts Seasons: 3 (1982, 1983 & 1985)
