Geremi Gonzalez #54

Geremi Gonzalez Bio

• Fullname: Geremis Segundo Gonzalez
• Born: 1/08/1975 in Maracaibo, Venezuela
• High School: Colegio La Chinita, Maracaibo, VEN
• Debut: 5/27/1997
• Died: 5/25/2008

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Geremis Segundo Gonzalez

Jeremi has missed the last two seasons, undergoing right elbow surgery twice.

When he made his Cubs debut May 27, 1997, he became the first pitcher born in Venezuela to start a game for the Cubs.

In his 43 big league starts, he has picked 9 runners off base (5 in 1997 and 4 in 1998).

Graduated from Colegro La Chinita School in Maracaibo, Venezuela, in 1991.

2005

Made three starts in May, going 1-1 with a 7.71 ERA ... Five of his 28 relief appearances were three innings or more ... July was Gonzalez's best month, as he posted a 2.61 ERA in seven games.

2004

After a 2003 season in which Gonzalez made 17 quality starts among his 24, he began the 2004 season as the Rays' No. 2 starter. But control problems led to him being sent to the bullpen and eventually to Triple-A Durham. Gonzalez returned for one more start in Baltimore in July but struggled and was sent back to Durham. He did not return the rest of the season.

2003

Returned to the big leagues after nearly a five-year absence and was the Rays' most consistent starter with 16 quality starts ... His 156.1 innings were a career high ... Was 5.2 innings shy of qualifying among the league ERA leaders ... Would have finished tied with Roger Clemens for the 15th best ERA in the AL with a 3.91 mark.

His .228 opponents batting average would have ranked 4th in the AL behind only Pedro Martinez (.215), Barry Zito (.219) and Tim Hudson (.223) ... Righties batted just .220 (62-282), 5th best in the AL ... Opponents batted just .209 (27-129) with runners in scoring position, also 5th best in the AL.

Had the 6th lowest run support among AL starters (Min 150 IP) with the exact same number as his ERA, 3.91 runs per start, lowest in the AL East ... Rays scored 3 runs or less in 15 of his 25 starts and 4 runs or less 18 times. In fact, the Rays scored 17 total runs in his 11 losses.

Allowed 3 runs or less in 17 of his 24 starts and 5 hits or less in 15 starts.

Five times he left a game with the lead and stood to get a win, but the bullpen failed to hold it for him ... Included in those games was June 3 at Wrigley Field when the former Cub opposed Mark Prior and got a no dec. as he left after 6.0 with a 2-1 lead ... Cubs came back and got the 3- 2 walk-off win on a wild pitch from Al Levine ... In the first inning of that game he threw the pitch that shattered Sammy Sosa's bat, leading to the "corked batb incident.

Posted the 5th best road ERA in the AL with a 3.08 mark (IP-84.2, ER- 29), but only won 3 times in 13 starts ... 10 of his 13 road starts were quality starts ... Held opponents to a .193 batting average on the road (58-300) ... Included were three masterful games in which he allowed 2 hits or less: a 3-1 win at Anaheim on May 23 for his first major league win since June 28, 1998 (for Chi Cubs over KC, some 1,757 days in between) in which he allowed 2 hits and one run over 6 innings; a 6- inning, 1-hit, 1-run effort at Yankee Stadium in an 11-2 win on June 17 and a 3-2 loss at Florida in his very next start in which he allowed 2 hits and 3 runs over 7 innings.

Averaged 17.46 pitches per inning, tops in the AL and the 2nd most in the majors among pitchers with 150 or more innings ... Only the Mets' Al Leiter had a higher average (17.96).

Was very consistent ... Posted a 3.50 ERA in 3 May starts, then in his four full months with the club his monthly ERA's were 4.00 in June, 4.02 in July, 3.92 in August and 3.94 in September.

Threw a season-high 8 innings 4 times ... Had a pair of combination shutouts in which he worked 8 innings including the Rays first-ever win over Kevin Appier on August 8, when Jeremi and Jesus Colome combined on a 4-hitter to beat KC ... Also had two 8-inning complete-game losses: Aug.3 @ KC and Aug. 31 @ Oakland ... In the latter game he became the first pitcher ever to be ejected from a complete game ... He was ejected from the dugout in the top of the 9th inning by first base umpire Joe Brinkman.

After coming to spring training as a non-roster invite, he began the season at AAA Durham ... In 7 games, 6 starts at Durham was 1-0 with the International League's 8th best ERA (2.53) ... Was promoted from AAA on May 17 and made his TB debut that night at Baltimore, losing 2-0 to Pat Hentgen ... worked 7.0 innings and fanned 9, one shy of his careerhigh 10 April 25, 1998, at Dodger Stadium ... rest of his line: 5-H, 2-R/ER, 2-BB ... Was his first major league app. in nearly 5 years, 1,758 days in between - since July 24, 1998 for the Cubs.

Went 0-6 over his last 7 starts since his last win Aug. 19 @ BAL ... Had 4 quality starts over that stretch and only once did he allow more than 4 earned runs, but the Rays scored a total of 14 runs in those 7 starts and his last 4 starts came against Roy Halladay, Pedro Martinez-twice, and Roger Clemens ... Over the last 2 months he posted a 3.92 ERA, but was 2-7 including 0-4 in September when he worked to a 3.94 ERA.

Opened the 1998 season as the Cubs' #3 starter ... Went 4-0 in June that season and entered July tied with Kerry Wood for the club lead in wins, but after pitching and losing to the Mets on July 24 - his last ML appearance - was placed on the DL with elbow problems.

Had elbow surgery in August of 1998 (nerve removed) and again in 1999 (Tommy John surgery) and knee surgery (left ACL) in 2000 and was released by the Cubs in March, 2001.

2002

Made just 5 minor league starts as he continued his comeback from 1999 right elbow surgery.

Made 4 starts for Mesa (Rookie) from July 19-August 2, working 10.0 innings and fanning 15 batters.

After being transferred to Lansing (A), he made 1 start August 7 at West Michigan - and fanned both batters he faced. Strained his left side in the process, however, and was pulled from the game. For precautionary measures, he missed the remainder of the season.

Appeared in 7 games (6 starts) for Zulia during the Venezuelan winter ball campaign, going 1-1 with a 4.82 ERA. Struck out 24 batters in 28.0 innings while issuing only 3 walks.

1999

Jeremi once again was sidelined by right elbow problems, as he made 8 injury rehab starts before undergoing surgery for a second time ... opened the season on the disabled list recovering from 1998 surgery ... after making 2 starts for Daytona (A), 3 for West Tenn (AA) and 3 for Iowa (AAA), he continued to experience discomfort in his elbow ... on July 2, he underwent reconstructive surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow (Dr. Lewis Yocum).

1998

Jeremi's season came to an abrupt halt in July when he injured his right elbow ... underwent surgery August 21 (Dr. Lewis Yocum) to repair the ulnar collateral ligament and transpose the ulnar nerve ... made the final start of his 7-7 campaign July 24 against New York, working 3.1 innings in a 5-0 loss ... struck out a career-high 10 batters in a 7.0-inning stint April 25 at Los Angeles, but took the loss in a 3-2 decision ... pitched his second career complete game and shutout May 9 in a 6-0 victory over San Francisco ... on June 6, his wife, Maira, gave birth to the couple's first child - Jerimar ... the next day, he celebrated his daughter's birth by earning the win in a 13-7 decision over the White Sox ... in a 12-5 victory over Philadelphia June 18, he went 3-for-3 at the plate with a double and 1 RBI ... was the first Cubs pitcher to have a 3-hit contest since Greg Maddux (August 1, 1990, vs. Pittsburgh).

1997

Was the winningest member of the Cubs' pitching staff at 11-9 despite spending the first two months of the season at Iowa ... became the first rookie (excluding strike-shortened seasons) to lead the Cubs in victories since Ken Holtzman in 1966 (11-16) ... after going 2-2 with a 3.48 ERA in 10 Triple-A starts, he was recalled May 27 and made his debut that night at Pittsburgh ... earned the victory in an 8-7 decision, allowing 3 runs in 5.1 innings ... had a 5-game winning streak June 23-July 16 ... on June 23 in St. Louis, he pitched a 4-hit shutout in a 3-0 win ... recorded his first M.L. hit June 11, a single off New Yorkbs Armando Reynoso.

1996

Was a Southern League midseason all-star at Orlando (AA), going 6-3 with a 3.34 ERA in 17 games (14 starts) ... went 5-0 with a 0.73 ERA in 5 May starts and was selected as the league's Topps Player of the Month ... was on the disabled list July 6-August 10 with a strained right elbow.

1995

Split the campaign between Rockford (A) and Daytona, combining for a 9-5 record with 4 saves and a 3.53 ERA in 31 games (14 starts) ... after opening the year in Rockford's rotation, he was used mostly in relief at Daytona and went 5-1 with 4 saves and a 1.22 ERA.

1994

Appeared in 29 games (25 starts) for Peoria (A) and Williamsport (A), fanning 103 batters in 152.0 innings.

1993

Went 3-9 in 12 starts at Huntington (Rookie).

1992

Began his professional career at Mesa (Rookie) and went 0-5 in 14 games (7 starts).