Valerio de los Santos

Who is Valerio de los Santos?

Valerio Lorenzo de los Santos is a retired Dominican Major League Baseball pitcher.

De los Santos was originally signed by the Milwaukee Brewers as an amateur free agent in 1993. He started his professional career in the minor leagues in 1995, and spent the next four seasons in the Brewers' farm system. He pitched in the major leagues from 1998-2005 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, Toronto Blue Jays, and Florida Marlins.

On July 9, 2005, pitching in the 9th inning against the Chicago Cubs, de los Santos hit Adam Greenberg directly in the back of his head with a 92 mile per hour fastball on the very first pitch of the plate appearance. "The first thing going through your mind is, 'This guy's dead,'" de los Santos said. Greenberg suffered a mild concussion as a result of the beaning, and still suffers from positional vertigo.

De los Santos pitched for the Sultanes de Monterrey of the Mexican League in 2007. De los Santos signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies in January 2008. After starting the year with the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox, he was called up on July 28, 2008. He was designated for assignment on August 4 and became a free agent at the end of the season.