Jenrry Mejía | |||
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![]() Mejía with the New York Mets in 2014
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New York Mets | |||
Relief pitcher | |||
Born: Azua, Dominican Republic |
October 11, 1989 |||
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MLB debut | |||
April 7, 2010, for the New York Mets | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Win–loss record | 8–14 | ||
Earned run average | 3.83 | ||
Strikeouts | 155 | ||
Saves | 28 | ||
Teams | |||
Jenrry Manuel Mejía (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxenri meˈxi.a]; born October 11, 1989) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher. He signed with the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB) as an international free agent on April 4, 2007. He made his MLB debut in 2010 and was named the Mets' closer in May 2014.
Mejía was suspended for the first 80 games of the 2015 season after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs (PED). He received his second suspension in July 2015 after a second failed test. He tested positive for a third time, which was reported February 12, 2016, resulting in his permanent ban from MLB.
Mejía was born in Azua in the southwestern Dominican Republic. Growing up, Mejía lived with his parents and younger brother in a neighborhood called Herrera, near Santo Domingo's former airport of the same name. Starting at age 11, he made his living by shining shoes, earning about 300 pesos a day. He did not play baseball until he was 15 years old, only becoming interested in the sport once he realized that players were able to earn a large signing bonus. He drew some interest from several teams, including the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, but was not seen at that time as a top talent because he was small and slight of build. He ultimately signed with the Mets for $16,500 in 2007, at the age of 17.
In 2007, Mejía played for the DSL Mets. He recorded a 2–3 record with a 2.47 ERA 14 games (7 starts). The next year Mejía pitched for the GCL Mets and the Brooklyn Cyclones. His combined statistics were a 5–2 record, with a 2.89 ERA in 14 starts.