Bronson Arroyo Sport: Baseball Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates, Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Arizona Diamondbacks
Was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates between 2000 and 2002, the Boston Red Sox from 2003 to 2005, the Cincinnati Reds from 2006 to 2013, the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014, and the Reds again in 2017.
Arroyo was born Feb 24, 1977, in Key West, Florida to parents Gus and Julie. Arroyo's father is originally from Cuba. Arroyo later moved from Key West, Florida to Brooksville, Florida where he attended Hernando High School. At Hernando, he was named to the Class 4A all-state first team in 1995. As of 2004, Arroyo was third all-time in scoring for Hernando's basketball team. He signed a letter of intent to play college baseball as a pitcher at South Florida, turning down offers from Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern.
Arroyo's fastball is in the 85–89 miles per hour range. While it is considered average among major league pitchers, his fastball has excellent movement and Arroyo is adept at "spotting" it. He also throws a hard slider that moves away from right-handed batters, and a straight changeup as well. Arroyo's best pitch is his curveball. He throws the pitch from multiple arm angles and is known to throw it in any count. The angle of the curveball itself can vary from a straight 12–6 to a sweeping 1–7. Arroyo's delivery is somewhat unusual; he incorporates a large leg kick in his pitching motion, extending his front leg completely straight and lifting it up to a level above his waist before delivering the ball. His kick often appears to reach head level and deceives hitters with its exaggerated motion. From the stretch position with runners on base, his leg-kick is much less pronounced and his delivery to home plate is very quick by major league standards. As a result, Arroyo is one of the better pitchers at holding runners on base.
In 2005, Bronson Arroyo released his debut album, Covering the Bases. It included covers from bands such as Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Foo Fighters and Incubus. The album also includes the Red Sox victory song "Dirty Water" by The Standells, in which Arroyo is accompanied by Johnny Damon, Lenny DiNardo, and Kevin Youkilis.
Bronson made his public debut on stage in January 2004 at the Hot Stove Cool Music fundraiser at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston. He performed a cover of Pearl Jam's "Black" with teammate Kevin Millar.