Víctor Irving Santos (born October 2, 1976 or
possibly earlier[2], San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican
Republic) is a relief pitcher in Major League
Baseball for the San Francisco Giants.
Santos signed with the Detroit Tigers as a
non-drafted free agent in 1995. Although he allowed
some unearned runs, Santos posted a 0.00 ERA over
his first 27.1 innings in the majors, the longest
such streak to start a career since Fernando
Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1980-81 (34
innings). For his effort, he was named Detroit
rookie of the year by the Detroit Sports
Broadcasters Association.
Santos was traded to the Colorado Rockies in 2002
and acquired by the Texas Rangers before the 2003
season. Then he signed a minor league contract with
the Milwaukee Brewers before being called up for the
2004 season, where he earned his way onto the
starting rotation. After two years with Milwaukee,
he made an unusual route via the Kansas City Royals
and the Rule 5 draft onto the major-league roster of
the Pittsburgh Pirates for the 2006 season.
The Pirates granted him free agency on October 6,
2006, immediately after the 2006 season ended. On
January 8, 2007 he signed a minor league deal with
the Reds. On September 7, 2007 he was traded to the
Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.
Santos elected free agency on October 12, 2007.
On January 11, 2008, Santos signed with the San
Francisco Giants to a minor league contract with an
invitation to Spring Training.
