Eric Orze

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Eric Paul Orze

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Biographical Information[edit]

Pitcher Eric Orze was taken by the New York Mets in the 5th and final round of the abbreviated 2020 Amateur Draft, out of the University of New Orleans. He had already beaten long odds to make it that far as he was a wo-time cancer survivor. He began to feel pain in his groin when volunteering as a bullpen catcher for his school in 2018, and this turned into a diagnostic of testicular cancer. While recovering from that, he also had to deal with four cancerous skin spots, a form of melanoma, but beat that as well and returned to the mound in 2020 - only to have the COVID-19 pandemic end his season after just four appearances. His recovery from the medical ordeal gave him a great work ethic, making him realize how much he had to do in order to become a professional pitcher.

He began his pro career in 2021 and made it all the way to AAA that first year, splitting his year three-way almost evenly between the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones, the AA Binghamton Rumble Ponies and the AAA Syracuse Mets. His overall pitching line was 4-2, 3.08 in 34 games, all in relief, with 5 saves and 67 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings. In 2022, he spent a full season with Syracuse except for two rehabilitation outings in the Florida State League, going 4-3, 5.13 in 32 games in AAA. Back at Syracuse in 2023, he finished at 3-4, 5.31 in 39 games, striking out 81 batters but also walking 41 in 61 innings. He finally put up some good numbers at the start of 2024, going 3-0, 3.76 with 2 saves in his first 26 outings.

He was called up to New York to make his major league debut on July 8, 2024, in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Taking over for Christian Scott with the game tied at 2 in the 6th, with 2 outs and nobody on base, he walked Bryan Reynolds, allowed a single to Oneil Cruz that moved Reynolds to third and then another single to Rowdy Tellez. Adrian Houser replaced at this point, but he gave up a two-run double to the first batter he faced, Nick Gonzales. Eric was thus saddled with the 8-2 loss and finished his first day in the majors with an infinite ERA.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Anthony DiComo: "'Night and day' difference for Orze post-cancer: Mets draftee lauded as 'high-makeup kid, high-quality kid'", mlb.com, June 17, 2020. [1]
  • Manny Randhawa: "Mets draftee Orze is a two-time cancer survivor", mlb.com, June 12, 2020. [2]
  • Spencer Urquhart: "Former UNO baseball player Eric Orze receives MLB call-up from New York Mets: Orze overcame cancer and is now the 14th Privateer to reach the majors", New Orleans Times-Picayune, July 8, 2024. [3]

Related Sites[edit]

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