Rick Aponte

Carmen Ricardo Aponte

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 175 lb.

• Born April 3, 1956 in El Seibo, El Seibo, Dominican Republic

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Rick Aponte spent 30 years in the Houston Astros organization as a player, manager, scout and coach. When Manny Acta became skipper of the Washington Nationals in 2007, he named Aponte the club's bullpen coach. Aponte had discovered Acta and coached him when he first came up.

Rick debuted professionally in 1976 with the Covington Astros, pitching 7 games in relief with no decision and a 5.25 ERA. In 1977, he moved up to the Cocoa Astros. He went 1-5 with a 4.88 ERA, allowing 63 hits and 23 walks in 48 innings. The next year, Aponte was with the Daytona Beach Astros (2-0, 5 Sv, 1.42 in 28 games) and the Charleston Charlies (0-1, 7.50) in two games.

In 1979, Aponte was 3-3 with 3 saves and a 3.83 ERA in 25 games for the Columbus Astros. He walked 31 in 47 IP. In 16 outings for Daytona Beach, Rick was 2-0 with 2 saves and a 1.80 ERA. In his fifth season, Rick split time between Columbus (1-1, 3.60 in 9 games) and the Tucson Toros (1-1, 3.86 in 13 games).

Aponte was with the same clubs in 1981, going 2-5 with one save and a 3.88 ERA in 21 games for Columbus and 1-3 with a 6.55 ERA in 20 games for Tucson. With the Toros, he walked 20 and allowed 63 hits while striking out just nine in 44 innings.

After completing his playing career, Aponte remained with the Astros as a scout, coach, and manager for succeeding decades. In 1982, Aponte became a coach with the GCL Astros. There is no record of his activities from 1983-1986, though sources indicate he worked in the Astros organization. Aponte resurfaced as a pitching coach for the 1987 Auburn Astros, 1988-1989 GCL Astros, 1990-1991 Asheville Tourists and 1992 Burlington Astros. In 1993, Ricardo moved to the DSL Astros, managing through 1999, then as pitching coach from 2000 to 2006. One source also mentioned that Aponte did some scouting in 1993.

In 2007 Aponte left the Astros to serve as the Washington Nationals bullpen coach under manager Manny Acta. This lasted through the 2008 season when he and several other coaches were fired after a 100+ loss season.

Aponte returned to the Astros organization in 2009. He was originally scheduled to be the pitching coach for the GCL Astros, but was named pitching coach for the Greeneville Astros in late May. Aponte was the pitching coach for the Lexington Legends in 2010, Greeneville again in 2011, and Tri-City ValleyCats in 2012. He went back to the DSL Astros in 2013. Aponte was the pitching coach for the DSL Astros Blue in 2014-2017, DSL Astros again in 2018-2021, and DSL Astros Orange in 2022-2023.

In addition to coaching in the Astros minor league system, Aponte spent several winters coaching in the Dominican League. In Spanish language sources, he is always referred to as Ricardo Aponte.

• Start 2007 - 1/18/2008 Bullpen coach Tigres del Licey
• 1/19 - end, 2008 Pitching coach Tigres
• 2008/2009 Pitching coach Tigres
• Start 2009 - 1/4/2010 Pitching coach Tigres
• 1/11 - end, 2013 Pitching coach Toros del Este
• 2013/2014 Pitching coach Tigres
• Start - 12/21/2014 Pitching coach Tigres
• 12/26/2014 - end, 2014/2015 Pitching coach Toros
• Start - 11/3/2015 Pitching coach Toros

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
1994	DSL Astros/Brewers	Dominican Summer League	36-24		Houston Astros
1995	DSL Astros/Brewers	Dominican Summer League	28-39		Houston Astros
1996	DSL Astros/Red Sox	Dominican Summer League	29-39		Houston Astros
1997	DSL Astros	Dominican Summer League	36-35		Houston Astros
1998	DSL Astros	Dominican Summer League	26-38		Houston Astros
1999	DSL Astros	Dominican Summer League	47-23		Houston Astros

Sources include 1977-1982 Baseball Guides, MOP (Mitchell O. Page) Enterprise Website, press release