| Pedro Payano | |
|---|---|
 Payano with the Nashville Sounds in 2019 | |
| Leones de Yucatán | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: September 27, 1994 New York City, New York, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| July 6, 2019, for the Texas Rangers | |
| MLB statistics (through 2019 season) | |
| Win–loss record | 1–2 |
| Earned run average | 5.73 |
| Strikeouts | 17 |
| Teams | |
Pedro Julio Payano (born September 27, 1994) is a Dominican-American professional baseball pitcher for Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers.
Payano was born in New York City but raised in San Francisco de Macorís, Dominican Republic.[1][2] He signed with the Texas Rangers as an international free agent on June 1, 2012.[3]
Payano spent the 2012, 2013, and 2014 seasons playing for the DSL Rangers of the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League.[4] In 2015, he split the season between the DSL Rangers, AZL Rangers of the Rookie-level Arizona League, and the Hickory Crawdads of the Class A South Atlantic League, posting a combined 10–2 record with a 1.11 ERA over 87 innings.[5] His 2016 season was spent with Hickory, going 3–3 with a 2.08 ERA in 73.2 innings.[2] He split 2017 between the Down East Wood Ducks of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League and the Frisco RoughRiders of the Class AA Texas League, going 6–8 with a 3.87 ERA over 134.1 innings.[6][7] He spent the 2018 season with Frisco, going 5–10 with a 5.54 ERA over 118.2 innings.[4] He elected free agency during the 2018 off-season but re-signed with Texas on a minor league contract.[4] He opened the 2019 season back with Frisco, before being promoted to the Nashville Sounds of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League on May 29.[4] Payano combined for a 5–4 record with a 4.93 ERA over 83.1 innings between the two levels.
On July 6, 2019, the Rangers selected Payano's contract and promoted him to the major leagues.[8] He made his debut that day, pitching a scoreless inning in relief.[9] In 2019, Payano produced a 1–2 record with a 5.73 ERA in 22 MLB innings.
Payano was designated for assignment on September 1 and was outrighted to Nashville on September 3.[10] He became a free agent following the 2019 season.[11]
On December 12, 2019, Payano signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets organization.[12] He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[13] Payano was released on September 5, 2020.
On February 8, 2021, Payano signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers organization.[14] Payano made 25 appearances (24 starts) between the Double-A Erie SeaWolves and the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, registering a cumulative 8–8 record and 4.65 ERA with 117 strikeouts in 124.0 innings pitched. He elected free agency following the season on November 7.[15]
On February 1, 2022, Payano signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds.[16] Payano pitched in 50 games for the Triple-A Louisville Bats, posting a 2–4 record and 3.26 ERA with 62 strikeouts in 60.2 innings of work. He elected free agency following the season on November 10.[17]
On April 19, 2023, Payano signed with the Staten Island FerryHawks of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.[18] In 22 games for Staten Island, Payano recorded a 1.99 ERA with 20 strikeouts and 5 saves in 22+2⁄3 innings pitched.
On July 6, 2023, Payano's contract was purchased by the Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League.[18]