Baseball fans received some truly unfortunate news regarding former MLB relief pitcher Reyes Moronta, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 31.
MLB insider Mike Rodriguez first reported on the news on Sunday night, detailing that Moronta had gotten into a traffic accident and later passed away from his injuries.
Breaking News: A source close to the family of Major League Baseball pitcher #ReyesMoronta, 31 years old, who pitched for the #Giants, #Diamondbacks, and #Dodgers last year, sadly passed away in a traffic accident tonight. #MLB. pic.twitter.com/jJ6qym536X
— Mike Rodriguez (@mikedeportes) July 29, 2024
Moronta’s most recent team, the Bravos de León of the Mexican League, later confirmed the news.
⚫️Lamentamos profundamente la partida de Reyes Moronta. Deseamos a familia y amigos encuentren pronta resignación ante esta noticia.
Un abrazo hasta el cielo 🕊️. pic.twitter.com/BM54bbfVSe
— Bravos de León (@NacimosBravos) July 29, 2024
Moronta, a six-year MLB veteran for numerous teams including the San Francisco Giants, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and the Los Angeles Angels, had just recently been playing for Bravos de León, as he was just released by the organization on Thursday.
Throughout the first four years of his MLB career with the Giants, Moronta had looked like a star in the making out of the bullpen, with a sub-3.00 ERA for each of those seasons from 2017-2021.
While he didn’t have the longevity in the MLB as he may have hoped, he did have a very respectable 3.05 career ERA in the MLB.
Naturally, many fans took to social media to share their condolences with his family, sharing many of their favorite MLB moments of Moronta’s in the process.
Rest in Peace Reyes Moronta pic.twitter.com/98xbOJF4ig
— Leo Gavitt | レオ | 22 | he/him | #blacklivesmatter (@leogavitt01) July 29, 2024
Rest easy, Reyes Moronta. 💔 pic.twitter.com/2NZ0GvFwkB
— Anthony (@Anthofitzgerald) July 29, 2024
RIP Reyes Moronta #sfgiants pic.twitter.com/4BGNHxQ8KT
— Ozark (@Ozmosis711) July 29, 2024
That sucks hearing about Reyes Moronta’s passing. He bailed us out of a lot of jams and was one of my favorite relievers during his time with the #SFGiants. May he rest in peace. 🙏🏻
— Kyle Fraser (@FraserKnowsBest) July 29, 2024
Reyes Moronta (1993-2024)
RIP 🙏🏻Former @mlb pitcher has died tonight at the age of 31, in a motorcycle accident
Moronta last pitched in MLB w/ @Angels
He also pitched w/ @SFGiants @Dodgers @LosDodgers & @Dbacks
Last team @NacimosBravos pic.twitter.com/iIPCFcZNIZ
— jose marco garcia f (@ppgarciaferreir) July 29, 2024