Enyel De Los Santos Bio
Enyel De Los Santos Polanco (born December 25, 1995) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, and Atlanta Braves. De Los Santos signed with the Seattle Mariners as an international free agent in 2014 and made his MLB debut with the Phillies in 2018. He is notable for throwing the only 2-pitch inning in MLB history.
Early Life and Background
Enyel De Los Santos Polanco was born on December 25, 1995, in San Pedro de Macorís, in the Dominican Republic. The city is widely known for producing Major League Baseball talent, and De Los Santos grew up surrounded by a strong local baseball culture. He attended Liceo Gastón Fernández de Lino, where he continued to develop his interest in pitching.
From a young age, De Los Santos showed the kind of arm strength and athletic build that scouts in the Dominican Republic often look for in young pitching prospects. His path through the country’s amateur system eventually led to international free agent attention, setting up his first professional contract. Those early years in San Pedro de Macorís helped shape the work ethic that defined his climb through the minors.
Path to Baseball
De Los Santos entered professional baseball when the Seattle Mariners signed him as an international free agent on July 17, 2014. He made his professional debut in 2015, splitting the season between the Arizona League Mariners and the Everett AquaSox. Across both clubs, he posted a combined 6–0 record and a 3.47 ERA with 71 strikeouts in 62 1/3 innings, an impressive start for a teenage pitcher.
On November 12, 2015, the Mariners traded De Los Santos and Nelson Ward to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Joaquín Benoit, redirecting his development to a new organization. The Padres assigned him to the Single-A Fort Wayne TinCaps to open 2016, where he went 3–2 with a 2.91 ERA in 11 games, including seven starts, and earned a promotion to High-A Lake Elsinore Storm. He finished that season 5–3 with a 4.35 ERA in 15 starts and was named a Midwest League All-Star, marking him as one of the system’s rising arms.
Enyel De Los Santos Career
Early Career (2014–2017)
After his trade to the Padres, De Los Santos steadily built a reputation as a durable starting pitcher in the lower minors. In 2017, he pitched for the San Antonio Missions of the Double-A Texas League, where he went 10–6 with a 3.78 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, and 138 strikeouts in 150 innings across 26 games, including 24 starts. His strikeout total ranked third in the Texas League that season, and he was named Texas League Pitcher of the Week on both April 16 and August 13.
On December 15, 2017, the Padres traded De Los Santos to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Freddy Galvis, putting him on a new path toward the major leagues. He opened 2018 with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs and went 10–5 with a 2.63 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 126 2/3 innings, finishing second in the International League in ERA. He was named the Phillies Minor League Co-Pitcher of the Month for April, was selected to the 2018 All-Star Futures Game, and was elected to the Triple-A All-Star Game.
Philadelphia Phillies Breakthrough (2018–2021)
The Phillies promoted De Los Santos to the major leagues for the first time on July 10, 2018. He made his debut the same day in a spot start against the New York Mets, earning the win after allowing three runs and striking out six batters across 6 1/3 innings, with the opposing starter Drew Gagnon also making his Major League debut in the same game. In 2018 with Philadelphia, he went 1–0 with a 4.74 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 19 innings.
De Los Santos bounced between the Phillies and Triple-A Lehigh Valley over the next several seasons, including a 2019 split and a 2020 season affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, his contract was selected back to the active roster on May 4, and he pitched 28 innings for Philadelphia before being designated for assignment on September 12.
Cleveland Guardians Era (2022–2023)
After signing a minor league deal with the Cleveland Guardians in December 2021, De Los Santos reached the majors in 2022 as a COVID-19 replacement player on April 20. On September 27, 2022, he pitched an immaculate inning against the Tampa Bay Rays, striking out three batters on nine pitches. He finished the year 5–0 with a 3.04 ERA in 53 1/3 innings and a 1.069 WHIP.
In 2023, De Los Santos appeared in 70 games out of the bullpen for the Guardians, posting a 3.29 ERA with 62 strikeouts across 65 2/3 innings and establishing himself as a reliable late-inning option. On November 17, 2023, Cleveland traded him to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Scott Barlow, sending him back to the organization that had originally developed him.
San Diego Padres and 2024 Trades (2024)
De Los Santos returned to San Diego in 2024 and made 44 appearances, compiling a 4.46 ERA with 48 strikeouts across 40 1/3 innings out of the bullpen. On July 30, 2024, the Padres traded him and Thomas Balboni Jr. to the New York Yankees in exchange for Brandon Lockridge. In five games with the Yankees, he struggled to a 14.21 ERA across 6 1/3 innings before being designated for assignment on August 14.
On August 17, 2024, De Los Santos was claimed off waivers by the Chicago White Sox. He appeared in 15 games for Chicago, posting a 3.63 ERA with 13 strikeouts in 17 1/3 innings. On November 22, the White Sox non-tendered him, making him a free agent heading into the next league year.
Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros Era (2025–Present)
On December 15, 2024, De Los Santos signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves. The Braves selected his contract on March 21, 2025, after he made the team’s Opening Day roster. In 43 appearances for Atlanta, he compiled a 4.53 ERA with 38 strikeouts across 43 2/3 innings. On July 30, he was designated for assignment following the team’s acquisition of Tyler Kinley, and he elected free agency on August 4 rather than accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Gwinnett.
On August 7, 2025, De Los Santos signed a major league contract with the Houston Astros, giving him a fresh opportunity in a new bullpen. The move reunited him with a contending American League club and put him back on a big league roster for the stretch run of the season.
Notable Events and Milestones
De Los Santos owns a unique place in MLB history after throwing the only 2-pitch inning ever recorded in the major leagues in 2025. He also pitched an immaculate inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on September 27, 2022, while with the Cleveland Guardians, striking out three batters on nine consecutive pitches.
Enyel De Los Santos Career Highlights
Enyel De Los Santos has built a career as a versatile relief pitcher who can handle multiple innings out of the bullpen. His professional resume includes a 10-win season in Double-A, a Triple-A All-Star selection, an All-Star Futures Game appearance, and several years of major league relief work across the National League and American League.
MLB Milestones
De Los Santos earned his first major league win in his debut on July 10, 2018, against the New York Mets. He later threw an immaculate inning for the Cleveland Guardians on September 27, 2022, and in 2025 he became the only pitcher in MLB history to record a 2-pitch inning, a record-setting moment that defines his place in the game’s history books.
Minor League Achievements
De Los Santos was a Midwest League All-Star in 2016 and a Triple-A All-Star in 2018, when he was also the Phillies Minor League Co-Pitcher of the Month for April. He was twice named Texas League Pitcher of the Week in 2017, and his 138 strikeouts that year ranked third in the Texas League.
Enyel De Los Santos Family
Family Background and Personal Life
De Los Santos was raised in San Pedro de Macorís, a Dominican city long associated with Major League Baseball talent. Limited public information is available about his immediate family, and he has generally kept his personal life out of the spotlight during his professional career.
2025 Season Performance
De Los Santos opened 2025 by making the Atlanta Braves’ Opening Day roster and pitching in 43 appearances out of the bullpen, posting a 4.53 ERA with 38 strikeouts in 43 2/3 innings. His stint with Atlanta ended on July 30, when the Braves designated him for assignment after acquiring Tyler Kinley, and he elected free agency on August 4.
Three days later, on August 7, 2025, De Los Santos signed a major league contract with the Houston Astros, joining a contending roster for the final two months of the regular season. The move gave him a chance to contribute to a playoff push while continuing to build on his major league track record across eight organizations.
With Houston, De Los Santos is expected to work in middle relief and provide length out of the bullpen, the same role that defined his strong 2023 season in Cleveland. His ability to log multiple innings and generate strikeouts gives the Astros a flexible option down the stretch, and his 2-pitch inning already stands as a career highlight of the 2025 campaign.