Julio Mateo

Infobox MLB player
name=Julio Mateo
position=Relief Pitcher

---

width=300
team=San Francisco Giants
birthdate=birth date and age|1977|8|2
number=93
bats=Right
throws=Right
debutdate=May 7
debutyear=2002
debutteam=Seattle Mariners
statyear=2007
stat1label=Record
stat1value=18-12
stat2label=ERA
stat2value=3.68
stat3label=WHIP
stat3value=1.20
stat4label=Strikeouts
stat4value=216
teams=
*Seattle Mariners (by|2002-by|2007)

Julio Cesar Mateo (born August 2, 1977 in Baní, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher in the San Francisco Giants organization. The 6’ tall 220lb Mateo bats and throws right-handed. He made his Major League Baseball debut May 7, by|2002, for the Seattle Mariners against the Toronto Blue Jays.

On August 28, by|2006, Julio Mateo broke his fourth metacarpal (ring finger) on his left hand while lifting weights [http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060828&content_id=1633863&vkey=news_sea&fext=.jsp&c_id=sea] , and missed the reminder of the 2006 season.

On July 31, by|2007, Mateo was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for minor league shortstop Jesus Merchan. On December 5, 2007, he was released by the Philadelphia Phillies.

On January 10, by|2008, Mateo signed a Minor League contract with the San Francisco Giants

Personal life

Julio Mateo has one son, Julio Mateo Jr. The Seattle Mariners reliever left Spring Training in by|2006, after learning his older brother, Luis, had died in an automobile accident in the Dominican Republic.

On May 5, 2007, Mateo turned himself in under the charges of abuse to his wife. His wife had to have stitches because of his actions. Mateo was optioned to AAA Tacoma immediately after the event and faced a 10 day non-pay suspension as well as a fine for not showing up to the ballpark for the game that night against the New York Yankees.

While pitching in San Francisco's farm system, Mateo was arrested on July 27, 2008 in Albuquerque, NM after police discovered counterfeit $100 bills in his hotel room.

He also is accused of using a bogus $100 bill to pay a cab fare.

A police report says that as officers patted Mateo down in a hotel hallway early Sunday, he made a statement in Spanish to police that translates to "I didn't pass the bad money."

Officer Christopher Enyart wrote in a report that Mateo stated he didn't know anything about fake money before officers informed him of why we were there.

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/mateoju01.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/team/player.jsp?player_id=421024 MLB.com Profile]
* [http://www.sportspot.net/lisamariner/?p=142]