Odrisamer Despaigne Orué

Outstanding Cuban baseball player, pitcher for the Industriales and national teams; has represented the country in several international events. Possessor of good velocity in his pitches. A player who, because of the courage and explosiveness he demonstrates on the field, has always been a favorite with fans.

He was born in La Habana Vieja, Ciudad de La Habana, Cuba. He inherited from his father Juan Rafael Despaigne Robles the desire to play baseball. In terms of character, he possesses one of the most valuable qualities of human beings: being friendly. He measures 1.86 meters and weighs 85 kilograms.

His qualitative growth has been quite outstanding over time, and his performance in the past season was vital for Industriales' championship. As the main pitcher for the blue team, Despaigne's performance between the qualifying rounds and playoffs made him one of the best pitchers in the championship. Although his beginnings were in the relief pitcher role after a strong performance in the minor leagues, for the past couple of years he has been used as a starter, where his work has gone from effective to stellar.

With an appreciable fastball and good breaking pitches, in addition to improving in intelligence and control. He was in the national team's preselection in 2010. His mentor Lázaro Vargas said of him: "Without Odrisamer we would not have reached these playoffs."

Included among the best starting pitchers in Cuban baseball today, representing the team where he plays, Industriales, for which he won 13 games in the regular season and has accumulated three wins in the playoffs.

Disciplined, hardworking in training and intelligent, according to his coach José Elosegui, the 24-year-old knows that the hopes of thousands of capitalino followers of the national sport rest on him.

"When he steps into the box he is aware that he has a job that generates joy or sadness. That responsibility is what makes a baseball player great," Vargas added.

Odrisamer is part of that generation that includes other right-handers like Yadier Pedroso, from Artemisa, and Vladimir García, from Ciego de Ávila, all qualified to join the national team for the III World Baseball Classic, in March 2013.

At 1.84 meters tall and weighing 89 kg, his fastballs exceeding 90 miles per hour are effective, as are his breaking pitches, which he uses effectively, especially to get out of tight situations.

On June 30, 2013, as part of the Cuban team that was to participate in the Rotterdam tournament, Despaigne left the group at Paris's Charles De Gaulle airport and thus ceased to be part of Cuba's official team for this event. It is assumed he would reunite with his father in Spain with his eyes on participating in the Major Leagues.

Despaigne decided to leave the Cuban team in Paris to reunite with his father and brother in Spain, a nation where he would establish residency to be able to pursue a contract with an MLB team. Behind him were eight seasons with Industriales in national series, in which he archived 61 wins with 43 losses, 684 strikeouts, and an ERA of 3.55.

Odrisamer made his debut on June 23, 2014 with the San Diego Padres against division rivals the San Francisco Giants. Odrisamer impressed everyone with a phenomenal first game. He went 7 innings allowing 4 hits, striking out only one but allowing no runs!

His first year can be rated as good, in fact his best performance in the Major Leagues. He had 16 starts in which he accumulated 96.1 innings. He left an average of 3.36 with 65 strikeouts and a record of 4-7.

In 2015 he continued pitching regularly. There were 18 starts and 16 relief appearances for a total of 34 outings. He won 5, lost 9, struck out 69 in 125.2 innings. He left an ERA of 5.80.

For 2016 he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles and midseason to the Miami Marlins. In the Sunshine State he managed to stabilize his results in 2017. He pitched to a 4.01 ERA in 39 innings. He had a record of 2-3 while striking out 31. He saved his first and only game to date in the Big Leagues.

After 11 appearances in 2018 he was traded to the Anaheim Angels where things did not go well for him. According to his statements, that has been the worst moment of his career.

In 2019 he posted big numbers in AAA and was called up by the Chicago White Sox where he also failed to establish himself.

For the 2020 season he signed with the KT Wiz of the Korean League (KBO).

Although he has not managed to establish himself in the Major Leagues, Odrisamer was a great pitcher in Cuba, also in the Minor Leagues (AAA).

His first season in Korean baseball (2020) was not negative, he lacked the consistency that he finally found in the 2021 season, in which his team (KT Wiz) became champions for the first time in its history.

The experienced right-hander was one of the most durable arms in the KBO. He made 33 starts, threw 188.2 innings, finished with a record of 13-10 and an ERA of 3.39. In his work, he allowed 175 hits, 71 earned runs, only 10 home runs, gave 78 walks and struck out 165 opponents. His WHIP came in at 1.34, opponents batted .243 against him and he had 21 quality starts, tied for first place with his compatriot Ariel Miranda.

Despaigne was a true workhorse in this edition of the Korean tournament. Apart from leading the league in innings pitched (second time in two seasons), he was the only pitcher to throw a minimum of three thousand pitches (3405). These two facts speak to Despa's durability on the mound.

Odrisamer was immense in the first three months of the championship, a period in which he allowed 25 earned runs, had an ERA of 2.44 and threw 92.1 innings. In those three months he obtained eight of his 13 wins. Then came three rocky months, but he was able to close in a great way, even playing a key role in KT Wiz's unprecedented championship conquest.

After overcoming difficult periods in August and September, the right-hander recovered to face the final month of the regular round. In October, he pitched 32.1 innings and finished with an ERA of 3.06, with only one home run allowed and 16 strikeouts.

The best for Despaigne came on November 17, in the Korean Series against the Doosan Bears. In a Cuban matchup against Miranda in the third game of the series and with the KT Wiz up 2-0 in the decisive instance, Despaigne had a memorable outing. He earned the win and left his club one victory away from glory, pitching 5.2 shutout innings, on two hits, two walks and four strikeouts. All in what was one of the most important outings in a long time for Odrisamer, which earned him even the honor of Most Valuable Player of the finals.

The Korean team signed him again for the 2022 season.