Julio Munoz got big Asheville win, saw two pro seasons

-
Julio Munoz 1990 Asheville Tourists baseball card
Asheville Tourists manager Frank Cacciatore knew the season was going to get harder, but he was just happy for the early win, he told The Charleston Post-Courier early in April 1990.

It was a win against the Charleston Rainbows that was keyed by a six-inning performance by starter Julio Munoz, who gave up just two earned runs for the win.

"It's going to be tougher down the line," Cacciatore told The Post-Courier, "but I have no complaints."

For Munoz, his line didn't end up being that long. He got just eight other starts that year for Ashville. His Asheville starts also ended up being the final outings of his professional career.

Munoz' career began in 1988, signed by the Astros as a undrafted free agent out of his native Dominican Republic.

Munoz first made it to a United States field in 1989, playing in the rookie Gulf Coast League. There, he got nine starts and had no success in the win column. He lost all nine, with an ERA of 4.18.

For 1990, Munoz moved to single-A Asheville. He did better in both wins and ERA, but got the same number of outings, nine. He went 3-2, with a 2.35 ERA. He is not credited as pitching again.

1990 Minor League Tally
Players/Coaches Featured:1,291
Made the Majors: 707 - 54.8%
Never Made Majors: 584-45.2%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 305
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 181

Browse By:

-Player Name
-Player Team
-Date Featured

Players A to Z

Popular posts from this blog

A to Z: 1990 Minor League Players, Baseball Profiles

-
Image
What happened to your favorite minor league team in 1990? Find out here. Since late 2009, the players of 1990 have been featured at Greatest21Days.com, one at a time. Here, they've been ordered here alphabetically.  Every player has a story. With the help of contemporaneous newspaper articles, find that story here. Most recent players added Dec. 1, 2024 List of 1990 minor league players featured, in alphabetical order: Total: 4,457 A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z A  -  Bill Abare  got big hit at Dunedin, saw three pro seasons , 10/31/13  -  Glenn Abbott  saw bigs over decade, later turned coach , 7/27/14  -  Kurt Abbott 's first ML hit went for homer, saw 9 seasons , 3/22/15  -  Kyle Abbott  saw time in four major league seasons, Japan , 10/4/17  -  Paul Abbott  returned from injuries, made 11 ML seasons , 5/23/11...
Read more

T.J. Lucin hoped to be FMLBBP, saw 2 seasons, single-A

-
Image
T.J. Lucin 's main goal was so ingrained in his playing that he wrote it on each piece of equipment he had - "FMLBBP," The Berwyn Life wrote upon his selection by the Astros in the 1989 draft. The abbreviation stood for "future major league baseball player," The Life wrote . "It's something I've always dreamed of," Lucin told The Life . "In the past, I've done it, but I wasn't so outward about it." Lucin took a big step toward that goal with his selection that June. But he couldn't sustain his momentum. Lucin ended up playing two seasons . He topped out at single-A. Lucin's career began that June, taken by the Astros in the 21st round of the draft out of Morton College in Illinois. Lucin was also credited by his given first name, Anthony Lucin. Lucin arrived at Morton after transferring from Pima Community College in Arizona, as the team needed a catcher. He homered in a May 1989 game for Morton. As Morton prepared...
Read more

Bryan Foster improved enough for 5 pro seasons, high-A

-
Image
Newly minted Brewers minor leaguer Bryan Foster got limited playing time early at rookie Helena in 1986, but the Indianapolis-area product looked past that, he told The Indianapolis Star that July. "I'm learning an awful lot," Foster told The Star then. "It's disappointing that I don't get to play more, but I'm improving. Just working out every day, taking infield practice and B.P. helps." Foster eventually improved enough to make five pro seasons with the Brewers and Astros . He topped out a high-A. Foster's career began in 1986, taken by the Brewers in the eighth round of the draft out of North Central High School in Indianapolis. At North Central, Foster drew high praise from his coach Tom Bradley the month before the draft, as the coach told The Star of the college and professional scouts watching him. "He's the most outstanding shortstop in the state," Bradley told The Star . "He is an all-around ball player. He is e...
Read more

Matt Rambo had jitters early, saw 5 seasons, AA, injury

-
Image
During his first big practice as a professional in 1987, Matt Rambo pitched for the club's special instructor at Utica, showing what he could do, not through speed, but through pitching, The Philadelphia Daily News wrote . "I did have some jitters out there," Rambo told The Daily News for a feature on the Phillies minor league club. "I have dreamed of being a pro pitcher for as long as I can remember. I would have signed out of high school if some team had wanted me then." As it stood, Rambo gained enough notice in college to be taken in the second round of the 1987 draft. He went on from there to see time in five seasons. He topped out at AA . Rambo's career began that year in 1987, taken by the Astros 52nd overall out of Richland College in Texas. Rambo started with the Phillies at short-season Utica . He saw 13 starts and went 4-4, with a 3.74 ERA. He then moved to single-A Spartanburg for 1988 and went 12-10, with a 3.73 ERA. For 1989, he saw Sparta...
Read more

Features from the 1990 minor league sets (By Date)

-
Image
What happened to your favorite minor league team in 1990? Find out here. Since late 2009, the players of 1990 have been featured at Greatest21Days.com, one at a time. Here, they've been ordered here by the date published, newest first.  Every player has a story. With the help of contemporaneous newspaper articles, find that story here. Most recent players added July 6 ,  2025 Features in order of when the y appeared: July 2025 Bryan Foster  improved enough for 5 pro seasons, high-A , 7/6/25 T.J. Lucin  hoped to be FMLBBP, saw 2 seasons, single-A , 7/5/25 Edwin Valentin  saw 3 seasons, single-A, from Puerto Rico , 7/1/25 June 2025 Perry Berry  saw 4 seasons, high-A, went into education , 6/30/25 Jorge Pineda  made perfect throw, played one pro season , 6/29/25 Mark Stiteler  threw well in college, saw 3 pro outings , 6/29/25 Steve McCumiskey  went from college catching to pros , 6/28/25 Jason Wall  gave solid college relief, saw 1 pro ...
Read more

Vince Bradford played 2 pro baseball seasons, then football

-
Image
Vince Bradford played his first two professional seasons and looked around. The outfielder saw himself behind his teammates. He also saw himself moving to a different sport, football, according to The Tulsa World . "I think I was just a little bit behind and I realized that I couldn't catch up," Bradford told The World in September 1996. "I realized it would be better for me to stop playing baseball and come back to football, which I think I was better at." Bradford returned to football and to college, going to the University of Arkansas to play linebacker. Bradford went on to play football in Europe. He never saw the majors - or the NFL. Bradford's career began in 1990, taken by the Tigers in the third round of the draft out of Malvern High School in Arkansas. Bradford was also credited by his formal name, Vincent Bradford. Coming out of Malvern, Bradford gained enough attention to be thought of as a first-round pick. His football interest -...
Read more

Ed Quijada played 7 seasons, later paralyzed in crash

-
Image
Ed Quijada worked in 1991 to make the transition as smooth as possible, and have success . Quijada had played the last three seasons as an infielder. Now, in 1991, he was a pitcher . "It was tough," Quijada told The Houston Chronicle that August. "There was a lot of pressure on me coming out of the bullpen with the game on the line. The hardest thing for me was getting rid of the butterflies." Quijada never did make the majors, playing that year and parts of three more in the minors. He threw his last pitch after a return in 1997. More recently, though, Quijada has been trying to make the best of another transition, a life altering one . It's a transition forced by a 2009 car accident, one that left Quijada paralyzed from the neck down . In the months and years since, Quijada has been working to regain as much function as possible, as well as being a father to his kids and husband to his wife, according to a series of YouTube interviews . "F...
Read more