Esteban Antonio Loaiza Veyna [lo-EYE-sa] (born December 31, 1971) is a Mexican retired professional baseballpitcher and current pitching coach for El Águila de Veracruz of the Mexican League. He played in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Washington Nationals, Oakland Athletics, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Loaiza was the American League‘s (AL) starting pitcher in the 2003 All-Star Game. That year, he led the AL in strikeouts.
What is Esteban Loaiza’s Net Worth?
Esteban Loaiza is a retired Mexican-born professional baseball player who has a net worth of $5 million. Esteban Loaiza played in the MLB for various teams from 1995 to 2008. After starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he played for the Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Washington Nationals, Oakland Athletics, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Among his achievements, Loaiza led the AL in strikeouts in 2003. Unfortunately Esteban has experienced some legal troubles over the years, including a 2018 arrest on charges of drug trafficking which we’ll detail later in this article. He served three years in prison and was deported to Mexico after being released in August 2021.
Net Worth: $5 Million
Date of Birth: Dec 31, 1971 (51 years old)
Place of Birth: Tijuana
Gender: Male
Profession: Baseball player
Nationality: United States of America
Career Earnings
During his career Esteban earned $44 million from salary alone during his time in MLB. He earned additional millions from endorsements.
Career Beginnings
Esteban Loaiza was born December 31, 1971 in Tijuana, Mexico. Loaiza was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an undrafted free agent on March 21, 1991. With the Gulf Coast Pirates, an affiliate rookie level minor league affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, he started five games in 1991, finishing with a 5–1 record and a 2.26 ERA. Loaiza moved through the Pirates farm system with stops at Augusta (class A – 1992), Salem (class A – 1993) and Carolina (class AA – 1993-1994). He also played for the Mexico City Red Devils of the Mexican Summer League during the 1993 season. He also played with the Mexicali Aguilas of the Liga Mexicana Del Pacifico.
Major League Career
Loaiza moved to a big league club in 1995, making his major league debut on April 29, 1995 for the Pirates against the Philadelphia Phillies. He finished his rookie season with an 8–9 record and a 5.16 ERA in 31 starts. He began the 1996 season back in the minors with the Triple-A Calgary Cannons, but was recalled to the majors that June.
The Pirates then traded him to the Texas Rangers on July 17, 1998, for Todd Van Poppel and Warren Morris. Loaiza went on to play for the Toronto Blue Jays (2000-02).
Loaiza had his best career season in 2003 with the Chicago White Sox. That season, he led the AL in strikeouts with 207 and finished runner-up in wins with 21. He also earned his first career All-Star selection. In Cy Young Award voting, Loaiza came in second behind Roy Halladay. During his second season with the White Sox in 2004, he received another All-Star selection.
Personal Life
Loaiza married singer Jenni Rivera in 2010. He made a number of appearances on her family’s reality television series “I Love Jenni.” The couple filed for divorce in 2012, citing irreconcilable differences. The divorce papers were filed on Monday, October 1, 2012. Rivera died three months later, on December 9, 2012, when her private plane crashed just before the divorce was finalized.