Topic: Vicente Padilla

Vicente de la Cruz Padilla (born September 27, 1977, in Chinandega, Nicaragua) is a Major League Baseball pitcher, who is with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Padilla previously pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies and Texas Rangers. He is well known for being one of the few modern day pitchers to make use of the eephus pitch, which he has been seen to throw as slow as 50 mph in-game. The pitch has earned the nickname of "soap bubble" by Dodgers fans and longtime announcer Vin Scully.

Padilla pitched for Nicaragua in the 1998 Baseball World Cup, helping his team win the Bronze medal as the closer. He also appeared in the Central American Games the same year, as his team finished in second place.

After working with former MLB pitcher Dennis Martínez to improve his change-up, Padilla was signed as an international free agent by the Arizona Diamondbacks on August 31, 1998. He debuted in the minor leagues in 1999, playing for the Class-A Advanced High Desert Mavericks and earning a swift promotion to the Class-AAA Tucson Sidewinders.