Today’s Dodger of the Day is pitcher Wilson Álvarez.

Álvarez was born March 24, 1970, to William and Ada Álvarez in Maracaibo, Venezuela. It should go without saying that Maracaibo is really, really into baseball. Of the 405 Venezuelans to play in the majors, 33 are from the city, including Álvarez and Luis Aparicio (still the country's only Hall-of-Famer). It's represented by the Águilas del Zulia in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League and has the Coquivacoa Little League, the first Venezuelan Little League team.

Álvarez played with Coquivacoa along with his three brothers Willy, Walter and William. It was in this pressure cooker of an environment that Wilson first gained notice. Between the ages of 11 and 16, he pitched 12 no-hitters. In 1984, he pitched a 21-K no-hitter in a baseball tournament that earned him a spot on the magazine celebrating Aparicio's induction into Cooperstown.

In 1982, Wilson played with Coquivacoa in Williamsport as the Latin American representatives. The team went 1-2, falling to eventual runners-up Taiwan in the first round. Álvarez was the only player from the tournament to go on to play in a major league game; 2 players from the Canadian team later played in the NHL.

On September 23, 1986, Álvarez signed with the Texas Rangers as an international free agent. He was assigned to Águilas del Zulia and did not impress in his first season. In 10 appearance he allowed 12 runs in 9⅓ innings. That's an 11.57 ERA. Inauspicious beginnings will become something of a theme.

In 1987 he began the season with the Rookie League with GCL Rangers. That he had the stuff of a major leaguer was evident, but the 17-year-old had yet to really grow into himself. He posted a 5.24 over 10 appearances in the short-season league; he also played with future major leaguers Robb Nen and Brian Bohanon. He was called up to the class-A Gastonia Rangers to end the season, finishing a 5.2 BB/9.

He later said, "Those days were tough...It was tough to adapt to a new culture, new friends, language, food and all. The expectations were high back home and I felt things were not going in the right direction, although I trusted that I could pitch and do my job.”

Álvarez made strides in 1988. After a brief stint with Oklahoma City in AAA, he returned to Gastonia and shaved nearly three runs off his 1987 ERA, posting a 2.98 ERA that looked more like the ace he hoped to be. He also racked up 134 strikeouts in 23 appearances to go with a 0.4 HR/9.

Álvarez returned to Venezuelan winter ball every year during his early career in the minors, winning the Venezuelan championship in 1989 with battery mate Joe Giradi and manager Pete Mackanin.

The championship was a happy note to end a tumultuous 1989. It began well: in 13 appearances for the Port Charlotte Rangers, he allowed only 68 hits in 81 innings. His performance earned him a promotion to Tulsa for seven games.

And then Rangers GM Tom Grieve decided to flaunt his trade pieces.

The Rangers called Álvarez up from Tulsa to spot start for Charlie Hough July 24. Álvarez became the first player born in the 1970s when he took the rubber against the Toronto Blue Jays. His first pitch to Toronto center fielder Junior Felix was a strike.

The rest of the start was a disaster. Felix singled to center on the next pitch. Tony Fernandez and Kelly Gruber hit back-to-back home runs to give the Jays a 3-0 lead. After walking the next two batters, Álvarez was done.

The next day Álvarez was sent back to Tulsa. The day after, the Rangers traded Álvarez along with Sammy Sosa and Scott Fletcher to the White Sox for Harold Baines and Fred Manrique. Álvarez pitched six games for the Birmingham Barons in 1989 before returning to Venezuela.

Fresh off the Venezuelan championship, Álvarez started the season in AAA Vancouver. After going 7-7 and posting a 6.00 ERA in 17 games, he was demoted to Birmingham. Álvarez righted the ship in Birmingham, posting a 4.27 ERA in seven games.

All was not well. His wife gave birth to a premature child in August. The boy died August 11.

He dominated the Venezuelan league that winter, going 3-3 with a 1.38 ERA. He continued that success in Birmingham in 1991, posting the best numbers of his career by far. The 21-year-old posted a 1.83 ERA, only allowing 31 earned runs in 152.1 innings.

The White Sox saw fit to bring Álvarez back up to the majors. The date: August 11.

“I couldn’t believe I was getting back and pitching on the same day when we lost our baby,” he said. “I had a million things on my mind, I was nervous because I was afraid that I was not going to be able to make an out like in 1989. I didn’t know what to think or do because of the chance to pitch back on this level. When we arrived on the bus to the ballpark I realized I had left my bag with all my clothes and equipment at the lobby of the hotel. The team sent a person to get my stuff where my wife was waiting. When the bag arrived I got dressed and ran to the bullpen with the belt on my hand to prepare for the game and only was able to warm up for a half-hour.”

The half-hour was all that was required. Álvarez faced the Baltimore Orioles and hitters such as Cal Ripken or Dwight Evans. Álvarez walked Evans in the second and didn't allow another baserunner for the entire game.

In his second major league appearance, Álvarez threw a no-hitter. He was the 13th pitcher in White Sox history to accomplish the feat and the first since Joe Cowley in 1986. Crucially, Álvarez was also the first Venezuelan pitcher to complete the feat.

Venezuela celebrated, putting his likeness on billboards and in newspapers and graffiti.

Álvarez ended the 1991 season with a 3.51 ERA and a 3-2 record. He also pitched for Zulia in winter ball, returning to his hometown as its favorite son. He made history, becoming the first pitcher in league history to lead the league in wins, strikeouts and ERA. Zulia also earned a spot in the 1992 Caribbean Series; the team finished second, going 4-3. All in all, Álvarez threw nearly 300 innings in 1991.

1992 did not live up to the promise of 1991. Álvarez began the season as a reliever, failing to break into the rotation despite his prior performance. His walk rate ballooned to near six and he only started nine games toward the back half of the season. His performance in the Venezuelan league faltered as well. He pitched in six games with a 4.08 ERA.

In 1993, he formed part of a rotation with Jack McDowell, Alex Fernandez and Jason Bere that would get the White Sox within two wins of the World Series. Álvarez won game three of the ALCS in Toronto, but the Jays beat the Sox in six games.

In 1994, he was an All-Star. He went 12-8 with 3.45 ERA and a clean 8th inning in Pittsburgh. He continued his success into 1995 and 1996, maintaining a sub-4.5 ERA in both seasons and pitching at least 175 innings in each.

1997 was the last year of Álvarez's contract. By the trade deadline, the White Sox were 3.5 games back of the Cleveland Indians for the AL Central lead. But the White Sox were looking to retool and become younger. Handing Álvarez a potentially large sum of money in free agency wouldn't fit that mold.

Owner Jerry Reinsdorf also thought anyone who believed the Sox had a shot at catching Cleveland was "crazy." And thus, the White Flag Trade came to be: the Sox sent Álvarez, Danny Darwin and Roberto Hernandez to the San Francisco Giants for pitchers Keith Foulke, Bob Howry and four dudes who are only notable because their careers went down the drain.

Álvarez hated San Francisco and in particular Barry Bonds: "Roberto and I got into a place where we never felt totally welcome. Barry Bonds was not the nicest person in the world and he was the leader of that clubhouse. Overall it was not a good experience.”

He signed a five-year contract with the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the offseason and threw the franchise's first pitch March 31, 1998. He pitched 2.3 innings and gave up six runs.

Not the franchise's crowning achievement.

Devil Rays saw brief, fleeting flashes of the dominant lefty they'd hoped for throughout 1998. Álvarez pitched a one-run, eight-inning gem in his April 12 return to Chicago and seven shutout innings in Seattle on September 8.

But this Álvarez already showed signs of decline. His powerful stuff wasn't working. He frequently gave up four or more runs, reaching a nadir with a 4.2-inning, seven-run drubbing at the hands of the Angels July 21 in Tampa. Combine that with a lack of run support and you have a season nowhere near worthy of the #1 starter on any rotation. The Devil Rays finished and 63-99 in 1998 and 69-93 in 1999 despite many big names on the roster.

Álvarez began 2000 on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis and underwent arthroscopic surgery. He missed both the 2000 and 2001 seasons, only returning to a major-league mound in June of 2002. He pitched to the tune of a 5.28 ERA in 23 games that season. The Devil Rays released Álvarez September 30.

Álvarez signed with the Dodgers January 31, 2003, and transitioned into the bullpen as a lefty specialist. He took well to the new role, posting a 2.37 ERA over 21 appearances, including 12 starts. His Dodger debut came June 7 in a long relief appearance in a 4-1 loss to the White Sox.

He played in 40 games in 2004, including 15 starts. His ERA jumped to 4.03, mostly due to bad starts in May and August. Shoulder injuries limited his playing time in 2005 to just 21 appearances. His last major league appearance would be September 28 against the Diamondbacks. Álvarez gave up a single to Shawn Green...and injured his hand. Faced with more surgeries, he retired at the age of 35.

Álvarez was the pitching coach for the State College Spikes from 2007-2008 and currently holds the same position for the GCL Orioles. He lives in Florida with his wife and three daughters.