Paolo Alesandro Espino Alonso (born January 10, 1987) is a Panamanian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.
He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Rangers, Washington Nationals, and Toronto Blue Jays.
He split the 2008 season between Lake County and the advanced Single-A Kinston Indians, registering a 5.54 ERA with 68 strikeouts between the two teams.
In 2009, Espino appeared with Lake County, Kinston, and the Double-A Akron Aeros, notching a 11–8 record and 3.01 ERA in 28 games between the three clubs.
[3] On April 10, 2014, Espino signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals organization and was assigned to the Double–A Harrisburg Senators to begin the season.
[5] However, he did not make the major league club and was assigned to Syracuse, where he pitched to an 8–11 record and 3.30 ERA with 133 strikeouts across 26 games (24 starts).
[9] Espino was designated for assignment by the Brewers on August 23, 2017, to make room on the 40-man roster for Aaron Brooks, who was claimed off waivers.
Espino was traded to the Texas Rangers on August 26, 2017 for cash considerations and was assigned to the Triple-A Round Rock Express.
[16] He spent the remainder of the season with the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox, posting a 4–5 record and 4.83 ERA with 52 strikeouts across 19 games (10 starts).
[21] On June 16, 2021, Espino won his first major league game, pitching five shutout innings in a 3–1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
On June 23, he earned his first major league save by pitching a scoreless bottom of the ninth inning in a 13–12 win against the Philadelphia Phillies.
[28] Espino's cousin Damaso is a former professional baseball player, and is currently an international scout in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.