Richard Bleier Bio: Contract, Trade, Wife & Net Worth

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Richard Bleier is a renowned baseball veteran; who has recently received broad exposure in Major League Baseball (MLB). Richard pursued his dreams and ambitions to make it to the big league. 

As a professional baseball player, Bleier currently plays for the Miami Marlin. In addition, he serves as a pitcher for the two times World Series champions, i.e., 1997 and 2003. 

Besides, Richard has played for teams such as the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees. 

Richard Bleier age
Richard Bleier representing the Orioles

Today, we will dive into Richard’s life along with his career and rise in the big league. But first, some quick facts on him. 

Quick Facts

Name Richard Bleier
Full Name Richard Sidney Bleier
Birth Place Davie, Florida
Date of Birth April 16, 1987
Age 36 years old
Horoscope Aries
Father Lawrence Bleier
Mother Kathleen Bleier
Siblings A brother and a sister
Education Plantation, Florida
Florida Gulf Coast Eagles
Nationality American
Ethnicity White
Height  6’3″
Weight  215 lb
Build  Athletic 
Profession Baseball player
Position in Team Pitcher
Contract $572,500
Career Earnings $2,058,027
Current team Miami Marlin
Affiliated team Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees
Martial status Married
Wife Brett Bleier
Daughter Murphy Bleier
Social Media Instagram
Net worth $5 million
Merch  Baseball Card, Autographed ball
Last Update March, 2024

Richard Bleier | Early Life and Education

Richard Bleier was born on April 16, 1987, in Brooklyn, New York. He was born to his father, Lawrence Bleier, and his mother, Kathleen Bleier. 

Additionally, he grew up with his brother and sister in Plantation, Florida. As a teenager, Richard spent most of his time playing stickball in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Moreover, he attended the South Plantation High School, where he graduated in 2005. Besides, as a high schooler, Richard played baseball for the South Plantation High School team.

After graduating, Richard enrolled at the Florida Gulf Coast University. Richard majored in criminal justice.

He also played baseball for his university team, the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles. 

Besides, Richard was the State of Florida All-Star in 2005 during his high school days. On the other hand, he was selected as an Atlantic Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year at Florida Gulf Coast University. 

College Stats 

Richard played college baseball during his time at the Florida Gulf Coast University. He was part of the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, which offered him a partial scholarship. 

As a junior in his college career, Richard achieved a 7–1 win-loss record and a 2.09 earned run average (ERA).

Moreover, during his three years at the University, he had 181 strikeouts, 17 wins, and a 2.70 ERA.

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Minor League Career

In early 2008, the Texas Ranger selected Richard during the sixth round in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft. 

His signing with the Texas Ranger made him the highest draft pick in the history of the University.

Richard Bleier went on to play for the Bakersfield Blaze in the 2009 season. 

Besides, he has the best strikeout and walks ratio in the league, 5.40. In 2009, Richard was 9-12 with 125 strikeouts, the second-highest in the minor league system. 

Pitcher of the Week 

During the 2010 season, Richard Bleier was 7-11 for Frisco. Besides, he gave 1.54, which was the third-fewest walks per inning in the Texas League.

Moreover, he was voted as the Pitcher of the Week in the Class AA Texas League.

After the end of the 2013 season, Richard was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays from the Rangers.

Besides, he was signed by the Washington National organizations and pitched for the Harrisburg Senators before 2015. 

During the 2015 season, Richard recorded 14 wins and the lowest ERA at 2.57 among all minor league pitchers. Then in 2015, he was a post-season Class AA Eastern League All-Star in Harrisburg. 

Moreover, Bleier was voted as a Washington organization All-Star in 2015 by MiLB.com. 

Not to mention, Bleier was also voted as Pitcher of the Week on Mary 25, 2016, in the Eastern League.

Additionally, he was promoted to the Syracuse Chiefs in the Class AAA International League. 

Major League Career (MLB)

New York Yankees

Richard Bleier made his appearance in the major league in 2016 with the New York Yankees. He joined the Yankees after he pitched 956 innings throughout nine seasons in the minor league. 

Besides, Richard is one of 12 Yankee pitchers to make their debut after turning 29 in 1919. Also, he had 23 relief appearances in 2016 with a 1.96 ERA. 

Richard Bleier for the Yankees
Richard Bleier pitching for New York Yankees.

Further, Richard was traded by the Yankees in 2017 to the Baltimore Orioles. Also, he went on to make 57 relief appearances in 2017 with a 1.99 ERA 2017. 

Moreover, Richard had a 1.93 ERA in 31 relief appearances he made in 2018. His 1.97 ERA during the 2016-18 season was the second-lowest out of all the pitchers in major league baseball. 

Besides, Richard made his professional debut in the major league on May 26, 2016, with the Yankees.

Additionally, he was the 27th Yankee to have worn the jersey number 50. Besides, Richard was the third former FGCU player to join the significant league alongside Casey Coleman and Chris Sale. 

Further, his presence on the team was appreciated by Yankee manager Joe Girardi.

Baltimore Orioles

On February 21, 2017, Richard was traded to the Baltimore Orioles by the Yankees. After his first defeat with the Orioles, he tossed 1​⁄3 scoreless innings in the victory against Detroit Tigers.

Also, he had a solid first half of the season with the Orioles. He had a 1.45 ERA in 30​⁄3 innings through the 25 relief appearances. 

Further, he had a 1.56 ERA, which was the lowest of all the pitchers with 40 innings. On the other hand, Richard averaged 1.45 ERA in 30​⁄3 innings.

Best performance of his career

In the April of 2018, Sam Miller stated on ESPN that Richard had the best performance of his career with a minimum of 95 innings.

He states that by the relatively arbitrary measure of pitchers with 101 big league innings or more, his 242 ERA+ was the best.

During the 2018 season, Richard made 31 appearances with a 3-0 and a 1.93 ERA. Besides, he averaged 4.13 strikeouts per inning, which was the fourth-lowest average of all AL pitchers.

Further, he recorded 3.40 pitches per appearance and 21.2% hard-hit balls, the third-lowest of all AL pitchers. 

Moreover, throughout the 2018 season, he had 5-1 with a 1.97 ERA. Besides, Richard was declared eligible for arbitration in 2020.

In addition, he will be a free agent during the start of the season in 2023. 

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The injury that disrupted his form

Bleier was left out of the game on June 13 after he received an injury. It was later diagnosed as a third-grade tear, which required surgical repair. 

It led him to halt his season, but Bleier was expected to return during the spring training in 2019. 

However, Richard had to struggle with the complications, but he slowly made progress throughout the season. 

Further, he finished the season with 3-0 with 5.37 ERA and four saves in 53 appearances. Besides, Richard had the worst batted-ball luck on ground balls in the American League context. 

Moreover, Richard played in front of an infield after a dugout shouting with coach José Flores. The shift of position would later drive the improvement of his progress. 

Miami Marlins

Before he could be a free agent, Richard was traded to the Miami Marlins from Baltimore on July 31, 2020. The transaction was completed after the Orioles received Isaac De León. 

During his time with the Marlins, Richard was 1-1 with a 2.63 ERA. Additionally, he was 1-1 in the 2020 season with 1.08 WHIP and 2.16 ERA in 16.2 innings over 21 games. 

Richard Bleier | Career and Season Stats

Year WAR W L ERA SV GS G SO IP WHIP
Career 0.5 2 2 3.48 0 0 51 35 44.0 1.091
2021 Season Stats 4.8 11 4 3.06 4 1 236 130 235.0 1.183

Learn more about his stats, baseball scouting report, and prospect rankings on Baseball Cube, Fangraphs, and Fantasy Pros, respectively.

Israel: World Baseball Classic

In 2012, because of his Jewish heritage, Richard played for the Israel national baseball team. Further, during the qualifying rounds, he made two appearances and pitched one scoreless inning. 

He was credited with a hold in the second game after not pitching in his first game for the national competition. 

Additionally, Richard records two outs while walking two in the third and final game. However, he turned down Israel’s offer to play for the national team at the World Baseball Classic tournament. 

Richard rejected the request because he was determined to train in the Orioles’ bullpen.

He said,

“I wanted to represent Israel in the Classic. But I feel like I have such a small window at this point in my career. I didn’t get to the big leagues until I was 29.

I felt I should do whatever I could to get as much big league time as I can with what little time I have left.”

Who is Richard Bleier’s Wife?

The MLB professional Bleier is currently married to the love of his life. He shared wedding vows with his long-time girlfriend, Brett Bleier. 

Further, it’s proven that he loves his wife as he shares a lot of memories. His Instagram posts can be a testament to that. 

On the other hand, there have been no signs of a dispute between the two. On the contrary, the couples have been living a happy married life in Lauderdale, Florida. 

Richard Bleier wife
Richard with his wife, Brett Bleier.

Despite his busy schedule, Richard spends a lot of time with his family. Not long after their marriage, the couple was blessed with a child, a daughter named Murphy. 

The arrival of their daughter Murphy means a lot to Richard. It led him to reinvent himself and develop his character as a father figure. 

In the context of fatherhood, Richard quotes,

“Trying to figure out how to be a parent is obviously a whole new thing, and now, (I’m) trying to figure out how to keep her safe.”

He also said, “It’s crazy. I just remember at the beginning of this, you see, like, people with gloves or masks, and it’s like, ‘Oh, you know.’

And now, it’s, like, ‘I need a mask and gloves.’ And everybody’s walking around like it’s straight out of a movie. It’s horrifying, honestly.”

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Richard Bleier | Salary & Net worth

As a pitcher, Richard earned around an estimated $572,500 annually at the Baltimore Orioles. 

Further, he has accumulated a total of $2,058,027 from his career until 2020.

Because Bleier has just begun his career as a professional baseball player, he has yet to accumulate a lot of amount in the future. 

His estimated net worth is $5 million.

Richard Bleier | Height & Weight

Richard is an athletic person with a muscular figure and a tall stature. His presence in the field has helped him dominate opponents on multiple occasions. 

Also, Richard currently stands at 6 feet 2 inches and weighs around 88 kg. 

Social Media Presence 

The Florida native is quite active on social media platforms. You can catch up on the latest news regarding his personal and professional life on his Instagram account. 

He has accumulated over 6k followers under the username @richardbleier. 

Richard Bleier | FAQs

Is Richard a sabra?

No, Richard was born in America, but he follows the Jewish religion. For those confused, sabra means a Jewish person born in Israel. 

Does Richard play for Baltimore Orioles?

Richard is a former pitcher for the Orioles.

Did Richard have any affairs?

No, Richard did not have any affairs. He is currently married to Brett Bleier.

Did Richard Bleier sustain a knee injury?

No, there is no definite news regarding a knee injury for Richard. 

Does Richard have a son?

No, Richard has one daughter named Murphy. 

Sanjib Sah
Sanjib Sah
Sanjib Sah is an engineer and content writer passionate about sports and athletics. With a background in engineering and a love for all things active, Sanjib brings a unique perspective to the world of sports writing. Whether he is covering the latest trends in sports technology or sharing tips on improving your game, Sanjib's words are always rooted in a deep appreciation for players' hard work and dedication everywhere. In his free time, you can find him hitting the courts or hitting the trails, always looking for new ways to challenge himself and improve his skills.

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