Bronson Arroyo was a superstar baseball player for the Key West Conchs, who went on to the major leagues, where he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates between 2000 and 2002, the Boston Red Sox from 2003 to 2005, the Cincinnati Reds from 2006 to 2013, the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014, and the Reds again in 2017.
But his music career overlapped his baseball career, and in 2005 Arroyo released his first album, “Covering the Bases,” which included covers from bands such as Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots and Foo Fighters. The album also includes the Red Sox victory song “Dirty Water” by The Standells, in which Arroyo is accompanied by fellow players Johnny Damon, Lenny DiNardo, and Kevin Youkilis.
Arroyo made his public debut on stage in January 2004 at the Hot Stove Cool Music fundraiser at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, where he performed a cover of Pearl Jam’s “Black” with teammate Kevin Millar.
Arroyo returned to Key West last week, again combining baseball and music. He threw out the first pitch at the Conchs’ baseball game on March 11 at Rex Weech Field, his old stomping grounds. On March 12, he performed a concert in the backyard of Key West’s Oldest House Museum.
