A flamboyant free spirit, he was best known for coining all his pitching appearances as Lima Time. His remarkably animated displays of emotion on the mound made him a fan favorite, but also drew the ire of opposing teams.\n', 'He was known for his flamboyant celebrations after his victories in the face of opponents. Due to his indulging in musical pursuits beyond baseball, he was once described by The New York Times sportswriter Ben Shpigel as "the national anthem-crooning, towel-waving merengue singer who moonlights as a right-handed pitcher".\n', '

Lima made his Major League debut with the Detroit Tigers on April 20, 1994, at age 21 making a start against the Kansas City Royals. After three years in Detroit, he was traded to the Houston Astros on December 10, 1996, in an eight-player trade. In 1999 he compiled a record of 21–10 and was named to the National League All Star Team that season. However, after the 1999 season, Lima struggled to recapture his success and surrendered a league-leading 48 home runs, which was only two short of the single season record held by Bert Blyleven, and lost 16 games.\n', '

On June 23, 2001, Lima was traded back to Detroit in exchange for Dave Mlicki. He was released by Detroit during the 2002 season, proclaiming at the time, "If I can\'t pitch on this team—the worst or second-worst team in baseball—where am I going to pitch? If I can\'t start on this ballclub, I must be the worst pitcher on Earth."\n', '

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