Chris Heintz (baseball)

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Chris Heintz
Catcher
Born: (1974-08-06) August 6, 1974 (age 49)
Syosset, New York
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 10, 2005, for the Minnesota Twins
Last MLB appearance
September 26, 2007, for the Minnesota Twins
MLB statistics
Batting average.232
Hits19
Runs batted in9
Teams

Christopher John Heintz (born August 6, 1974) is a former Major League Baseball catcher. He played with the Minnesota Twins from 2005–2007. He is currently a hitting coach for the GCL Philadelphia Phillies. He is the brother of PGA Tour golfer Bob Heintz.[1]

College career[edit]

Heintz attended the University of South Florida, where he played baseball for the Bulls. While at South Florida, he was named to the All-Tournament Team of the 1996 Conference USA baseball tournament, in which South Florida finished second.[2] He is a member of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame.[3]

Minor League career[edit]

Heintz was drafted by the Chicago White Sox as a catcher in the 19th round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft. After six seasons in their farm system, the ChiSox released Heintz. He signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2002, and spent the season with their Eastern League double A affiliate, the New Haven Ravens. At the end of the season, he became a rule 55 free agent, and signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and spent 2003 with the Altoona Curve, also in the Eastern League.

MLB debut[edit]

He signed with the Minnesota Twins following the season, and spent 2004 and 2005 with their triple A affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings. His .304 batting average, eight home runs and 58 runs batted in in 2005 was good enough for a September call-up,[4] and he made his major league debut on September 10, 2005, replacing Mike Redmond in the eighth inning of a 7–5 loss to the Cleveland Indians at Jacobs Field.[5]

Heintz spent the next two seasons with Rochester making the occasional appearances with the major league roster. The Twins released Heintz following the 2007 season. He signed with the Baltimore Orioles for 2008. After one season with their triple A affiliate, the Norfolk Tides, Heintz retired. In 199.1 major league innings caught, Heintz had a 1.000 fielding percentage.

Coaching[edit]

During the 2009 season, Heintz began coaching with the Twins' Midwest League affiliate, the Beloit Snappers. On October 20, 2009, he replaced Jake Mauer as manager of the Gulf Coast League Twins. He will also run the Twins' extended Spring Training.[6]

At the start of the 2010 season, the South Florida Bulls baseball team hired Heintz as an assistant coach.[7]

Heintz was named as the hitting coach for the GCL Phillies for the 2018 season.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "For Heintz, Another Year in the Minors". Golfweek.com. 26 September 2005. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  2. ^ "2012 Conference USA Baseball Media Guide" (PDF). p. 93. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-12. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  3. ^ "Chris Heintz (2013) - USF Athletic Hall of Fame". USF Athletics. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  4. ^ "Chris Heintz's Moment in the Sun". Retrieved 2005-09-30.
  5. ^ "Cleveland Indians 7, Minnesota Twins 5". Retrieved 2005-09-10.
  6. ^ "Twins announce Minor League staffs". Retrieved 2009-10-22.
  7. ^ "Former Bulls Great Chris Heintz Returns to USF as Hitting Coach". USF Bulls. 2010-06-27. Retrieved 2012-01-16.

External links[edit]

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