Tyler Heineman


Tyler Andrew Heineman is an American professional baseball catcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. The Houston Astros selected Heineman in the eighth round of the 2012 MLB draft. He has played in MLB for the Miami Marlins, with whom he made his MLB debut in 2019. He played college baseball for the UCLA Bruins.

High school and college

Heineman attended the Windward School in Los Angeles. There, he played for the school's baseball team. He batted.490 as a sophomore, batted.619 as a junior, and batted.487 and earned first-team All-California Interscholastic Federation Division IV honors as a senior in addition to Delphic League MVP honors.
Lightly recruited by college baseball programs, Heineman did not receive any scholarship offers. He enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he made the baseball team as a walk-on. He played sparingly as a freshman and sophomore, receiving eight at bats as a freshman, and batting.261 in 23 games as a sophomore. Heineman became the Bruins' starting catcher his junior year after starting catcher Steve Rodriguez and recruit Austin Hedges signed professional contracts. He was named All-Pac-12 Conference and a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award, given annually to college baseball's best catcher.

Career

Houston Astros

The Houston Astros selected Heineman in the eighth round of the 2012 MLB draft. He played for the Tri-City ValleyCats of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League after signing, and his.358 batting average led the league, while he ranked second in the league in OBP and OPS. He was a mid-season All Star, and an MiLB Organization All Star.
He played for the Lancaster JetHawks of the Class A-Advanced California League in 2013, and the Corpus Christi Hooks of the Class AA Texas League in 2014. After the 2014 regular season, the Astros assigned Heineman to the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League.
Heineman began the 2015 season with Corpus Christi, and received a midseason promotion to the Fresno Grizzlies of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. He finished 2015 with a.285 batting average, three home runs, and 30 runs batted in. Heineman also spent 2016 with Fresno, where he batted.259 with three home runs and 14 RBIs.

Milwaukee Brewers

During spring training in 2017, the Astros traded Heineman to the Milwaukee Brewers for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The Brewers assigned him to the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, where he posted a.281 batting average with two home runs and 20 RBIs in 199 at bats.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On November 13, 2018, Heineman signed a minor-league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He opened the 2019 season with the Reno Aces, batting.325/.407/.525 in 80 at bats.

Miami Marlins

On June 3, 2019, the Diamondbacks traded Heineman to the Miami Marlins for cash considerations. On September 3, the Marlins selected Heineman's contract. He made his major league debut on September 4 versus the Pittsburgh Pirates, striking out as a pinch hitter. He recorded his first MLB hit on September 25; a pinch-hit double off Jacob deGrom. He hit his first career home run off Zack Wheeler on September 26. On October 16, Heineman was outrighted to AAA New Orleans. He was an MiLB Organization All Star. He became a free agent following the 2019 season.

San Francisco Giants

On January 6, 2020, Heineman signed a minor-league deal with the San Francisco Giants with an invitation for spring training.

Personal life

Heineman's younger brother, Scott Heineman, is a professional baseball outfielder and first baseman for the Texas Rangers. Their father, Steve, served in the Santa Monica Police Department.