Adeiny Hechavarría Barrera (born April 15, 1989) is a

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...

for the Chiba Lotte Marines of

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB). He has played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

and

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

. He made his MLB debut in 2012.

Early life

Hechavarria was born in Santiago de Cuba in Cuba to Diosmede and Mirta Hechavarria. He has an older brother, Alien. Hechavarria participated in a Pan American tournament in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

in 2006, and played shortstop for the Cuban Junior National team in 2008. In 2009, he defected to

on a boat with 11 others. Agents and other representatives of the

watched him play in workouts in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

, and signed him after his visa paperwork went through in 2010.

Professional career

Toronto Blue Jays

On April 13, 2010, Hechavarria signed a four-year, $10 million contract with the

. He was assigned to extended spring training and first appeared in a game with the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

of the Class A-Advanced

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

. On June 30, 2010, Hechavarria was promoted to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats of the Eastern League, where he recorded a .273 batting average and .303

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

On August 4, 2012, Hechavarria was called up to the Toronto Blue Jays active roster for the first time. Hechavarria had a .312 batting average and had scored 78 runs in 102 games with the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

(PCL). He appeared in the

Triple-A All-Star Game The Triple-A All-Star Game was an annual baseball game held from 1988 to 2019 between professional players from the affiliated Triple-A leagues of Minor League Baseball. These leagues were the International League (IL) and Pacific Coast League ( ...

for the PCL. Hechavarria played third base in his debut due to

Brett Lawrie Brett Russell Lawrie (born January 18, 1990) is a Canadian former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox. Amateur career While playing hi ...

's oblique strain. Hechavarria finished his debut 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and one walk. Hechavarria recorded his first career hit on August 7, against the

. Hechavarria was returned to Las Vegas on August 25, when Yunel Escobar returned to the Jays from paternity leave. Hechavarria was recalled on August 26 when

José Bautista José Antonio Bautista Santos (born October 19, 1980), nicknamed "Joey Bats", is a Dominican special advisor for the general manager of the Leones del Escogido and former professional baseball right fielder and third baseman. He played in Majo ...

and David Cooper were added to the disabled list. Hechavarria hit his first career home run, a solo shot off starter

Phil Hughes Philip Joseph Hughes (born June 24, 1986) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins, and San Diego Padres from 2007 through 2018. He stands tal ...

, in a game against the

on August 28, 2012.

Miami Marlins

On November 19, 2012, Hechavarria was traded to the

along with

Henderson Álvarez Henderson Javier Álvarez (born April 18, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays from 2011 through 2012, the Mia ...

, Jeff Mathis, Yunel Escobar, Jake Marisnick, Anthony DeSclafani, and

Justin Nicolino Justin Brian Nicolino (born November 22, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Miami Marlins, and in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) for the R ...

, in exchange for

Mark Buehrle Mark Alan Buehrle (; born March 23, 1979) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played the majority of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Chicago White Sox, playing twelve seasons for the team and winning the World S ...

, Josh Johnson, José Reyes, John Buck, and Emilio Bonifacio. On January 29, 2013, Hechavarria was named number 82 on MLB's Top Prospects list. Hechavarria was the Marlins' starting shortstop for the first 14 games of the 2013 season until he was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sore throwing arm. He was activated from the disabled list on May 2. On May 5, Hechavarria hit a bases-loaded triple and a grand slam against Roy Halladay of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

. On June 8, Hechavarria had an RBI single off

Shaun Marcum Shaun Michal Marcum (born December 14, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, and Cleveland Indians. In 2015, he became the ...

to score

Plácido Polanco Plácido Enrique Polanco (; born October 10, 1975) is a Dominican-American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers and Miami Marlins. He was a ...

in what would be the game winner, as the Marlins beat the

Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

in 20 innings. Overall, Hechavarria appeared in 148 games for Miami during the 2013 season. He batted .227./.267/.298, with 3 home runs and 42 runs batted in. He also recorded 8 triples and went 11–for–21 in stolen base attempts. Hechavarria played in 146 games during the 2014 season. His average climbed to .276, 49 percentage points higher than the previous season. He had one home run, 34 runs batted in, and 10 triples. In 2015, Hechavarria made 130 appearances for the Marlins. He batted .281, hit 5 homers, and drove in 48 runs. He was named the National League Player of the Week on April 26 after posting a .500 batting average and 10 RBI during the preceding week. During the 2016 season, Hechavarria appeared in 155 games. His batting average fell to .236. He had three home runs and 38 runs batted in. His .311 slugging percentage was the lowest of all qualified major league batters. He also had the lowest Isolated Power of all MLB players in 2016, at .075. On May 10, 2017, Hechavarria went on the disabled list with a strained oblique muscle. In mid-June he played in 10 rehab games.

Tampa Bay Rays

On June 26, 2017, the Marlins traded Hechavarria to the

for minor leaguers

Braxton Lee Braxton Russell Lee (born August 23, 1993) is an American professional baseball outfielder and hitting coach for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Mi ...

and Ethan Clark. Hechavarria finished the year with a .267 batting average and a career high 8 home runs. On April 26, 2018, Hechavarria broke Chris Gomez's 2002 franchise record by recording 242 consecutive chances without an error. He also owns the Rays franchise record for 71 consecutive games without an error. On August 1, 2018, Hechavarria was designated for assignment to clear space for the newly acquired

Tommy Pham Thomas James Pham (born March 8, 1988) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres, Cincinnati Reds, and Boston R ...

Pittsburgh Pirates

On August 6, 2018, Hechavarria was acquired by the

in exchange for minor league right-handed pitcher Matt Seelinger. The Pirates also received cash considerations in the trade.

New York Yankees

On August 31, 2018, the Pirates traded Hechavarria to the

for a player to be named later. On October 3, 2018, Hechavarria played in his first ever postseason game, the

2018 American League Wild Card Game The 2018 American League Wild Card Game was a play-in game during Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2018 postseason contested between the American League's (AL) two wild card teams, the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics. The game took pla ...

. He entered the game in the sixth inning as a defensive replacement for

Miguel Andújar Miguel Enrique Andújar (born March 2, 1995) is a Dominican professional baseball third baseman and left fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut with the New York Yankees in 2017 and played for the ...

New York Mets

On February 18, 2019, Hechavarria signed a minor league, spring training invite deal with the

. On May 3, Hechavarria triggered an opt-out clause in his deal, and the Mets selected his contract to their MLB roster. He was designated for assignment on August 9 to make room for newly signed second baseman

Joe Panik Joseph Matthew Panik (born October 30, 1990) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, and Miami Marlins. Panik was an A ...

. He was released on August 14. With the Mets in 2019 he batted .204/.252/.359 with five home runs and 18 RBIs.

Atlanta Braves

On August 16, 2019, the

signed Hechavarria to fill the Braves' shortstop vacancy with

Dansby Swanson James Dansby Swanson (born February 11, 1994) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Atlanta Braves. The Arizona Diamondbacks selected him firs ...

on the injured list. In 2018 with the Braves he batted .328/.400/.639 in 61 at bats with four home runs and 15 RBIs. With both teams combined, in 2019 he batted .241/.299/.443 with nine home runs and 33 RBIs. On January 16, 2020, the Braves re-signed Hechavarría to a one year deal worth $1 million. In 2020 he batted .254/.302/.305 with seven runs, no home runs, and two RBIs in 59 at bats, playing second base primarily, as well as third base and shortstop.

Chiba Lotte Marines

On December 25, 2020, Hechavarria signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines of

on a one-year, $970K contract. On April 30, 2021, Hechavarria made his NPB debut.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hechavarria, Adeiny 1989 births Living people Atlanta Braves players Avispas de Santiago de Cuba players Defecting Cuban baseball players Dunedin Blue Jays players Jupiter Hammerheads players Las Vegas 51s players Major League Baseball players from Cuba Cuban expatriate baseball players in Canada Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Major League Baseball shortstops Miami Marlins players New Hampshire Fisher Cats players New York Mets players New York Yankees players Peoria Javelinas players Phoenix Desert Dogs players Pittsburgh Pirates players Sportspeople from Santiago de Cuba Syracuse Mets players Tampa Bay Rays players Toronto Blue Jays players Chiba Lotte Marines players