Keibert Jose Ruiz (born July 20, 1998) is a

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

n professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

Career

Los Angeles Dodgers

Ruiz was signed by the

as an international free agent in 2014 for $140,000. He made his professional debut with the

Dominican Summer League Dodgers The Dominican Summer Dodgers are a minor league baseball team in the Dominican Summer League. The team plays in the Boca Chica Northwest division and is affiliated with the Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professi ...

in 2015 and spent the whole season there, batting .300 with one home run, 19 RBIs, and eight doubles in 44 games. He spent 2016 with both the

Arizona League Dodgers The Arizona Complex League Dodgers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The team is compo ...

and the

Ogden Raptors The Ogden Raptors are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Ogden, Utah and play their home games at Lindquist Field. Pitch ...

where he posted a combined .374 batting average with two home runs, 48 RBIs, a .412 OBP and a .939 OPS in 56 total games between both teams. In 2017, he began the year with the

Great Lakes Loons The Great Lakes Loons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Midland, Michigan, and play their home games at Dow Diamond, which opened in April 2007. Hist ...

where he was selected to the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

mid-season All-Star Team and was then promoted to the

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Rancho Cucamonga, California, and play their home games at LoanMart Field. The franc ...

of the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leagu ...

. The Dodgers selected him as their Minor League Player of the Year for 2017 after he hit .316 with eight home runs and 51 RBIs in 101 games between Great Lakes and Rancho Cucamonga. Ruiz was promoted to the Double-A

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

for the 2018 season and was selected to represent them at the mid-season

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

All-Star Game. He was also selected to the "world" team at the

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League- ...

and to the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season baseball league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are filled ...

Fall Stars game. In 101 games for Tulsa, he hit .268 with 12 home runs and 47 RBIs. The Dodgers added him to their 40-man roster after the 2018 season. Ruiz began 2019 with Tulsa. He was selected to the mid-season

All-Star Game. Ruiz was promoted to the Triple-A

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Comets are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their ho ...

in July. However, he suffered a broken finger in early August that ended his season prematurely. Between the two levels, he hit .261 with six homers and 34 RBI in 85 games in 2019. Ruiz was called up to the Majors for the first time on August 15, 2020 and made his MLB debut the following day as the starting catcher against the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

. He hit a home run in his first at-bat, against

Julio Teherán Julio Alberto Teherán Pinto (born January 27, 1991) is a Colombian professional baseball pitcher for the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angel ...

of the Angels. He appeared in only two games during the pandemic shortened 2020 season, with two hits in eight at-bats. Ruiz was on the Dodgers roster for the

2020 National League Wild Card Series The 2020 National League Wild Card Series were four best-of-three-games series in Major League Baseball (MLB) to determine participating teams in the 2020 National League Division Series. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, MLB expanded the postse ...

but did not appear in a game. He was left off the roster for the

2020 National League Division Series The 2020 National League Division Series were two best-of-five-games series in Major League Baseball (MLB) to determine the participating teams in the 2020 National League Championship Series. These matchups were: *(1) Los Angeles Dodgers (West ...

. In 2021, Ruiz appeared in six games for the Dodgers, with one hit (a home run) in seven at-bats. With Oklahoma City, he hit .311 in 52 games with 16 homers and 45 RBI.

Washington Nationals

On July 30, 2021, the Dodgers traded Ruiz, Josiah Gray, Donovan Casey, and Gerardo Carrillo to the

in exchange for

Trea Turner Trea Vance Turner (born June 30, 1993) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers. At the internation ...

and

Max Scherzer Maxwell Martin Scherzer (born July 27, 1984), nicknamed "Mad Max", is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tige ...

. Ruiz homered in his debut as a member of the Nationals organization on August 3, 2021, for the Triple-A

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

. Ruiz was called back up to the Majors on August 30 and made his Nationals debut the same day, going 1-4 against the

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

. He would finish the season with a .272/.333/.409

slash line This is an alphabetical list of selected unofficial and specialized terms, phrases, and other jargon used in baseball, along with their definitions, including illustrative examples for many entries. 0–9 0 :"Oh and ..." See count. 1 ...

with 3 home runs in 96 plate appearances at the MLB level with the Dodgers and the Nationals. On March 11, 2023, the Nationals announced that Ruiz had signed an eight-year contract extension. The contract, reportedly worth $50 million, ran through 2030, covering his last five seasons of club control and first three years of free agency, and included one-year club options for 2031 and 2032.

Personal life

Ruiz is married to Ryena. The couple has one son named Keibert Jr., and as of May 2025 a baby girl. Until 2025, Ruiz's Venezuelan parents, Leidys and Jose, had not seen him play in a game since he was a teenager in the

Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League (DSL) is a branch of affiliated Minor League Baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. After the demise of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2015 season, it is the only ...

in 2015, and had never seen him play in a major league game. After four visa denials they were finally approved in 2025, and attended a Nationals game on May 22, 2025 in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

. Keibert went 2 for 5 in the game, including a double and two RBIs, and applied the game-saving tag at home plate in the top of the ninth inning as the Nationals walked off the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

to win their fifth straight. The game was doubly emotional because Jose Ruiz's sister had died in Venezuela on that same day.

Awards and highlights

List of Major League Baseball players with a home run in their first major league at bat In baseball, a home run is credited to a batter when they hit a fair ball and reach home safely on the same play, without the benefit of an error. 136 players have hit a home run in their first at bat of a Major League Baseball (MLB) game, the ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiz, Keibert 1998 births Living people Arizona League Dodgers players Baseball players from Valencia, Venezuela Dominican Summer League Dodgers players Glendale Desert Dogs players Great Lakes Loons players Harrisburg Senators players Leones del Caracas players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Ogden Raptors players Oklahoma City Dodgers players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Rochester Red Wings players Tulsa Drillers players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Washington Nationals players