Ryan Lavarnway

In his debut for the team on July 19, he became the first Red with six RBIs in his Cincinnati debut since RBIs became a statistic in 1920.

However, he only played five games for the Reds before they returned him to the minor leagues.

Ryan Cole Lavarnway (ריאן לווארנוויי; born August 7, 1987) is an American-Israeli former professional baseball catcher.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, Miami Marlins, and Cleveland Indians.

In international competition, he plays for Team Israel, and competed for them in the World Baseball Classic and in the Olympics.

Lavarnway was born on August 7, 1987, in Burbank, California, and grew up in Woodland Hills, California.

Born to a Jewish mother and a Catholic father, Lavarnway celebrated Chanukah growing up but never had a Bar Mitzvah.

Starting in high school, Lavarnway began pursuing the Jewish faith more seriously.

"I felt spiritually attracted and I began to attend synagogue," he said of his high school days.

From watching his father play softball games, Lavarnway developed an interest in baseball at a young age.

He played catcher in Little League, and his favorite major league player growing up was Jason Varitek.

At El Camino Real High School, Lavarnway caught at first but later played outfield for the "Conquistadors" baseball team as a senior.

Lavarnway attended Yale University, where in 2007 he won the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) batting title by hitting .467 and led the NCAA with an .873 slugging percentage.

That year, Lavarnway also set the Ivy League record with a 25-game hitting streak.

In addition, he set the Ivy League all-time career home run record, with 33.

Lavarnway was drafted by the Red Sox in 2008.

In 2009, he led the South Atlantic League with 59 extra-base hits.

Next season, he was a Carolina League Mid-Season and Post-Season All Star; additionally, he was named the Red Sox co-Minor League Offensive Player of the Year.

In 2011, after Lavarnway hit 30 home runs in 478 minor league at bats, Baseball America named him the best power prospect in the International League.

He was also named to their 2011 Minor League All-Star Team, and the Red Sox organization named him co-winner of their Offensive Player of the Year award for the second season in a row.

He was called up to the major leagues by the Red Sox in August 2011, making headlines in September when he hit two home runs in his first start as a catcher.

Entering the 2012 season Lavarnway was the No. 9 prospect in the Red Sox system according to Baseball America.

That season, he was the International League (IL) All Star starting catcher and a post-season IL All-Star.

He played 46 games for Boston in 2012, batting .157.

He split 2013 between Pawtucket and Boston, batting .299 in 25 games for the major league club.

In 2014 with Pawtucket, Lavarnway led the team to the International League title, and was voted MVP of the IL series.

However, he was hitless in 10 at bats for Boston, who designated him for assignment after the year.

Lavarnway began the 2015 season with the Baltimore Orioles but only played 10 games for them before getting designated for assignment on May 26.

Signed by the Atlanta Braves, he served as A. J. Pierzynski's backup starting on June 15; though he spent the rest of the season with Atlanta, he only appeared in 27 games for them.

Failing to make the Braves' roster in 2016, he spent most of the season in the minor leagues for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Lavarnway received international honors in 2017, getting named Pool A MVP after playing for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

In the major leagues that year, he got into six games with the Oakland Athletics.

He was a 2018 mid-season Triple-A All Star for the Indianapolis Indians.

Called up by the Pittsburgh Pirates at the end of 2018, he had four hits in six at bats.

The team retired his jersey in 2018.

Lavarnway started 2019 in the minor leagues again but was called up by the Reds in July.

In November 2019, he obtained Israeli citizenship, hoping to play for Team Israel in baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

He played for Team Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo in the summer of 2021, and his slugging percentage of .700 was 5th-highest at the Olympic Games.

He signed a minor league contract with the Miami Marlins in December.

He played for Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.