Ryan Hanigan

Ryan Michael Hanigan (born August 16, 1980) is an American former professional baseball catcher.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, and Colorado Rockies.

For the season, Hanigan hit .296 with five home runs and 56 RBIs over 119 games as the Cannons made the Carolina League Northern Division playoffs for the first time since 1995.

The following season, Hanigan played for the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts.

From 1997 to 1998, the Andover team had a 38–9 record.

After graduating from Andover High School in 1999, Hanigan attended Rollins College, where he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Cincinnati Reds.

He was teammates with future professional golfer Rob Oppenheim, and graduated from the school in 1999.

After graduating from high school, Hanigan had a difficult time finding a college that would let him play baseball.

He attended Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, where he played third base or left field because of an upperclassman at the catcher position.

During the summer in 2001, Hanigan played in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, where he hit .282 in 38 games.

In his junior year, he hit .384 with 48 RBIs over 57 games for Rollins, as the team finished 41–16 and clinched a berth to the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship.

Hanigan would have served as team captain his senior year; when he left Rollins, Hanigan's .359 career batting average was seventh best in school history.

He then spent the 2002 to 2006 seasons with Reds minor league baseball teams, including the Dayton Dragons and Louisville Bats.

In 2002, Hanigan played collegiate summer baseball in the Cape Cod League for Orleans Cardinals, where he was named the Top New England Prospect and an All-Star, and was awarded the Charles F. Moore Sr. award for the most valuable player on the Cardinals team.

John Brickley, a scout for the Reds, signed him as a free agent on August 23, although six other teams "showed interest" in signing the catcher.

In 2002, Hanigan began his career with the Reds' organization when he played in six minor league games for the Dayton Dragons of the Midwest League, batting .273 with three hits.

On April 28, 2003, in a game against the Quad City River Bandits, he went 4–5 with three RBIs.

Hanigan was named to the East squad in the Midwest League All-Star Game, where he served as the reserve catcher.

Later in July, he was placed on the disabled list (DL) with a high ankle sprain; up until then, he was hitting .283 with 26 RBIs.

Hanigan finished the season batting .277 with a home run and 31 RBIs, which earned him a promotion to the Triple-A Louisville Bats.

In one game for the Bats, he went 1–3.

Hanigan spent the entire 2004 season with the Class A-Advanced Potomac Cannons, where he served as the team's catcher and designated hitter.

From July 6 to July 29, he had a 22-game hit streak, the longest in the Carolina League for the year.

On August 24, he hit in the game-winning run against the Salem Avalanche with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning.

On August 29, 2005, he hit a grand slam against the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx as the Lookouts lost, 10–12.

After the season, he was selected by the Reds to represent the organization in the Arizona Fall League, and was a non-roster invitee to the Reds 2006 spring training camp.

In 2006, Hanigan appeared in 56 games for the Lookouts as well as eight games for the Bats.

During a July 13, 2006 contest, Hanigan drove in what would be the winning run with two outs in the seventh inning against the Birmingham Barons.

For the season, he hit .246 for the Lookouts and .154 for the Bats.

He made his MLB debut in 2007.

While with the Reds he caught two no hitters, both thrown by Homer Bailey.

Hanigan was born in Washington, D.C., to Mike and Helen Hanigan.

He has an older sister named Hayley.

He played American Legion Baseball for American Legion Post 8 in Andover.

At Andover High School, Hanigan was a three-year varsity starter, and was named an Eagle-Tribune and Eastern Massachusetts All-Star during his senior season, in which he hit .397.

Playing for the Lookouts, Hanigan was selected to the Southern League All-Star Game in June 2007.

He was promoted to the Bats on June 28, 2007, after reaching base safely in 40 of his last 42 games for the Lookouts, including three four-hit games.

He was called up to the major-league squad on September 1.

Hanigan made his MLB debut on September 9 against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Pinch hitting for Kirk Saarloos, he doubled to left field off the first pitch from All-Star Ben Sheets, and later scored a run on a wild pitch.