Rene Rivera, Catcher

Date of Birth: 7/31/1983
Birthplace: Bayamon, Puerto Rico

Rene Rivera, catcher, was first drafted in 2001 by the Seattle Mariners when he was 17 years old. He played in the Mariners' minor league system from 2001 through most of 2006, playing in just 53 games with the Mariners from 2004 through 2006.

Rivera signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in November, 2007. A year later, he signed with the New York Mets. In May, 2010, he signed with his fourth team, the New York Yankees. Less than eight months later, he signed one more minor league contract, this time with the Minnesota Twins. From 2007 through 2010, he played only in the minor leagues.

In 2011, Rivera finally made it to the major leagues, playing in 45 games with the Twins. However, he was back in the minor leagues in 2012. He signed his last minor league contract in December, 2012, with the San Diego Padres. In 2013, he played mostly in the minors, joining the Padres for just 23 games.

Rivera finished the 2014 season with 74 hits, 18 doubles, 11 home runs, 44 RBIs, and a .252 batting average in 103 games. His strength was defensively, particularly in catching players trying to steal. He had a .363 caught stealing percentage and a .989 fielding percentage in 89 games as the Padres' catcher.

Rivera was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays on December 19, 2014. He finished the 2015 season with 53 hits, 14 doubles, and a .178 batting average in 110 games with the Rays. As a catcher, he made 60 assists, 752 putouts, and 11 errors in 107 games. He caught players trying to steal 36.5% of the time and he had a .987 fielding percentage.

Rivera signed a minor league contract with the Mets on April 5, 2016. He finished the 2016 season with 41 hits and a .222 batting average in 65 games with the Mets. Defensively, as the Mets' catcher in 59 games, he mae 37 assists, 495 putouts, and 2 errors. He had a .996 fielding percentage and he caught players trying to steal 29.5% of the time. In three at-bats in the Wild Card game, he had one hit.

Rivera became a free agent on November 3, 2016. He re-signed with the Mets on December 2, 2016. He was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Cubs on August 19, 2017. He finished the 2017 season with 55 hits and a .252 batting average in 54 games with the Mets and 20 games with the Cubs. He didn't play in the postseason.

Rivera elected free agency on November 2, 2017. He signed with the Los Angeles Angels on January 9, 2018. He was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves on August 29, 2018. He spent most of the 2018 season on the DL with right knee inflammation. He played in 30 games with the Angels and 3 games with the Braves.

Rivera became a free agent on October 29, 2018. He signed a minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants on February 12, 2019. He was released on March 23rd, and two days later, he rejoined the Mets on a minor league contract. He spent most of the 2019 season in the minors, playing in just 9 games with the Mets.

Rivera became a free agent on October 31, 2019. He signed a minor league contract with the Mets on January 20, 2020. He spent most of the shortened 2020 season on the IL, and he played in just two games with the Mets.

Rivera elected free agency on October 28, 2020. He signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians on April 14, 2021. He was released by the Indians on July 8th, and a week later, on July 16th, he signed with the Washington Nationals. He was released by the Nationals on August 14th. He played in just 21 games with Cleveland and 4 games with the Nationals in 2021. After the season ended, he played in the Puerto Rican Winter League.

Personal Life

Rivera and his wife Mariel have twins.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Rene Rivera
ESPN - Rene Rivera