Tony Wolters

Not to be confused with Tony Walters.

Tony Wolters
Wolters with the St. Paul Saints in 2023
Catcher
Born: (1992-06-09) June 9, 1992 (age 32)
Vista, California, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 5, 2016, for the Colorado Rockies
Last MLB appearance
August 14, 2022, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
MLB statistics
Batting average.235
Home runs7
Runs batted in123
Teams

Anthony John Wolters (born June 9, 1992) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Playing career

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Cleveland Indians

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Wolters was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the third round of the 2010 Major League Baseball draft out of Rancho Buena Vista High School in Vista, California.[1] He signed with Cleveland, forgoing his commitment to play college baseball at the University of San Diego.[2]

Prior to the 2013 season he was moved from an infielder to catcher.[3][4] After the 2014 season, the Indians added Wolters to their 40-man roster.[5]

The Indians designated him for assignment before the 2016 season.[6]

Colorado Rockies

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The Colorado Rockies claimed Wolters off of waivers.[7] He made his major league debut on April 5, 2016, as a defensive replacement for Nick Hundley. In his first major league at bat, Wolters grounded out off of Jake Barrett. During his first major league start on April 10, 2016, Wolters got his first career hit when he singled against James Shields. In the same game Wolters walked and scored a run for the first time in the big leagues. Wolters hit his first career home run on June 25, 2016, against Shelby Miller of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the bottom of the 6th inning, scoring Brandon Barnes.[8] For the season he hit .259 with 3 home runs and 30 RBI's and 4 stolen bases.

On April 3, 2017, Wolters was the starting catcher on Opening Day against the Milwaukee Brewers.[9] He went 2–4, scoring the two final runs to take the lead, one in the seventh off an error, and one in the ninth of a double from Alexi Amarista.[10] He struggled offensively throughout the season, ultimately being the backup catcher to Jonathan Lucroy after July. He ended the season hitting .240 in 83 games with no home runs and 16 RBIs.

In 2018, Wolters played in 74 games for the Rockies. In the 2018 NL Wild Card Game, he hit a go-ahead single in the 13th inning of a game the Rockies would win, 2–1 and advance to National League Division Series to face the Milwaukee Brewers. Wolters established career highs offensively in batting average (.262), games played (121) and RBIs (42) in 2019. Wolters slashed .230/.280/.270 in 42 games in 2020. On December 2, Wolters was nontendered by the Rockies.[citation needed]

Pittsburgh Pirates

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On February 11, 2021, Wolters signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization that included an invitation to Spring Training.[11] On March 30, 2021, Wolters opted out of his minor league contract and became a free agent.[12]

Chicago Cubs

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On March 31, 2021, Wolters signed a one-year, major league contract with the Chicago Cubs.[13] On April 14, 2021, Wolters was designated for assignment after Austin Romine was activated off of the injured list. In 3 games for Chicago, Wolters mustered only 5 plate appearances, going hitless with a walk.[14] He was outrighted to the alternate training site on April 17.[14] On April 26, Wolters was again selected to the active roster when Romine was placed on the injured list with a left wrist sprain.[15] After posting a .125/.276/.125 batting line in 30 plate appearances, Wolters was again designated for assignment on May 19.[16] He was outrighted to the Triple-A Iowa Cubs on May 22.[17] He was released on August 3, 2021.

Los Angeles Dodgers

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On August 7, 2021, Wolters signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.[18] He appeared in 26 games for the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers and had a .215 batting average.[19] He remained with Oklahoma City to begin 2022 and was called up to the Majors on August 12.[20] He appeared in two games for the Dodgers, striking out in three of his four at-bats. Wolters was designated for assignment on August 15 and released a few days later.[21] He was quickly re-signed to a new minor league contract.[22] For the 2022 season at Oklahoma City, he played in 61 games with a .230 average.[23] He elected free agency on November 10, 2022.

Minnesota Twins

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On January 5, 2023, Wolters signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins.[24] In 57 games for the Triple–A St. Paul Saints, he batted .244/.386/.343 with 3 home runs and 21 RBI. Wolters elected free agency following the season on November 6.[25]

Coaching career

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On January 21, 2024, Wolters announced his retirement from playing in an Instagram post, while also announcing that he had accepted a coaching position with the Rockies as the bench coach for the rookie league ACL Rockies.[26]

Personal

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Wolters grew up a San Diego Padres fan. Tony Gwynn was his favorite player.[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Indians select INF Tony Wolters in the third round of 2010 First-Year Player Draft". Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  2. ^ "Tony Wolters Class of 2010 - Player Profile | Perfect Game USA". Perfect Game.
  3. ^ "Cleveland Indians move top prospect Tony Wolters to catcher". cleveland.com. March 29, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  4. ^ Stephanie Storm. "Indians spring training: Former infielder Tony Wolters making progress in transition to catcher". www.ohio.com. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  5. ^ Fox Sports. "Indians fill out 40-man roster". FOX Sports. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
  6. ^ "Cleveland Indians sign RHP Tommy Hunter to 1-year deal worth $2 million". cleveland.com. February 13, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  7. ^ "Rockies claim catcher Tony Wolters from Indians". USA TODAY. February 18, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  8. ^ McKinley, Eric Garcia (April 12, 2016). "Wolters had a memorable first major-league start". Purple Row.
  9. ^ "Colorado Rockies on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  10. ^ Armas, Genaro (April 3, 2017). "Rockies win in debuts of Black, Holland, beat Brewers 7-5". AP News. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  11. ^ "Pirates Sign Tony Wolters". MLB Trade Rumors. February 11, 2021.
  12. ^ "Tony Wolters Opts Out Of Pirates Contract". MLB Trade Rumors. March 30, 2021.
  13. ^ "Cubs Sign Tony Wolters". MLB Trade Rumors. March 31, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Cubs Activate Austin Romine, Outright Tony Wolters". MLB Trade Rumors. April 18, 2021.
  15. ^ "Cubs Place Austin Romine On 10-Day IL, Select Tony Wolters". MLB Trade Rumors. April 26, 2021.
  16. ^ "Cubs DFA Tony Wolters, Select P.J. Higgins". MLB Trade Rumors. May 19, 2021.
  17. ^ "Cubs Outright Tony Wolters". MLB Trade Rumors. May 22, 2021.
  18. ^ Polishuk, Mark (August 7, 2021). "Dodgers Sign Tony Wolters To Minors Contract". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
  19. ^ "Tony Wolters Minor & Fall League Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  20. ^ Franco, Anthony (August 12, 2022). "Dodgers Select Tony Wolters, Designate Rylan Bannon". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  21. ^ Adams, Steve (August 15, 2022). "Dodgers Designate Tony Wolters For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  22. ^ Franco, Anthony (August 23, 2022). "Dodgers Re-Sign Tony Wolters To Minor League Deal". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  23. ^ "2022 Oklahoma City Dodgers". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  24. ^ "Twins' Tony Wolters: Lands deal with Twins". cbssports.com. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  25. ^ "2023 MiLB Free Agents". baseballamerica.com. November 8, 2023. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  26. ^ "Tony Wolters retires, rejoins Rockies for next chapter". January 22, 2024.
  27. ^ "Wolters' other dream profession: Rock star". MLB.com.
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