Anthony Recker
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Anthony Vito Recker (born August 29, 1983) is an American former
professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...
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 ca ...
and
first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
. He previously played in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs,
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
, and
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 (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
.


Baseball career


Amateur career

Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Recker was raised by mother Alicia and stepfather Kip. He attended Catasauqua High School, where he also played football and
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
, and later continued his baseball career at Alvernia College, a small NCAA Division III school in Reading, Pennsylvania. One of Recker's college teammates was Zach Lutz, and the pair were coached by Lutz's father. While playing for the Crusaders, Recker spent some time on the mound, where he occasionally threw a knuckleball. Despite growing up in Pennsylvania, Recker's favorite team was the Oakland Athletics.


Oakland Athletics

Recker was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 18th round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft out of Alvernia College. He began catching and, on occasion, playing first base professionally. On August 23, 2011, he was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He was named to the Triple-A All- PCL Team in 2011, a season in which he powered 16 home runs for the
Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 ...
. He made the Athletics' 2012 Opening Day roster, but was optioned to the minor leagues in May.


Chicago Cubs

Recker was traded to the Cubs for Blake Lalli on August 27, 2012. He appeared in 9 games, in the last few weeks of that season.


New York Mets

On October 24, 2012, Recker was designated for assignment. He was claimed off waivers by the
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
the next day. Recker made the Mets' 2013 Opening Day roster as a backup catcher. Although Recker is a position player, he pitched the ninth inning for the New York Mets to preserve their regular pitchers in a lopsided game on June 30, 2013, where the Mets were defeated by the
Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
by a score of 13-2. The last position player to pitch for the Mets before Recker did so was catcher Rob Johnson on May 18, 2012. He was optioned to the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s on August 19. He was recalled on August 28, as a backup to
Travis d'Arnaud Travis Emmanuel d'Arnaud (born February 10, 1989), nicknamed Lil D, is an American professional baseball catcher for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the supplemental first round o ...
, due to the trade that sent catcher John Buck and outfielder
Marlon Byrd Marlon Jerrard Byrd (born August 30, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, New Yo ...
to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Recker made the Opening Day roster in 2014 as a backup catcher to d'Arnaud. On April 12, Recker hit a solo home run in the top of the 13th off
Matt Shoemaker Matthew David Shoemaker (born September 27, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels, Toronto Blue Jay ...
to break the 6-6 tie between the Mets and Angels and win the game for the Mets 7-6. After an early-season injury to d'Arnaud in 2015, the Mets kept Recker as a backup catcher, and promoted prospect Kevin Plawecki to serve as the starter. On April 14th, Recker played 3B in an emergency role. On May 14, Recker had his first career multi-homer game against the Chicago Cubs, a game that the Mets went on to lose. On November 6, Recker was outrighted off the 40-man roster, making him a free agent. Recker hit .125 with two home runs, five RBIs in 80 at-bats in 32 games in 2015. From 2013 to 2015 as a Met, Recker hit 15 home runs in 140 games. However, Recker did manage to hit 8 home runs in just 108 plate appearances while playing for the Las Vegas 51s. Recker was known for his propensity to hit home runs late in games or in key situations.


Cleveland Indians

On November 27, 2015, Recker signed a minor league contract with the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...
, including an invitation to spring training. He appeared in 19 games for the AAA Columbus Clippers, early in the 2016 season.


Atlanta Braves

Recker was traded to 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 (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
on May 9, 2016, for cash considerations, and assigned to the Triple-A
Gwinnett Braves The Gwinnett Stripers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They play their home games at Coolray Field in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia (with a Lawrencevil ...
. The Braves promoted Recker to the major leagues after an injury to Tyler Flowers that July. On December 2, 2016, Recker and the Braves avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to an $800,000 contract for the 2017 season. He was initially optioned to Gwinnett at the end of spring training, but eventually was selected as one of the last two players to make the Braves’ 2017 Opening Day roster, alongside
Chaz Roe Chaz Daniel Roe (born October 9, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, and ...
. He had his contract purchased on July 21, 2017.


Minnesota Twins

On July 24, 2017, the Braves traded Recker, Jaime García, and cash considerations to the Minnesota Twins for prospect
Huascar Ynoa Huascar Jose Ynoa Ventura (born May 28, 1998) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2019. Career Minnesota Twins Ynoa signed with the Minnesota Twins as an ...
. The Twins subsequently outrighted Recker to the minor leagues on July 28, 2017. He appeared in 19 games for the AAA Rochester Red Wings, that year. He elected free agency on October 10, 2017.


Arizona Diamondbacks

On March 5, 2018, Recker signed a minor-league contract with the
Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...
, which included an invitation to spring training. He spent the season in AAA, catching in 66 of the 74 games in which he appeared for the
Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, which opened in 2009. ...
. He elected free agency on November 3, 2018.


Personal life

Recker married Kelly Shepardson on November 2, 2013. His wife Kelly gave birth to their first child, Camden Anthony Recker, on December 29, 2014. They also have a younger son, Grady. He recently became an analyst on the Mets' network SNY and has filled in for
Keith Hernandez Keith Hernandez (born October 20, 1953) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman who played the majority of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets. Hernandez was a five-time All-Star who shared the 1979 NL MVP ...
and
Ron Darling Ronald Maurice Darling Jr. (born August 19, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player and current television sports color commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right-handed pitcher from to , most notably as a m ...
in the booth with
Gary Cohen Gary Cohen (born ) is an American sportscaster, best known as a radio and television play-by-play announcer for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball. Cohen currently calls Mets broadcasts for SNY and WPIX and Seton Hall basketball gam ...
. "In early 2019, I decided laying baseballwasn’t the right thing for me to do anymore," he told ''
The Morning Call ''The Morning Call'' is a daily newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1883, it is the second longest continuously published newspaper in the Lehigh Valley, after '' The Express-Times''. In 2020, the newspaper permanently closed its ...
'' in April 2020. "As soon as I made that decision, I quickly turned my gaze toward the TV world. It was something I liked doing and I already had a little bit of experience" from working the David Wright finale in September 2018.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Recker, Anthony 1983 births Living people Alvernia Golden Wolves baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Atlanta Braves players Baseball players from Pennsylvania Catasauqua High School alumni Chicago Cubs players Columbus Clippers players Gwinnett Braves players Iowa Cubs players Kane County Cougars players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Las Vegas 51s players Major League Baseball catchers Midland RockHounds players New York Mets players Oakland Athletics players Reno Aces players Rochester Red Wings players Sacramento River Cats players Sportspeople from Allentown, Pennsylvania Stockton Ports players Tennessee Smokies players Vancouver Canadians players