Christopher Domenic Iannetta (, ; born April 8, 1983) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

. He 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

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

, and

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 f ...

. He played in college for the North Carolina Tar Heels of the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

. He stands tall, and weighs .

Early life

Christopher Domenic Iannetta is the son of Maria (née DiLorenzo) and Domenic Iannetta. He is of Italian descent. His mother Maria was born in Casa Nova, Italy and his father Domenic was born in

Scapoli Scapoli is a town and ''comune'' located in province of Isernia, which is part of the region of Molise, southern Italy. As of 2011 it had a population of 758. Geography Located in the western area of the province, near the region of Lazio, it bo ...

, Italy. He has a younger brother Matt (born 1986). He went to St. Ann School in Providence, Rhode Island, and attended St. Raphael Academy, a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

high school in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. His jersey was retired there, where it is hung for all to see. He was awarded All-State honors on three consecutive occasions. He was awarded the C. Dona Manyard Award which is given to a male athlete who excels in the classroom and on the field. He graduated from St. Raphael Academy in 2001.

Collegiate career

Iannetta attended the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

, where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

for the North Carolina Tar Heels as a catcher 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 ...

, while majoring in mathematics. As a sophomore in 2003, he finished fourth on the squad with a .319

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

and ranked third with 55

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

. Iannetta was named to the 2003 NCAA Starkville Regional All-Tournament Team after tallying five hits and four runs batted in during the Tar Heels' NCAA Tournament run. As a junior in 2004, he was selected as one of three finalists for the Johnny Bench Award, presented annually to the nation's top collegiate catcher. Iannetta was also named a third-team All-American by ''

Collegiate Baseball Newspaper ''Collegiate Baseball Newspaper'' (also known as ''Collegiate Baseball Magazine'' and ''Collegiate Baseball'') is an American publication based in Arizona that considers itself the "voice of amateur baseball" which has been published for over 40 ...

''. During his collegiate career, Iannetta played summer baseball in the

Cape Cod League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...

and the

New England Collegiate Baseball League The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) is a 13-team collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league founded in 1993 and sanctioned by the NCAA and Major League Baseball. Each NECBL team plays an eight-week, 44-game schedule during June ...

. His 2002 season with the

Chatham A's The Chatham Anglers, more commonly referred to as the Chatham A's and formerly the Chatham Athletics, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Chatham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in t ...

of the

, led to him being featured in the book "The Last Best League: One Summer, One Season, One Dream" by Jim Collins. In his 2003 season with the

Newport Gulls The Newport Gulls are a wooden-bat, collegiate summer baseball team based in Newport, Rhode Island. The Newport Gulls Baseball Club is a member of both the New England Collegiate Baseball League and the NECBL's Coastal Division. Since 2001, the Gu ...

of the

, Iannetta batted .302 with 20 runs batted in, and was selected to play in the NECBL All-Star Game. He was also named the league's Defensive Player of the Year.

Professional career

Draft and minor leagues

The

selected Iannetta in the fourth round of the 2004 MLB draft. He began his minor league career with the

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in differe ...

, and spent the 2005 season with the

Modesto Nuts The Modesto Nuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Modesto, California, and are named for the several types of nuts grown in the region. They play the ...

. He played the majority of the 2006 season with Double-A

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

before being promoted to the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox.

Colorado Rockies

Iannetta made his MLB Debut with the Rockies on August 27, 2006. Iannetta got his first career MLB hit that same day, off

Jake Peavy Jacob Edward Peavy (born May 31, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox, and San Francisco Giants. He batted and threw right- ...

of the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

. He hit his first major league home run off

Jonathan Sánchez Jonathan Omar Sánchez (born November 19, 1982), nicknamed "The Kid" and "The Comeback Kid", is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball pitcher. He is one of only three Puerto Rican players to throw a no-hitter game in MLB, the others bein ...

of the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

. Iannetta played 21 games during 2006 with 2 home runs and 10 runs batted in. In 2007, he was named the starting catcher coming out of

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

over

Yorvit Torrealba Yorvit Adolfo Torrealba (; born July 19, 1978) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, Tor ...

, but struggled at the plate and was demoted to backing up Torrealba. Iannetta played in 67 games that year, with a .218 average, 4 home runs, and 27 runs batted in. Iannetta was part of the backup catcher's role as the Rockies went to the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

for the first time ever but ended up losing the series to the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

in a 4-game sweep. The 2008 year was a breakout season for Iannetta, in which he played 104 games batting .264 with 18 home runs and 65 runs batted in. In 2009, Iannetta played in 93 games batting .228 with 16 home runs and 52 runs batted in. In 2010, he played in 61 games batting .197 with 9 home runs and 27 runs batted in. In 2011, he played in 112 games batting .238 with 14 home runs and 55 runs batted in.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

On November 30, 2011, Iannetta was traded to the

for pitcher

Tyler Chatwood Tyler Cole Chatwood (born December 16, 1989), nicknamed Chatty, is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels, Colorado Rockies, Chicag ...

. On May 2, 2012, he caught

Jered Weaver Jered David Weaver (born October 4, 1982) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres. Weaver was drafted in the first round (12th overal ...

's first

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

. He finished the 2012 season playing 79 games with a .240 batting average, 9 home runs, and 26 runs batted in. On October 5, 2012, the Angels and Iannetta agreed to terms on a three-year, $15.55 million deal.

Seattle Mariners

On November 23, 2015, Iannetta signed a one-year, $4.25 million deal with the

Arizona Diamondbacks

On January 13, 2017, Iannetta signed a one-year, $1.5 million deal with the

. On May 13, 2017, Iannetta was hit by a pitch from

Johnny Barbato John Edward Barbato ( ; born July 11, 1992) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, and Detroit Tigers, and also played in Nippon Professional ...

. Iannetta suffered a broken nose along with four fractured teeth, and required stitches on his lips.

Second stint with the Colorado Rockies

On December 8, 2017, the Rockies and Iannetta agreed to a two-year contract, bringing the catcher back to Colorado. On August 13, 2019, Iannetta was designated for assignment.

New York Yankees

On January 9, 2020, Iannetta agreed to a minor league contract with the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. The deal was finalized on February 3. On July 21, 2020, Iannetta had his contract selected to the 40-man roster. On August 1, 2020, Iannetta was designated for assignment without appearing in a game for the Yankees. On August 8, Iannetta announced his retirement from professional baseball.

International career

Iannetta was selected for

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

at the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Personal life

Iannetta and his wife Lisa were married in 2009 and have one daughter together. They live in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, just past the

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

border.

References

External links

UNC profile from 2004
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iannetta, Chris 1983 births Living people American sportspeople of Italian descent Arizona Diamondbacks players Asheville Tourists players Baseball players from Providence, Rhode Island Chatham Anglers players Colorado Rockies players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball catchers Modesto Nuts players North Carolina Tar Heels baseball players People of Molisan descent Peoria Javelinas players Salt Lake Bees players Seattle Mariners players Tulsa Drillers players World Baseball Classic players of the United States 2009 World Baseball Classic players