Ryan Michael Jeffers (born June 3, 1997) is an American

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 ...

for the Minnesota Twins of

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).

Amateur career

Jeffers attended Sanderson High School in

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southe ...

. In 2016, his senior year, he hit .398 with two home runs. Undrafted in the

2016 Major League Baseball draft The 2016 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks will be di ...

, he enrolled at the

University of North Carolina at Wilmington The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW or UNC Wilmington) is a public research university in Wilmington, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina System and enrolls 17,499 undergraduate and graduate students eac ...

where he walked-on their baseball team. In 2017, Jeffers' freshman year at UNCW, he appeared in only 13 games, but hit .348 with one home run and five RBIs. That summer, he played in the

Coastal Plain League The Coastal Plain League (CPL) is a wood-bat collegiate summer baseball league, featuring college players recruited from throughout the nation. The league takes its name from the Class D level Coastal League which operated in the area from 19 ...

for the

Wilmington Sharks The Wilmington Sharks are an American baseball team in the East Division of the Coastal Plain League (CPL), a collegiate summer baseball league. The Sharks play their home games at Buck Hardee Field at Legion Stadium in Wilmington, North Car ...

. As a sophomore in 2018, he started 52 of 53 games and batted .328 with ten home runs and 32 RBIs, earning First-Team All- CAA honors. After the season, he played for the Upper Valley Nighthawks of 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 ...

where he earned All-Star honors. In 2018, Jeffers' junior season at UNCW, he slashed .315/.460/.635 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs over 62 starts, earning a First-Team All-CAA selection for the second consecutive year.

Professional career

After his junior year, Jeffers was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the second round with the 59th overall selection of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft. He signed with the Twins and made his professional debut with the Elizabethton Twins before he was promoted to the

Cedar Rapids Kernels The Cedar Rapids Kernels are Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and play their home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Kernels are owned ...

in July. Over 64 games between the two clubs, he slashed .344/.444/.502 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs. In 2019, he began the year with the

Fort Myers Miracle The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex at H ...

, with whom he was named a Florida State League All-Star, before being promoted to the

Pensacola Blue Wahoos The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are based in Pensacola, Florida, and play their home games at Admiral Fetterman Field. In 2012, the team rel ...

in July, with whom he finished the season. Playing in 103 total games with both teams, Jeffers batted .264/.341/.421 with 14 home runs and 49 RBIs. On August 20, 2020, Jeffers’ contract was selected by the Twins to the active roster. He made his major league debut that same day against the Milwaukee Brewers, recording two hits including one RBI over three at-bats in a 7–1 win. He finished the season batting .273/.355/.436 with three home runs and seven RBIs over 26 games. In 2021 for the Twins, Jeffers slashed .199/.270/.401 with 14 home runs and 35 RBIs over 85 games.

Personal life

Jeffers and his wife, Lexi, married in 2019.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffers, Ryan 1997 births Living people Baseball players from Raleigh, North Carolina Major League Baseball catchers Minnesota Twins players UNC Wilmington Seahawks baseball players Elizabethton Twins players Cedar Rapids Kernels players Fort Myers Miracle players Pensacola Blue Wahoos players