| Javy López | |
|---|---|
 López as a catcher for theAtlanta Braves | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: (1970-11-05)November 5, 1970 (age 54) Ponce, Puerto Rico | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 18, 1992, for the Atlanta Braves | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 2, 2006, for the Boston Red Sox | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .287 |
| Home runs | 260 |
| Runs batted in | 864 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Javier "Javy" López Torres (born November 5, 1970) is aPuerto Rican formercatcher inMajor League Baseball who played for theAtlanta Braves (1992–2003),Baltimore Orioles (2004–2006) andBoston Red Sox (2006). He batted and threw right-handed. He was named Ponce, Puerto Rico's Athlete of the Year from 1984 to 1987.[citation needed]
López was signed by the Atlanta Braves in 1987 as anamateurfree agent, López made his debut on September 18, 1992, against theHouston Astros. After sharing duties withCharlie O'Brien andEddie Pérez for four seasons, he established himself as the Braves' regular catcher in 1996. The same season, he led the Braves to win theNational League Championship Series, earning the seriesMost Valuable Player honors. He also made theNational League All-Star team from 1997–98. Lopez had his best season in 2003 with a .328batting average, 43 home runs and 109RBI in 129 games, including a .378on-base percentage and a .687slugging percentage. In that season he brokeTodd Hundley's record for most home runs hit in a season by a catcher (41) and was selected to theAll-Star Game, winning theSilver Slugger Award and finishing fifth in theNational League MVP ballot. While with the Braves, López caughtKent Mercker'sno-hitter on April 8, 1994.[1]
While López starred for the Braves, he very rarely caught futureHall of Fame pitcherGreg Maddux, who was not comfortable pitching to him. Instead the Braves' backup catcher, which varied over the years, would become Maddux'spersonal catcher.[2]
Before the 2004 season, López signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles. He hit .316 with 23 HR and 86 RBI, the following year López suffered a broken hand on a foul tip, ending the year with a .278 with 15 HR and 49 RBI while seeing a decline in his game time from 150 to 103 games.
In the 2006 midseason, López was acquired by theBoston Red Sox from Baltimore in exchange for minor leagueoutfielderAdam Stern and cash considerations.[3] López debuted with Boston on the same day afterDoug Mirabelli left the game early after an ankle injury. On September 8, the Red Sox released López due toJason Varitek returning from thedisabled list, which minimized playing time for López.
In January 2007, it was reported that López reached a preliminary agreement on a $750,000, one-year contract with theColorado Rockies,[4] but he did not play for them during the regular season.[5] Before the 2008 season he signed a minor league deal with an invitation tospring training with the Atlanta Braves, in an attempt to return to the majors. But after being told he would not make the opening day lineup, López retired for good.[6] "I feel perfect physically," he said. "It's just that the hitting wasn't there and unfortunately I couldn’t throw anybody out on stealing attempts. That's a concern. I don't blame them. My role as a backup catcher is to be able to throw runners out."[7] He plans to continue in the Atlanta Braves organization performing other duties. In a 15-season career, López posted a .287 average with 260 home runs and 864 RBI in 1,503 games. His 243 home runs as a catcher ranks eighth on the career list at that position. Strong defensively, he recorded a .992fielding percentage. In 60 postseason games, he batted .278 (57-for-205) with 27 runs, 14 doubles, 10 home runs, 28 RBI and 14 walks. His final game was on September 2, 2006.[8]
López's first marriage was to Analy Hernández. They have two children: Javier Alexander (born November 6, 1995) and Kelvin Gabriel (born October 17, 1999). The marriage ended in divorce. López married his second wife, Gina Brodbeck, on June 23, 2004.[9] They have two sons: Brody Brodbeck Lopez, born in 2010, and Gavin Richard Lopez, born in 2013.[10]
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