| Brian Schneider | |
|---|---|
 Schneider with the Philadelphia Phillies in2012 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: (1976-11-26)November 26, 1976 (age 48) Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 26, 2000, for the Montreal Expos | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 23, 2012, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .247 |
| Home runs | 67 |
| Runs batted in | 387 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Brian Duncan Schneider (born November 26, 1976), nicknamed "Hoops", is an American former professionalbaseballcatcher andcoach, who played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for theMontreal Expos/Washington Nationals,New York Mets, andPhiladelphia Phillies. Schneider was theMiami Marlins catching coach from 2016 through 2019, and the quality control coach for the Mets from 2020 through 2021.
Schneider was born inJacksonville, Florida to Peter and Karen Schneider. He has one sister, Melissa.
Schneider played high school baseball and basketball atNorthampton Area High School inNorthampton, Pennsylvania, in the state's highly competitiveEast Penn Conference. In 1994 and again in 1995, he was named Player of the Year in theLehigh Valley.[1] Over the course of his high school career, Schneider hit .427, with 22doubles, and 11home runs, and set a Northampton High School record with 91runs batted in. As a senior, he had a .484batting average.
In 1995, Schneider signed aletter of intent to playcollege baseball atCentral Florida.[2]
Schneider was selected by theMontreal Expos in the 5th round (143rd, overall) of the1995 June draft. In1997, while at theSingle-ACape Fear Crocs, of theSouth Atlantic League, Schneider emerged as a premiere defensive player, while also posting solid offensive numbers, and was named to the mid-season All-Star team.[1]
After making a strong impression at the Expos’ spring training in2000, Schneider was called up to the big leagues, following an injury to regular catcherChris Widger. Schneider made his MLB debut on May 26, 2000, on the road at theSan Diego Padres’Qualcomm Stadium, going 0-for-1, after coming into the game as a defensive replacement, in the 9th inning. The following day, he made his first big league start, going 2-for-3, including a double, in the 6th inning, for his first major leaguehit.
In the2001 season, Schneider split his time between the majors and minors, making the most of his opportunities whenever he was given playing time with the Expos.[1] He compiled a batting average of .317, in 27 games, driving in 6 runs, and scoring 4 times. On September 22, 2001, Schneider hit his first career home run, coming offScott Elarton, in the fifth inning of a 3-1 Expos victory over theColorado Rockies.
In2002, Schneider served as the backup catcher toMichael Barrett. He made his outfield debut on June 4, 2002, against thePittsburgh Pirates, playing left field, after pinch-hitting forWil Cordero, in the eighth inning. In 73 games, Schneider hit .275, with 5 home runs, 29 RBIs, and 19 doubles. On September 24, 2002, he was honored as the Expos' nominee for Major League Baseball's first annualRoberto Clemente Award, losing out toJim Thome.
In2003, his fourth season with the Expos, Schneider caught a majority of the club's games for the first time, spending a total of 841 innings behind the plate. He was ranked fifth in the league in fielding with a .996 percentage, committing only three errors, in 709 total chances. At the plate, Schneider established career highs in numerous offensive categories, including hits (77), doubles (26), home runs (9), RBIs (46), total bases (132), and walks (37).
The2004 season saw Schneider post career highs in hits (112), home runs (12), and RBIs (49). For the second straight season, he led major league catchers in throwing out base-stealers, with a 47.8 percent success rate. Schneider finished the season with a fielding percentage of .998, setting a new franchise single-season record for a catcher, in that category.
In2005, the Expos franchise relocated toWashington, D.C. and became theWashington Nationals. Schneider was the first catcher in Washington Nationals history. That same year, Schneider threw out an MLB-leading 38 percent of would-be base-stealers. Between 2003 and 2005, Schneider threw out 43.5 percent of base-stealers, the best ratio in baseball over that period.[3]
Schneider was a member of theUnited States national baseball team at the2006 World Baseball Classic. He sharing catching duties withJason Varitek and formerMontreal Expos teammateMichael Barrett. Schneider went 0-for-6 in the tournament, but started the USA team's opener againstMexico.
Schneider struggled offensively during the first half of the2006 season, hitting just .223 through August 4. His form picked up though, and he batted .324 with 9 doubles, 1 home run, and 21 RBIs, in the 42 games, thereafter. For the first time since 2002, Schneider did not lead either MLB or theNational League (NL) in percentage of base-stealers thrown out, gunning down just 27%.[1]
Schneider was behind the plate, catchingMike Bacsik, whenBarry Bonds hit his MLB record-breaking 756th career home run, on August 7, 2007.
On November 30, 2007, the Nationals traded Schneider andRyan Church to theNew York Mets for top prospectLastings Milledge.[4] In his first season in New York, Schneider hit .257, with 9 home runs, and 38 RBIs, in 110 games. He scored the first-ever Mets run at their new ballpark,Citi Field, April 13, 2009, scoring on a double hit byLuis Castillo.
On December 1, 2009, Schneider signed a two-year contract with thePhiladelphia Phillies.[5] On July 8, 2010, Schneider hit a walk-off home run to give the Phillies a 4-3 win over theCincinnati Reds.
Following the completion of his initial Phillies contract, where he served as the team's backup catcher behindCarlos Ruiz, Schneider signed a contract for one more season inPhiladelphia prior to the2012 season.
After the 2012 season, Schneider announced his retirement fromMajor League Baseball, on January 29, 2013.[6]
Schneider managed theJupiter Hammerheads in theFlorida State League, during the 2014 season. On December 4, 2015, he was named as the new catching coach for theMiami Marlins.[7]
Following the 2019 season, the Marlins did not renew Schneider’s contract.[8] On January 3, 2020, he was named as the manager of theSyracuse Mets.[9]
On February 7, 2020, Schneider was named quality control coach for theNew York Mets, succeedingLuis Rojas, who was named Mets manager in January 2020.[10] Following the 2022 season, the Mets and Schneider parted ways.[11]
On November 6, 2004, Schneider married Jordan Sproat. The couple have four children: daughters, Tatum (b. 2007) and Haven (b. 2012), and sons Calin (b. 2009) and Holden (b. 2010). The family currently lives inJupiter, Florida, with their dog, Rookie.[1]
In 2008, Brian Schneider's Catching for Kids Foundation was established to support children and their participation in sports by providing funding and creative programming. The foundation strives to enable children of all backgrounds and physical abilities to enjoy the games they love.
In 2015, as part of a job-swap documentary for Irish television,[12] Schneider moved toKilkenny in Ireland to train and playhurling as agoalkeeper forJames Stephens; in return,Jackie Tyrrell trained with the Florida-basedMajor League Baseball teamMiami Marlins.[13][14]
