Jeffrey Thomas Bianchi (born October 5, 1986) is an American former professional baseball shortstop and current hitting coach for the Lancaster Stormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He appeared in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers and the Boston Red Sox.
| Jeff Bianchi | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bianchi with the Nashville Sounds in 2013 | |||||||||||||||
| Lancaster Stormers – No. 14 | |||||||||||||||
| Infielder / Hitting coach | |||||||||||||||
| Born: October 5, 1986 Lampeter, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||
| MLB debut | |||||||||||||||
| July 13, 2012, for the Milwaukee Brewers | |||||||||||||||
| Last MLB appearance | |||||||||||||||
| June 14, 2015, for the Boston Red Sox | |||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .215 | ||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 40 | ||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||
Bianchi attended Lampeter-Strasburg High School in Lampeter, Pennsylvania. He was drafted in the second round (50th overall) of the 2005 MLB draft by the Kansas City Royals.[1] He was a Topps Short-season/ Rookie All-Star.[2]
Career
editKansas City Royals
editIn 2008, Bianchi won the Frank White award for being the best defensive player in the Royals minor league system while playing for the Wilmington Blue Rocks.
Bianchi was added to the Royals' 40-man roster following the 2009 season to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
In March 2010, Bianchi underwent Tommy John elbow surgery, sidelining him for the 2010 season. Bianchi returned in 2011 and appeared in 119 games for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, hitting .259. After the 2011 season, he was designated for assignment.
Milwaukee Brewers
editThe Chicago Cubs claimed him off waivers on December 9, 2011, but on January 11, 2012 they designated him for assignment and he was claimed by the Milwaukee Brewers.[3]
Bianchi was recalled by the Brewers on August 22 when Randy Wolf was released.[4]
Bianchi played for the Brewers in 2013 and has played a range of positions such as shortstop, second base, and third base. On May 24, 2014, he was outrighted off the 40-man roster.[5] He was called back up on June 29, 2014. Bianchi declined a minor league assignment on October 12 and became a free agent.[6]
Boston Red Sox
editOn January 11, 2015, Bianchi signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox.[7] On May 24, 2015, Bianchi was called up to the Red Sox when they placed Shane Victorino on the 15-day DL. He was designated for assignment on May 28 and re-signed with the team three days later.[8] Bianchi was re-designated on June 15.[9] He was reassigned to the minors, and was granted free agency on October 5.
Colorado Rockies
editOn April 1, 2016, Bianchi signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies organization. In 66 games for the Triple–A Albuquerque Isotopes, he batted .245/.314/.306 with two home runs and 19 RBI. Bianchi elected free agency following the season on November 7.[10]
Coaching career
editAfter the 2016 season, Bianchi joined the Milwaukee Brewers as a scout, and remained in that position through the 2020 season.[11] On March 16, 2021, Bianchi was named hitting coach for the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball for the 2021 season.[12] Bianchi also served as an assistant coach for alma mater Lampeter-Strasburg High School during the Spring 2021 season.
References
edit- ^ "Jeff Bianchi Minor, Winter & Fall Leagues Statistics & History".
- ^ "Minor League Baseball: Stats: Player". Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved June 6, 2008.
- ^ Muskat, Carrie (January 11, 2012). "Cubs lose Bianchi to Brewers in waiver move". Cubs.com. Archived from the original on January 13, 2012.
- ^ "Brewers release veteran starter Randy Wolf". Si.com. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
- ^ Wilmoth, Charlie (May 24, 2014). "Brewers Outright Jeff Bianchi". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Creech, Edward (October 12, 2014). "Minor Moves: Reimold, Wilson, Cedeno, Bianchi, Pagnozzi". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
- ^ "Red Sox sign Jeff Bianchi to minor league deal". January 11, 2015.
- ^ "Red Sox re-sign Bianchi, send Ross back to Triple-A". ESPN.com. Associated Press. May 31, 2015. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- ^ Smith, Christopher (June 15, 2015). "Boston Red Sox recall LHP Robbie Ross Jr.; designate Jeff Bianchi for assignment". The Republican. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
- ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2016". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- ^ "Scouting Staff Promotions - Minor Leagues - Brewerfan.net". May 17, 2024.
- ^ "JEFF BIANCHI JOINS BARNSTOMERS COACHING STAFF: Lancaster County Native Is New Hitting Coach". LancasterBarnstormers.com. March 16, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
External links
edit- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)