Javier Colina

Javier Jose Colina

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 200 lb.

• Born February 15, 1979 in San Felipe, Yaracuy Venezuela

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Javier Colina spent four seasons in AAA and 14 in the minors.

Colina broke into pro ball in 1997 with Guacara 1, hitting .246/.296/.308. He came to the USA in '98 with the AZL Rockies and batted .320/.387/.485 with 39 RBI in 44 games; one negative was a .919 fielding percentage while bouncing between all four infield slots. Javier tied David Kelton for the Arizona League lead in homers (6), tied Rene Reyes and Rusty Keith for the most RBI and was 10th in average.

Javier improved his fielding (.967 at 2B) with the 1999 Asheville Tourists while producing at a .302/.339/.421 rate with 37 doubles and 81 RBI. He was 9th in the South Atlantic League in average and was named the All-Star 2B, joining Travis Hafner, Rafael Furcal and Scott Seabol on the infield. Despite his impressive double total, he was 18 behind Seabol's league-leading figure.

His bat vanished (.217/.292/.263) with the 2000 Carolina Mudcats while he fielded .908 with 29 errors at third. He led Southern League third basemen in errors and double plays (24). In '01, he split time between Carolina (1 for 24, 10 K) and the Salem Avalanche (.285/.324/.453, 33 2B, 7 3B back at AA while fielding .962 at second). He tied Jose Castillo for the Carolina League lead in triples, led in sacrifice flies (12), was 8th in average and led league second sackers in assists (366), errors (23) and double plays (94). He was named the All-Star second baseman.

At age 23, the San Felipe native played for Carolina (.272/.310/.353 in 35 G) and the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (.245/.295/.373), making it to AAA while still relatively young. Colina was back in AA with the 2003 Tulsa Drillers, hitting .278/.303/.487 with 17 homers and 13 walks. He moved to the St. Louis Cardinals system in 2004 and split action between the Tennessee Smokies (.265/.302/.422 in 85 G) and Memphis Redbirds (.189/.205/.270 in 17 G). A right shoulder injury sidelined him in '05.

Javier signed with the Cincinnati Reds for 2006 but bombed for the Chattanooga Lookouts (.215/.277/.349). He next hooked up with the independent Newark Bears and excelled in 2007, hitting .309/.375/.560 with 29 runs, 27 doubles, 26 home runs and 101 RBI. He led the Atlantic League in RBI and total bases (261) and was second to Jesse Hoorelbeke in dingers. Colina was named the All-Star 2B but Player of the Year honors were shared by Victor Rodriguez and Horrelbeke.

The Chicago White Sox signed Colina next and he would remain in the same organization for multiple years for the first time since the Rockies (1997-2003). Javier split 2008 between the Winston-Salem Warthogs (.306/.373/.458 in 59 G), the Birmingham Barons (.216/.273/.373 in 27 G) and Charlotte Knights (.380/.407/.570 in 26 G). He hit .297 for the season. In winter ball, he batted .236 for the Tiburones de La Guaira. In 2009, he produced at a .260/.311/.378 rate as a utility infielder with Birmingham.

Colina struggled with the 2010 Knights at .189/.220/.348 in 40 games before being released in June. He joined the Venezuelan national team for the 2010 Pan American Games Qualifying Tournament. In 2011, he hit .309/.378/.555 with 25 home runs and 90 RBI in 109 games for the Long Island Ducks.

In 2014 Colina joined the Arizona Diamondbacks organization and has coached or managed in their minor league system ever since. He was a hitting coach for the AZL Diamondbacks in 2014 and Hillsboro Hops in 2015. Colina switched to bench coach of the Visalia Rawhide in 2016 before managing the AZL Diamondbacks in 2017. He was a coach for the Jackson Generals in 2018 and returned to the manager's seat with the Hillsboro Hops in 2019. Colina was slated to manage the Hops again in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic shut down the minor league season. He managed the Rawhide in 2021 before coaching the AA Amarillo Sod Poodles in 2022-2023. Colina returned to managing in 2024 with Hillsboro once again and then managed the Sod Poodles in 2025.

Colina also has extensive experience in the fall and winter leagues. He started as manager of the Indios del Bóer during the 2014/2015 Liga Nicaragüense de Béisbol Profesional season. From 2017/2018 to 2019/2020 he worked for the Charros de Jalisco in the Mexican Pacific League, first as a hitting coach, then first base coach, followed by hitting coach again. Colina spent the 2021/2022 season in the Venezuelan League with the Águilas del Zulia. He returned to the Mexican Pacific League in 2022/2023 as hitting coach of the Tomateros de Culiacán. Colina took a hiatus from the winter leagues in 2023 when he managed the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League. He coached for the Mexican national team in the 2024 Premier 12.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
2017	AZL Diamondbacks	Arizona League	24-32	13th	Arizona Diamondbacks
2019	Hillsboro Hops	Northwest League	48-28	1st	Arizona Diamondbacks	League Champs
2021	Visalia Rawhide	Low-A West	38-82	8th	Arizona Diamondbacks
2024	Hillsboro Hops	Northwest League	69-62	3rd	Arizona Diamondbacks
2025	Amarillo Sod Poodles	Texas League			Arizona Diamondbacks

Sources

• 2010 White Sox Media Guide
• 1998-2010 Baseball Almanacs