Juan Ballara
Juan Antonio Ballara
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 2", Weight 150 lb.
- Born March 30, 1972 in Boca Chica, Santo Domingo, D.R.
Biographical Information[edit]
Catcher Juan Ballara has played and managed in the minors.
Ballara debuted in 1990 with the DSL Cardinals, hitting .236. In '91, he played for the AZL Cardinals (.216/.300/.357) and Savannah Cardinals (0 for 7). The next year, Juan hit .185/.280/.333 for the Johnson City Cardinals, followed by a 1993 season of .246/.294/.374 for the Springfield Cardinals.
In 1994, the 22-year-old batted .204/.266/.367 for the St. Petersburg Cardinals, throwing out 37% of attempted base-stealers. He hit .255/.309/.453 for the '95 Peoria Chiefs, backing up Keith McDonald. He ended his career in 1997 in the Chicago Cubs chain, going 6 for 31 with five walks for the Orlando Rays.
Following the conclusion of his playing career, Ballara joined the Arizona Diamondbacks organization and was a coach and manager in their minor league system for 24 years.[1] It is unknown what roles he held from 1998-2007. The best evidence available shows he managed the DSL Diamondbacks from 2008-2012 and from 2014-2015. Ballara was a hitting coach for the team in 2013. The years 2016-2017 are also a mystery. He was a hitting & catching coach for the DSL Diamondbacks 1 in 2018-2019. Ballara was scheduled to return as the catching coach in 2020 before COVID-19 shut down the minor league season. He did coach catchers for the squad in 2021.
The Cincinnati Reds hired Ballara in 2022 as a bench & catching coach for the DSL Reds. He was promoted to manager the next year and continued managing for the Reds in 2024.
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