Juan Centeno

Note: This page is for major league catcher Juan Centeno; for the Nicaraguan pitcher who pitched in the 1984 Olympics, click here.

Juan Carlos Centeno

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 170 lb.
• High School Escuela Superior Vocacional Antonio Luchetti
• Debut September 18, 2013

• Born November 16, 1989 in Arecibo P.R.

BR page

Biographical Information

Juan Centeno won a World Series ring with the 2017 Houston Astros. A spare catcher, he has seen action in seven seasons as of the start of 2020.

Centeno was picked by the New York Mets in the 32nd round of the 2007 amateur draft; the scout was Junior Roman. He had 8 passed balls in 11 games for the GCL Mets that summer as fourth-string catcher and was only 6-for-41 with 4 runs scored, 3 walks and 2 RBI at the plate, an inauspicious beginning. Back with the club in 2008, he hit .206/.315/.222 with 10 passed balls, 10 runs scored and one RBI in 24 games, starting ahead of German Kai Gronauer. Moving on up to the Brooklyn Cyclones in 2009, the Puerto Rican backstop eked out a .164/.212/.200 line though he threw out 45% of base stealers. Juan split 2010 between Brooklyn (.371/.417/.517 in 32 games), the St. Lucie Mets (7 for 35, 3 walks) and the Binghamton Mets (0 for 1). He backed up Francisco Peña with the 2011 St. Lucie club, hitting .318/.368/.382 in 52 games. In 2012, he started ahead of Peña for the Binghamton Mets and hit .285/.337/.342 in 79 games, though he only had two hits (both triples) longer than a two-bagger. He showed off a strong arm, gunning down 41% of people who tried to steal. Centeno split 2013 between Binghamton (6 for 23, a double and a triple) and the Las Vegas 51s (.305/.346/.371, 56% CS in 67 games) before getting a September call-up.

In his major league debut, on September 18, 2013, Centeno started and batted 8th for the Mets. Playing against the San Francisco Giants, he flew out against Matt Cain, singled in the 5th and flew out again in the 7th. In the 9th, he faced Sergio Romo with a 4-1 deficit, two on and one out. He singled to the left side, scoring Juan Lagares, as Anthony Recker pinch-ran for him. The only player who tried to steal off him, Buster Posey, was successful. On September 25th, he had the distinction of being the first major league catcher to catch the Cincinnati Reds' rookie sensation, Billy Hamilton, on a steal attempt; Hamilton had been successful in his first 13 attempts before Centeno gunned him with Daisuke Matsuzaka on the mound. In the next six seasons, Juan played with six different teams, seeing his most action with the Minnesota Twins in 2016. Playing 55 games, he hit .262/.312/.392 with 3 home runs and 25 of his 37 RBI (as of the end of the 2019 season). In 2017, he was in the right place at the right time, playing 22 games with the Astros while being carried through the entire postseason, even though he got into only one game without a plate appearance, as Houston won their first World Series title. Following that career highlight, he played 10 games for the Texas Rangers in 2018 and 7 for the Boston Red Sox in 2019.

Notable Achievements

• Won one World Series with the Houston Astros in 2017 (he did not play in the World Series)

Related Sites

• Juan Centeno at mlb.com