Tyler Heineman

Tyler Andrew Heineman (born June 19, 1991) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Houston Astros' organization. He played college baseball for the University of California, Los Angeles.

Heineman attended the Windward School in Los Angeles, California, where he played for the school's baseball team. Lightly recruited by college baseball programs, Heineman received no scholarship offers. He enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and made the UCLA Bruins baseball team as a walk-on. He played sparingly as a freshman and sophomore, receiving eight at-bats as a freshman, and batting .261 in 23 games as a sophomore. Heineman became the Bruins' starting catcher in his junior year after starting catcher Steve Rodriguez and recruit Austin Hedges signed professional contracts.^[1] He was named All-Pacific 12 Conference^[2] and a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award, given annually to college baseball's best catcher.^[1]

The Houston Astros selected Heineman in the eighth round of the 2012 MLB Draft.^[2] He played for the Tri-City ValleyCats of the Class A-Short Season New York-Penn League after signing, and his .358 batting average led the league.^[3] He played for the Lancaster JetHawks of the Class A-Advanced California League in 2013,^[4] and the Corpus Christi Hooks of the Class AA Texas League in 2014. After the 2014 regular season, the Astros assigned Heineman to the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League.^[5]

Heineman's younger brother, Chris, plays college baseball for the University of Oregon. Their father, Steve, is an officer in the Santa Monica Police Department.^[6]

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)