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Jon Berti

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Jon Berti
Berti with the Miami Marlins in 2023
New York Yankees – No. 19
Utility player
Born: (1990-01-22) January 22, 1990 (age 34)
Troy, Michigan, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 26, 2018, for the Toronto Blue Jays
Career statistics
(through 2024 season)
Batting average.259
Home runs24
Runs batted in126
Stolen bases97
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Jonathon David Berti (born January 22, 1990) is an American professional baseball utility player for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays and Miami Marlins.

Berti played college baseball at Bowling Green State University. He was selected by the Blue Jays in the 18th round of the 2011 MLB draft, and made his MLB debut in 2018. He led MLB in stolen bases in 2022.

Amateur career

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Berti attended Troy High School in Troy, Michigan, where he played for the school's baseball team.[1] The Oakland Athletics selected Berti in the 36th round of the 2008 Major League Baseball draft, but he did not sign.

Berti enrolled at Bowling Green State University, where he played college baseball for the Bowling Green Falcons baseball team.[2] Berti set Falcons' single-season records with a .423 batting average, 93 hits, and tied the single-season record with six triples. His 17 career triples were also a record.[3] In 2010, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod Baseball League.[4]

Professional career

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Toronto Blue Jays

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Minor leagues

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The Toronto Blue Jays selected Berti in the 18th round, with the 559th overall selection, of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft.[5] With the Vancouver Canadians of the Low-A Northwest League, he had 23 stolen bases, and hit .291 with 21 RBI.[6] In 2012, he played for the Lansing Lugnuts of the Single–A Midwest League and the Dunedin Blue Jays of the High-A Florida State League (FSL). In 110 combined games, Berti hit .241 with 2 home runs, 40 RBI, and 34 stolen bases.[6] In 2013, Berti played for Dunedin and stole 56 bases, the most in the FSL.[7] That offseason, Berti played for the Canberra Cavalry of the Australian Baseball League (ABL) in the 2013–14 ABL season. He stole 31 bases in 46 games, setting an ABL record, and hit .309 with 18 RBI.[6] He stole another four bases in the 2013 Asia Series.[8]

Berti with the Lansing Lugnuts in 2012

In 2014, Berti played for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats of the Double-A Eastern League. He stole 38 bases, was named an Eastern League All Star, and was assigned to the Arizona Fall League after the regular season.[9][10] He also set career-highs in games played (136), home runs (7), and RBI (50).[6] In the offseason, Berti played 20 games with the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League, and batted .292 with three home runs, eight RBIs, and six stolen bases.[6] He would split time in 2015 with New Hampshire and the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons. In 103 total games, he hit .249 with three home runs, 34 RBIs, and 23 stolen bases.[6]

The Blue Jays invited Berti to spring training in 2016,[11] and reassigned to minor league camp on March 10.[12] He started the season with New Hampshire, and was assigned to Buffalo on April 27. Berti played in 86 total games in 2016, and hit .256 with four home runs, 33 RBI, and 36 stolen bases.[6] He spent 2017 with Buffalo and Dunedin, hitting .204 with three home runs, 20 RBI, and 24 stolen bases in 65 games.[6] Berti elected free agency following the season on November 6, 2017.[13] On January 12, 2018, he re–signed with Toronto on a minor league contract.[14]

Cleveland Indians

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On April 21, 2018, Berti was traded to the Cleveland Indians organization in exchange for cash considerations.[15] He appeared in 25 games for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, hitting .217/.333/.233 with 3 home runs and 8 RBI.[16]

Toronto Blue Jays (second stint)

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On June 8, 2018, Berti was traded back to the Toronto Blue Jays organization.[17]

Major leagues

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The Blue Jays promoted Berti to the major leagues for the first time on September 26, 2018, and inserted him in their starting lineup that day at second base.[18] He was designated for assignment on October 5,[19] and outrighted to Triple-A Buffalo on October 9.[20] Berti elected free agency following the season on November 2.[21]

Miami Marlins

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On December 3, 2018, Berti signed a minor league contract with the Miami Marlins, and was invited to spring training.[22] He opened the 2019 season with the New Orleans Baby Cakes.

On April 20, 2019, the Marlins promoted Berti to their major league roster.[23] In 2019, Berti hit .273 with 6 home runs, and led the Marlins with 17 stolen bases in 73 games.[24] He also demonstrated his defensive versatility as a rookie with 20 games played as a third baseman, 21 games as a center fielder and 32 games as a shortstop. Berti became the first player in Marlins history with 20-plus games at each of those positions in the same season.[25]

Berti stole second base, third base and home in the sixth inning of a Marlins' game against the New York Mets in August 2020, becoming the first Miami player to steal three bases in an inning.[26] On the season, Berti slashed .258/.388/.350 with two home runs and 14 RBI in 120 at-bats.[27]

On March 22, 2022, Berti signed a $1.2 million contract with the Marlins, avoiding salary arbitration.[28] For the 2022 season, Berti led the major leagues in stolen bases with 41 (while being caught five times). He batted .240/.324/.338 in 358 at bats with 47 runs, four home runs, and 28 RBI.[29] He had the fastest sprint speed of all major league second basemen, at 29.6 feet/second.[citation needed] Berti was the only player to reach the 40–stolen base plateau in 2022, doing so in 102 games; no player in MLB history had led the majors in stolen bases in a full season with fewer games played.[30]

Before the 2023 season, the Marlins signed Berti to a one-year contract worth $2.125 million with a team option for the 2024 season.[31] He batted .258 with seven home runs, 33 RBI and 16 stolen bases. After the season, the Marlins exercised a $3.625 million for the 2024 season.[32]

New York Yankees

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On March 27, 2024, the Marlins traded Berti to the New York Yankees in a three-team trade in which the Marlins received John Cruz from the Yankees and Shane Sasaki from the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Rays received Ben Rortvedt from the Yankees.[33] After hitting .273 in 17 games, Berti suffered a strained left calf and was placed on the injured list in May 25.[34] He was transferred to the 60–day injured list on June 12.[35] Berti was activated on September 9.[36]

On October 8, 2024 in the second game of the 2024 American League Division Series against the Kansas City Royals, Berti started at first base for the first time in his career. It was just the fifth time that a player made his first career start at a fielding position (excluding pitcher and designated hitter) in postseason play.[37]

Personal life

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Berti's father, Thomas, played in minor league baseball with the Detroit Tigers organization.[2][38] He is of Italian descent, his grandparents were from Sicily.

References

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  1. ^ "Berti, 2008 Troy grad, selected by Blue Jays in 2011 MLB draft". C&G Newspapers. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Son of a former minor leaguer, Jon Berti has taken his place at shortstop after a year in the outfield". The BG News. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  3. ^ "Berti, Gerdeman selected in MLB draft". The BG News. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  4. ^ "#5 Jon Berti - Profile". pointstreak.com. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  5. ^ "Lansing Lugnuts Profile: Jon Berti, second baseman from Troy". MLive.com. April 20, 2012. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h "Jon Berti Register Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  7. ^ "Blue Jays prospect learning base stealing from Tim Raines". Toronto Sun. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  8. ^ "Jon Berti on fast track to Major League Baseball". The Sydney Morning Herald. January 27, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  9. ^ "Fisher Cats All-Star Jon Berti – New Hampshire Fisher Cats News". New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  10. ^ "Fisher Cats Berti, Antolin and Boone picked for All-Star Game". Concord Monitor. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  11. ^ "Blue Jays Invite 14 to Spring Training". bluebirdbanter.com. January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  12. ^ Chisholm, Gregor (March 10, 2016). "Touted Greene part of second round of cuts". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  13. ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2017". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  14. ^ "Jon Berti Trades And Transactions". baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  15. ^ "Blue Jays trade minor-leaguer Jon Berti to Indians for cash". Sportsnet. April 21, 2018. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  16. ^ "Jon Berti Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  17. ^ "Blue Jays re-acquire Jon Berti from Cleveland". jaysjournal.com. June 9, 2018. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  18. ^ Dakers, Tom (September 26, 2018). "Today's Jays Lineup: Jon Berti plays second base". Bluebird Banter.
  19. ^ "Blue Jays acquire Julian Merryweather to complete Josh Donaldson trade". Sportsnet. October 5, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  20. ^ "Jon Berti Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  21. ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2018". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  22. ^ "Joe Frisaro on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
  23. ^ Bradley, Ty (April 20, 2019). "Marlins Select Jon Berti". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
  24. ^ "Jon Berti Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  25. ^ "Marlins players with at least 20 games at 3B, SS and CF". Baseball-Reference.
  26. ^ Frisaro, Joe (August 26, 2020). "Steal 2nd. Steal 3rd. Steal home (by crawling!)". MLB.com. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  27. ^ Cahill, Nicole (October 26, 2020). "2020 Marlins Season Review: Jon Berti". Fish Stripes.
  28. ^ "Arbitration Tracker For 2022". MLBTradeRumors. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
  29. ^ "Splits Leaderboards | FanGraphs". www.fangraphs.com.
  30. ^ "Presenting your 2022 MLB stat leaders". mlb.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  31. ^ "Berti inks 1-year deal with Marlins to avoid arbitration". MLB.com. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  32. ^ Reynolds, Tim (November 7, 2023). "Marlins retain Jon Berti and Josh Bell, part ways with two others". Sun-Sentinel. Associated Press. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  33. ^ Hoch, Bryan (March 27, 2024). "Jon Berti traded to Yankees from Marlins". MLB.com. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  34. ^ "Yankees' Jon Berti: Hits injured list with calf strain". cbssports.com. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  35. ^ "Yankees Reinstate, Option Jasson Domínguez". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  36. ^ Morgenstern, Leo (September 9, 2024). "Yankees Promote Jasson Domínguez". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
  37. ^ Hoch, Bryan (October 7, 2024). "Berti 'looks like a natural' in first-base debut despite high-pressure spot". mlb.com. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  38. ^ "Thomas Berti Register Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
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