Francisco Cervelli was born on March 6, 1986, and is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher and former catching coach for the San Diego Padres.
He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, and Miami Marlins from 2008 through 2020.
The Yankees signed Cervelli as an international free agent in 2003. He made his MLB debut with the Yankees in 2008 and played on the 2009 World Series championship team that beat the Philadelphia Phillies.
He also played in the 2009 and 2013 World Baseball Classics for the Italian national team. He was acquired by the Pirates in November 2014. The Pirates traded Cervelli to Atlanta in 2019, and he played for Miami in 2020 before announcing his retirement.
Why did Francisco Cervelli retire?
“I am retiring because the time has come to put my health before my career. For a long time, I put baseball first, through countless concussions and injuries, because this game was my life; my whole world.