Background
Barnhart was born in Indianapolis, the son of Kevin and Pam Barnhart.
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Tucker Barnhart
Edit ProfileEducation
He attended Brownsburg High School and played for the school"s baseball team
Career
When Tucker was 11, the family moved west of Indianapolis to Brownsburg, Indiana. As a junior in 2008, he hit.500 and was named to the Louisville Slugger High School All-American team In his senior year at Brownsburg, he was named "Mr.
Baseball" for the state of Indiana.
Prior to his senior season, he committed to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology on a baseball scholarship to play for the Georgia Technical Yellow Jackets. Heading into the 2009 MLB Draft, Baseball America rated Barnhart as the best available player from Indiana.
Due to his commitment to Georgia Technical, he fell to the 10th round, when he was chosen by the Cincinnati Reds with the 299th overall selection. Barnhart opted to sign with the Reds, rather than enroll at Georgia Technology
In 2010, he played for the Billings Mustangs of the Rookie-level Pioneer League.
In 2011, he played for the Dayton Dragons of the Class A Midwest League. He spent the 2012 season with the Bakersfield Blaze of the Class A-Advanced California League and Pensacola Blue Wahoos of the Class Associate of Arts Southern League. He played for Pensacola in 2013, and was named a Southern League All-Star.
Barnhart was added to the Reds 40-man roster on November 20, 2013.
With Devin Mesoraco beginning the 2014 season on the disabled list, Barnhart made the Reds" 2014 Opening Day roster, as a backup to Brayan Peña. Barnhart made his major league debut on April 3 against the Saint Louis Cardinals.
Starting at catcher (with Homer Bailey the starting pitcher) and batting eighth, he went 0-for-4. Two days later, he got his first big-league hit, a single off New York Mets pitcher Dillon Gee.
Foreign the game, Barnhart went 2-for-4.
Barnhart was optioned to the Louisville Bats of the Class American Automobile Association International League on April 7, when Mesoraco was activated. He was later recalled by the Reds, and on May 1 he hit his first big-league home run, a fifth-inning solo shot off the Milwaukee Brewers" Marco Estrada. He was optioned back to Louisville on May 18.
On July 6, with Peña on the paternity list and also forced to play more at first base due to injuries, the Reds recalled Barnhart.
Barnhart was optioned back to Louisville on July 11.
