Freddy José Galvis (born November 14, 1989) is a Venezuelan professional baseball shortstop for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the San Diego Padres, Toronto Blue Jays, Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies. Galvis was born in Punto Fijo, Falcón, Venezuela, and played Little League Baseball including the Little League World Series there before being discovered by one of the Phillies' scouts. At age 16, he signed a contract with the Phillies despite not receiving much attention from scouts. He spent the next several years in their minor league system, including a particularly lengthy stint with the Phillies' Double-A (AA) affiliate the Reading Phillies. He made his major league debut on Opening Day of 2012 at second base, substituting for the injured Chase Utley. He became a fan favorite for his performance early in the season, especially defensively, until he sustained an injury and subsequently was suspended for 50 games after a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs. He missed the remainder of the season. Over the course of the next two seasons, he split time between the Lehigh Valley IronPigs – the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate – and the major league ball club, but struggled to establish himself offensively. Beginning in 2015, Galvis spent three seasons as the Phillies' starting shortstop. In 2016, 2017, and 2018, he led National League shortstops in fielding percentage, and was twice nominated for a Gold Glove Award. In December 2017 he was traded to the San Diego Padres, becoming their starting shortstop in 2018. He spent the first five months of the 2019 season with the Toronto Blue Jays before being claimed off waivers by the Cincinnati Reds in August. Early life Galvis was born November 14, 1989, in Punto Fijo, Falcón, Venezuela, and at age 14, the Philadelphia Phillies began to scout him during his days playing youth baseball. He participated on Latin America's team in the Little League World Series, but due to his slight stature ( ), struggled to captivate scouts' attention. Galvis said, "They told me that I couldn't play (pro) baseball. But I knew I had the ability." In 2006, scouts Sal Agostinelli and Jesus Mendez signed him during the amateur player signing period. Galvis, 16 years old, was not a particularly heralded prospect, but did receive some attention from scouting experts before signing