Philadelphia Phillies Minor leagues Galvis participated in the
Florida Instructional League in 2006. The next season, he officially began affiliated baseball in 2007 with the Low-A
Williamsport Crosscutters at age 17, as one of just five players not born in the United States. Concurrently, he hit .203 with nine stolen bases in 38 games. Starting the year in Double-A with the
Reading Phillies, Galvis hit .273, with 35 RBIs, in 464 plate appearances across 104 games. In August, Galvis was promoted to the Triple-A
Lehigh Valley IronPigs, with whom he hit .321 with nine multi-hit games and 13 runs scored in his first 23 games. He hit in the leadoff spot with Lehigh Valley as well. Overall with Lehigh Valley, Galvis hit .298, with eight RBI in 126 plate appearances during 33 games.
Major leagues Galvis was disappointed to learn that Phillies' shortstop
Jimmy Rollins had re-signed with the Phillies during offseason preceding 2012, as Galvis had hoped to replace him. He said that he allowed himself to pout for two hours, and then moved on. Galvis became the first Phillies' player to make his major league debut on opening day in 42 years when he did so on April 5. In his debut, he hit into two
double plays. Galvis recorded his first major league hit in his fourth career game on April 9, a two-run double off of
Miami Marlins pitcher
Aníbal Sánchez. Four days later, he hit his first major league
home run off of
R. A. Dickey in a game against the
New York Mets. While on the disabled list, Galvis tested positive for having a
metabolite of
Clostebol (a performance-enhancing synthetic
steroid) in his system, a violation of
Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Galvis denied any wrongdoing, commenting, "I cannot understand how even this tiny particle of a banned substance got into my body. I have not and never would knowingly use anything illegal to enhance my performance." Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. said "It's disappointing. We fully support the program and the decision. At the same time, we support the player." Correspondingly, the Phillies acquired veteran infielder
John McDonald. He performed better in Triple-A, including a 40-game streak during which he did not commit any errors, and a leadoff home run on the Fourth of July. Overall, 19 at second base, 14 at third base, 10 in left field, and six at shortstop comprised his 49 total major league starts. At the major league level, he hit .234 with six home runs and 19 RBI, and in Triple-A, he hit .245 with three home runs and 25 RBI. "The team's most versatile and best defensive player", Galvis returned to the major league club on April 11. After he struggled early in the season, the Phillies optioned him to Triple-A on May 9 in favor of
Reid Brignac. Two days later, he broke his
clavicle, and spent two months on the disabled list. After a rehabilitation assignment, he performed well at Triple-A, and earned a call-up to the major leagues, replacing Brignac, whom the Phillies
designated for assignment. Overall, Galvis posted his worst offensive season thus far; he hit .176 at the major league level with four home runs and 12 RBIs. After the season, Michael Baumann of
Crashburn Alley wrote, "After two years of medical and developmental setbacks, Galvis is still only entering his age-25 season, so it's possible the bat develops from bad to below-average and Galvis turns into something. I wouldn’t count on it, but it's still within the realm of possibility." When the Phillies traded Rollins to the
Los Angeles Dodgers prior to the
2015 season, media reports speculated that Galvis and
César Hernández were the presumptive nominees to start at shortstop for the upcoming season, likely seeking to bridge the gap between Rollins and
J. P. Crawford, the top prospect in the Phillies' organization. Galvis indeed became the team's starting shortstop, where he would remain for the following three seasons. He finished the 2015 season with a .263 batting average in 151 total games played. Galvis had a mixed year in the
2016 season both defensively and offensively. He led all National League shortstops in
fielding percentage (.987) and was nominated for a
Gold Glove Award, ultimately losing to
Brandon Crawford of the
San Francisco Giants. Offensively, Galvis collected 20 home runs and 67 RBIs with a .241 batting average in 158 games played. On the other hand, his .274 on base percentage was the lowest of all qualified major league batters. Galvis played all 162 games in the
2017 season, including 155 games started at shortstop. On Opening Day, he hit a home run in the second inning against the
Cincinnati Reds, one of 12 he would hit that season. Despite playing every game with the Phillies, Galvis slowly began to lose playing time at shortstop to top Phillies prospect
J. P. Crawford following Crawford's September callup. Galvis finished with a .255 batting average and .690
OPS. He also performed well defensively, again leading National League shortstops in fielding percentage and being nominated for a
Gold Glove Award, and again losing to the
San Francisco Giants'
Brandon Crawford.
San Diego Padres On December 15, 2017, Galvis was traded to the
San Diego Padres in exchange for pitcher
Enyel De Los Santos. He opened the 2018 season as the Padres' starting shortstop, and again played in all 162 games. This included 157 starts at shortshop and five starts at second base, in a season in which Galvis batted .248 with 13 home runs and a .680 OPS. He also recorded the highest shortstop fielding percentage for the third consecutive season. At the end of the season, Galvis became a free agent.
Toronto Blue Jays On January 29, 2019, Galvis signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the
Toronto Blue Jays. The contract included a club option for the 2020 season. In 115 appearances for Toronto, Galvis slashed .267/.299/.444 with 18 home runs and 54 RBI.
Cincinnati Reds On August 12, 2019, Galvis was claimed off waivers by the
Cincinnati Reds. In 47 games in 2020 with Cincinnati, Galvis hit .220/.308/.404 with 31 hits and 7 home runs over 141 at-bats.
Baltimore Orioles On January 26, 2021, Galvis signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the
Baltimore Orioles. In 72 appearances for the Orioles, Galvis batted .249/.306/.414 with nine home runs and 26 RBI.
Philadelphia Phillies (second stint) On July 30, 2021, Galvis was traded to the
Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for minor league pitcher Tyler Burch. In 32 games down the stretch for the Phillies, he hit .224/.292/.393 with five home runs and 14 RBI.
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks On December 13, 2021, Galvis signed with the
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of
Nippon Professional Baseball on a two-year deal for an undisclosed salary. Galvis made his NPB debut in the opening game against the
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters on March 25, 2022, and went 2-for-2 with a grand slam. However, his batting average slumped to .129 in 27 games, and on May 2 he was removed from the
first team registration. He was re-registered on June 7, but was again removed from the roster after only four games. On August 20, 2022, Galvis was re-registered and recorded his second grand slam against the
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. He finished the regular season with a .171 batting average, two home runs, and 11 RBI in only 38 games due to his batting slumps and competition with fellow infielders
Kenta Imamiya, who posted a career best .296
batting average in 2022, and rookie
Masaki Mimori, who posted a .257 batting average, 9 home runs, and 36 RBI despite missing 41 games due to a broken thumb and being diagnosed with
COVID-19. On November 27, 2022, Galvis decided to change his uniform number from 3 to 0 beginning with the 2023 season. In 19 games for the Hawks, he batted .152/.177/.152 with no home runs and one RBI. On December 4, SoftBank announced that Galvis would not return to the team, making him a free agent.
Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos On March 11, 2024, Galvis signed with the
Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos of the
Mexican League. In 69 appearances for Dos Laredos, he batted .269/.345/.430 with six home runs and 43 RBI. Galvis was released by the Tecolotes on March 11, 2025. On July 4, 2025, Galvis announced his retirement from professional baseball via social media. ==Player profile==