Cincinnati Reds In 2002, Hanigan began his career with the Reds' organization when he played in six minor league games for the
Dayton Dragons of the
Midwest League, batting .273 with three
hits. On April 28, 2003, in a game against the
Quad City River Bandits, he went 4–5 with three RBIs. Hanigan was named to the East squad in the Midwest League All-Star Game, where he served as the reserve catcher. Later in July, he was placed on the disabled list (DL) with a
high ankle sprain; up until then, he was hitting .283 with 26 RBIs. Hanigan finished the season batting .277 with a home run and 31 RBIs, which earned him a promotion to the
Triple-A Louisville Bats. From July 6 to 29, he had a 22-game
hit streak, the longest in the
Carolina League for the year. For the season, Hanigan hit .296 with five home runs and 56 RBIs over 119 games as the Cannons made the Carolina League Northern Division playoffs for the first time since 1995. The following season, Hanigan played for the
Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts. On August 29, 2005, he hit a
grand slam against the
West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx as the Lookouts lost, 10–12. In 2006, Hanigan appeared in 56 games for the Lookouts as well as eight games for the Bats. During a July 13, 2006, contest, Hanigan drove in what would be the winning run with two outs in the seventh inning against the
Birmingham Barons. For the season, he hit .246 for the Lookouts and .154 for the Bats. He was promoted to the Bats on June 28, 2007, after reaching base safely in 40 of his last 42 games for the Lookouts, including three four-hit games. Hanigan made his MLB debut on September 9 against the
Milwaukee Brewers. Pinch hitting for
Kirk Saarloos, he doubled to left field off the first pitch from
All-Star Ben Sheets, and later scored a
run on a
wild pitch. For the MLB Reds, Hanigan hit .300 in five games played, with two RBIs and a double. During the off-season, he played in the
Dominican Professional Baseball League for the
Leones del Escogido. After batting .271 in 31 games for the Reds, Hanigan was ranked as the 16th best
prospect in the Reds minor league system by
Baseball America. spring training Hanigan spent the entire 2009 season with the Reds except for five games with the Bats. He served as the backup catcher to
Ramón Hernández until Hernández underwent knee surgery and was placed on the DL. Hanigan went on the DL after he was hit on the face mask by a foul tip and suffered a concussion; he returned on August 8, 2009. On March 14, 2011, Hanigan signed a three-year, $4 million extension with the Reds, covering his first two arbitration-eligible seasons. The contract also included up to $800,000 in incentives based on playing time, split for the 2012 and 2013 seasons. The deal included a $300,000 signing bonus. On April 3, 2011, he set career records by hitting more than one home run and getting four hits in a single game. Against
Chicago Cubs pitcher
Sean Marshall, Hanigan drove in the tie-breaking run in what was an 8–7 win for the Reds on August 7. He finished the year batting .267 with an
on-base percentage of .356 and a career-high of six home runs. Hanigan caught both of
Homer Bailey's
no-hitters, against the
Pittsburgh Pirates on September 28, 2012, and against the
San Francisco Giants on July 2, 2013.
Tampa Bay Rays On December 3, 2013, Hanigan was traded to the
Tampa Bay Rays as part of a three-team trade also involving the
Arizona Diamondbacks. The Rays immediately signed him to a three-year, $10.75 million contract through 2016, with a team option for 2017. Playing as the Rays' primary catcher, on April 4 he went 2–5 with a three-run homer in a win over the
Texas Rangers. Two weeks later he hit two home runs with six RBIs in a 16–1 win over the
New York Yankees. In May, Hanigan, plagued for nearly two weeks by a strained hamstring, was finally placed on the 15-day DL on May 28. On June 17 he had a home run and a walk against the
Baltimore Orioles, but he then missed several more games due to neck stiffness and later with soreness in his left side.
Boston Red Sox On December 19, 2014, the Rays traded Hanigan and
Wil Myers to the
San Diego Padres as part of a three-team transaction, in which the Padres traded
Jake Bauers,
Burch Smith, and
René Rivera to the Rays, the Padres trade
Joe Ross and a
player to be named later to the
Washington Nationals, and Washington traded
Steven Souza and
Travis Ott to Tampa Bay. The Padres then traded him, later that same day, to the
Boston Red Sox for
Will Middlebrooks. On April 17, 2015, Hanigan hit his first home run in a Red Sox uniform off of
Ubaldo Jiménez of the
Baltimore Orioles. The two run shot tied the game that Boston eventually won in walk-off fashion. On May 1, 2015, Hanigan left the game after a ball struck his hand after
Mark Teixeira got struck in his hand first. The next day, X-rays tested positive that Hanigan's hand was fractured, placing him on the 15-day disabled list. The Red Sox projected that he was going to be out indefinitely but other sources projected that the injury did not end his 2015 year. On May 3, 2015, Hanigan was placed on the 60-day disabled list. For the 2015 season, he batted .247/.337/.328 with two home runs. Hanigan finished the 2016 season with a .171 batting average, and despite playing in only 34 games he led the major leagues in
passed balls, with 18. On November 2, 2016, the Red Sox declined to pick up Hanigan's team option, thus making him a free agent.
Colorado Rockies Hanigan signed a minor league deal with the
Philadelphia Phillies on January 25, 2017. He was released at the end of spring training. After being released by the Phillies, Hanigan agreed to a minor league contract with the
Colorado Rockies, on March 28, 2017. He had his contract selected to the major league roster on May 3. He became a free agent following the season.
San Francisco Giants On February 12, 2018, Hanigan signed a minor league deal with the
Cleveland Indians. He was released on March 19. On May 6, 2018, Hanigan signed a minor league deal with the
San Francisco Giants. He was released on July 24, 2018. == Managerial career ==