Rafael Alejandro Marchan (born February 25, 1999) is a Venezuelan professional baseball catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Marchan signed with the Phillies organization as an amateur free agent in 2015, at age 16. Originally an infielder, he converted to catcher and impressed scouts and coaches early in his minor league career with his prowess on defense.
Despite never playing above the Class A-Advanced level of the minor leagues, he entered major league spring training and eventually made his major league debut in September 2020, hitting his first professional home run on September 18.
He returned to the minor leagues before the start of the 2021 season and, as of 2020, ranked among the top five prospects in the Phillies’ farm system.
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 minor league season, Marchan was one of several Phillies prospects invited to practice at an alternate training site in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he was available for a major league call-up in case something happened to Phillies catchers J. T. Realmuto or Andrew Knapp.
When Realmuto began to experience hip soreness that September, prior to a doubleheader against the Miami Marlins, Marchan was called up between games 1 and 2. He made his MLB debut the next day, recording a single in the third inning for his first major league hit.
Rafael Marchan does not have a girlfriend at the moment, at his age, he is currently focusing on his career at the Philadelphia Phillies.