Born in Ontario, California, Leyva, who is of Mexican-American descent, attended the University of LaVerne, and was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 24th round of the 1975 Major League Baseball Draft. He was an infielder who threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm) tall and weighed 165 pounds (75 kg). In three seasons (1975–77) in the Cardinals\' farm system, he appeared in 253 games played and batted .267 with 208 hits, eight home runs and 109 runs batted in.\n', '

As a major league manager & coach, Leyva has worn #16 with every team he's been with, except for his 1st year in Toronto in 1993 where he wore #45 before switching back to his familiar #16 in 1994.\n", '

Leyva began his managing career at age 24 with the Rookie-level Johnson City Cardinals of the Appalachian League in 1978. By 1983, he was manager of the parent Cardinals\' Double-A farm team, the Arkansas Travelers of the Texas League.\n', '

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