My All-Star Catcher Selections for 2006
There was a time in baseball when the task of selecting an All-Star catcher was as easy as choosing between watching “Desperate Housewives” or “Roseanne” reruns; you didn’t have to do a lot of thinking. Ivan Rodriguez was the All-Star catcher in the American League, and Mike Piazza was the choice in the National League. But now that these two All-Star catchers are on the wrong side of the hill, a baseball fan must do some hard studying of the stats to come up with a pair of All-Star catcher candidates. In case you don’t have time, I will guide you through this difficult process in short order so that you may make an informed decision when it comes to voting for an All-Star catcher.
Starting in the senior circuit, the National League, you will find a quartet of receivers that are worth discussing as an All-Star catcher selection. Of these four, Brian McCann of the Braves is hitting the highest, a remarkable .347 as of late May. McCann, who is the reason the Braves did not need to hold on to another possibility as a National League All-Star catcher, Johnny Estrada, probably won’t keep up that pace, but with a little over a quarter of the season in the books, he is showing a lot of class. Besides his 5 home runs and 21 RBI, McCann has shown an All-Star arm, throwing out 10 of 22 base stealers. Whether he can maintain his torrid start will be a big factor in the Braves attempt to haul even with the New York Mets in the National League East.
The aforementioned Estrada, now an Arizona Diamondback, is having an All-Star catcher’s start to 2006. The former Phillie and Brave is batting .313 with 32 RBI, but his throwing out of baserunners lags behind McCann’s All-Star catcher figures. He has nabbed only about one-third of those attempting to swipe a base, catching 7 of 22 men so far. Estrada won’t be 30 years old until June, and is well on his way to career highs for homers and runs batted in.
Had the Cubs Michael Barrett not sucker-punched the White Sox’s A.J. Pierzinski after a home plate collision during an interleague game, he might be the leading choice at this juncture as the NL All-Star catcher. Barrett, who pulled a ten game suspension for his actions, was hitting .295 with 22 RBI before he was sat down. However, like the rest of the woeful Cubbies, Barrett is having his problems. He has caught only 10 of 54 men stealing thus far in his third year in Chicago, after six as an Expo.
The Brewers’ Damian Miller rounds out this foursome of potential National League All-Star catcher selections. Miller is almost certain to surpass his career high of 58 RBI if he stays healthy, as he already has 21 to go with a plus .300 average in 118 at bats. Throwing wise, he is not the second coming of All-Star catcher Johnny Bench, successfully tossing out just 6 of 21.
McCann, whose high average, decent power numbers, and exceptional ratio of runners caught stealing is my pick as the National League’s All-Star catcher. He may be playing in this mid-season celebration of baseball’s best for years to come if he proves that he is not a fluke.
It may be a bit too early to even name a front runner in the battle to be the American League All-Star catcher. There are at least six attractive options, and the next month will be the key as to who continues their All-Star catcher play. Joe Mauer, the Minnesota Twins backstop, looks like he is ready to fulfill his unlimited potential. Mauer is hitting in the .340s with 23 RBI, and is catching base stealers at a rate of 3 out of 7 with no errors on his ledger. Future Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez of the Tigers is not that far over the hill at 34, it is simply that this 12 time All-Star catcher seems like he has been around forever because he began so young. He is a career .300 hitter, and is right on that mark this season as well. He has done his usual job behind the plate, and has contributed 20 RBI thus far to the Bengal cause.
Newcomer Kenji Johjima, the first Japanese catcher to catch in the majors, is hoping to become the first from that island nation to be named an All-Star catcher. Kenji, who will also be 30 in June, has started strong for Seattle, with 5 homers and 25 RBI at the plate. Baserunners have taken some liberties with him though, but that could improve as he adjusts to the American game. The Yankees’ veteran, Jorge Posada, is hovering right around the .300 mark, and has driven in 27 runs, but a hamstring injury has sidelined him late in May and his All-Star catcher chances could be in jeopardy. A violent collision at the plate with the Rangers’ Mark Teixeira, followed by a game winning walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth in the same contest, brought Posada’s importance to the Bronx Bombers’ quest for baseball supremacy into focus. The Indian catcher, Victor Martinez, is batting .295 with 28 RBI, but his offensive prowess is offset by the fact that he has only thrown out 5 of 41 individuals trying to steal.
Although all of these catchers are having solid years, none of them is doing what Baltimore’s Ramon Hernandez is doing. He is my American League All-Star catcher preference based on his hitting and his defense. He is at .300 with 8 homers and 36 RBI, but as impressive as those numbers are, Ramon became my All-Star catcher when I looked at what he has done with the equipment on. He has caught 18 out of 32 runners, making up for his 7 errors, and has proved that the Orioles finally did something right with a free agent signing.
Ramon Hernandez and Brian McCann, my All-Star catchers, might not get the recognition from the baseball fans that vote for the All-Star team, but they more than deserve their roster spots on this team of the sport’s best in my eyes.
Starting in the senior circuit, the National League, you will find a quartet of receivers that are worth discussing as an All-Star catcher selection. Of these four, Brian McCann of the Braves is hitting the highest, a remarkable .347 as of late May. McCann, who is the reason the Braves did not need to hold on to another possibility as a National League All-Star catcher, Johnny Estrada, probably won’t keep up that pace, but with a little over a quarter of the season in the books, he is showing a lot of class. Besides his 5 home runs and 21 RBI, McCann has shown an All-Star arm, throwing out 10 of 22 base stealers. Whether he can maintain his torrid start will be a big factor in the Braves attempt to haul even with the New York Mets in the National League East.
The aforementioned Estrada, now an Arizona Diamondback, is having an All-Star catcher’s start to 2006. The former Phillie and Brave is batting .313 with 32 RBI, but his throwing out of baserunners lags behind McCann’s All-Star catcher figures. He has nabbed only about one-third of those attempting to swipe a base, catching 7 of 22 men so far. Estrada won’t be 30 years old until June, and is well on his way to career highs for homers and runs batted in.
Had the Cubs Michael Barrett not sucker-punched the White Sox’s A.J. Pierzinski after a home plate collision during an interleague game, he might be the leading choice at this juncture as the NL All-Star catcher. Barrett, who pulled a ten game suspension for his actions, was hitting .295 with 22 RBI before he was sat down. However, like the rest of the woeful Cubbies, Barrett is having his problems. He has caught only 10 of 54 men stealing thus far in his third year in Chicago, after six as an Expo.
The Brewers’ Damian Miller rounds out this foursome of potential National League All-Star catcher selections. Miller is almost certain to surpass his career high of 58 RBI if he stays healthy, as he already has 21 to go with a plus .300 average in 118 at bats. Throwing wise, he is not the second coming of All-Star catcher Johnny Bench, successfully tossing out just 6 of 21.
McCann, whose high average, decent power numbers, and exceptional ratio of runners caught stealing is my pick as the National League’s All-Star catcher. He may be playing in this mid-season celebration of baseball’s best for years to come if he proves that he is not a fluke.
It may be a bit too early to even name a front runner in the battle to be the American League All-Star catcher. There are at least six attractive options, and the next month will be the key as to who continues their All-Star catcher play. Joe Mauer, the Minnesota Twins backstop, looks like he is ready to fulfill his unlimited potential. Mauer is hitting in the .340s with 23 RBI, and is catching base stealers at a rate of 3 out of 7 with no errors on his ledger. Future Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez of the Tigers is not that far over the hill at 34, it is simply that this 12 time All-Star catcher seems like he has been around forever because he began so young. He is a career .300 hitter, and is right on that mark this season as well. He has done his usual job behind the plate, and has contributed 20 RBI thus far to the Bengal cause.
Newcomer Kenji Johjima, the first Japanese catcher to catch in the majors, is hoping to become the first from that island nation to be named an All-Star catcher. Kenji, who will also be 30 in June, has started strong for Seattle, with 5 homers and 25 RBI at the plate. Baserunners have taken some liberties with him though, but that could improve as he adjusts to the American game. The Yankees’ veteran, Jorge Posada, is hovering right around the .300 mark, and has driven in 27 runs, but a hamstring injury has sidelined him late in May and his All-Star catcher chances could be in jeopardy. A violent collision at the plate with the Rangers’ Mark Teixeira, followed by a game winning walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth in the same contest, brought Posada’s importance to the Bronx Bombers’ quest for baseball supremacy into focus. The Indian catcher, Victor Martinez, is batting .295 with 28 RBI, but his offensive prowess is offset by the fact that he has only thrown out 5 of 41 individuals trying to steal.
Although all of these catchers are having solid years, none of them is doing what Baltimore’s Ramon Hernandez is doing. He is my American League All-Star catcher preference based on his hitting and his defense. He is at .300 with 8 homers and 36 RBI, but as impressive as those numbers are, Ramon became my All-Star catcher when I looked at what he has done with the equipment on. He has caught 18 out of 32 runners, making up for his 7 errors, and has proved that the Orioles finally did something right with a free agent signing.
Ramon Hernandez and Brian McCann, my All-Star catchers, might not get the recognition from the baseball fans that vote for the All-Star team, but they more than deserve their roster spots on this team of the sport’s best in my eyes.
