LA Angels: Who is the greatest catcher in franchise history?

Who is the greatest catcher in LA Angels history?

Catchers play an interesting position. They are active on every play, flashing signs to call the next pitch (look away Astros fans), calming the pitcher down on the mound, keeping base runners in check, blocking wild pitches, receiving foul tips off all parts of their bodies, and somehow, still required to play their role in the batting order.

In this article, I will explore the five best catchers in Angels history in trying to decide who is the greatest backstop to wear a halo on their cap. I will consider both offense and defense in ranking these catchers. Their accomplishments will be limited to what they did in Anaheim.

Before I get into the list, I want to mention that I excluded Brian Downing because he just didn’t spend enough time as an everyday catcher with the Angels to justify being included. He was a full-time catcher for two seasons, in 1978 and 1979, but then never caught more than 37 games for the Halos. While he was great in ’79, it’s too small of a sample to be considered along men who sat crouched behind home plate for hundreds of innings.

There are a few names in the rankings who also had short stints behind the plate, but in each case, they made the majority of their contributions to the team as backstops.

Without further ado, let’s walk through the best catchers in Angels history.

5) Lance Parrish

An eight-time All Star, Lance Parrish would rank higher on this list if he had played more seasons with the Angels, but his 400 games in Anaheim still qualify him as one of the franchise’s best backstops.

The Angels acquired Parrish, who lived in nearby Yorba Linda, in the 1988 offseason in sort of a sign-and-trade that sent minor league pitcher David Holdridge to Philadelphia.

Parrish was coming off an All-Star season in Philly, but more for reputation than merit, his batting average and slugging percentage dropping to career-lows. Upon arriving in Anaheim, the 33-year-old catcher found new life. He showed steady improvement in 1989, before having one of his best seasons as a pro during his second year with the Angels.

The right-handed hitter won his sixth Silver Slugger Award as the best offensive catcher in the American League in 1990. He batted .268/.338/.451 with 24 home runs and 70 RBIs. He did all of that while playing an elite level of defense behind the plate. He caught 55 base runners trying to steal (most in the American League), and turned more double plays than any other catcher that season (15).

Parrish would come back to earth in 1991 when his batting average dropped close to .215 again. By ’92, after several trips to the disabled list, he was released. In just 400 games with the Angels, his wins above replacement value ranks third in club history. A short but memorable tenure as a Halo backstop.

4) Mike Napoli

Who can forget Mike Napoli’s first at-bat in the major leagues?

The 17th round pick, selected 500th overall in the 2000 amateur draft, stepped to the plate against Justin Verlander—a tough assignment for anyone, let alone a rookie catcher in his debut. He reacted by taking Verlander yard for a memorable home run in his first Major League at-bat.

Napoli’s time in Anaheim was often interrupted by injury and cut short when he was traded to the Blue Jays for Vernon Wells (yuck!). However, when he did play, he was one of the franchise’s sneakiest power hitters, ranking third in the lowest number of at-bats per home run behind Mike Trout and Troy Glaus.

He remains the eighth best slugger in team history (.485) and ranks sixth in OPS percentage (.831). His best season was in 2008 when he hit 20 home runs in just 78 games. He also came up clutch in the postseason when he delivered on a game-tying two-run home run off Josh Beckett in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.

Napoli finally played a full season in 2010, the year before he was traded out of town. Splitting time between catching and first base, he played in 140 games, hitting 26 home runs, driving in 68 runs, and batting .238.

He remains the franchise’s all-time leader in home runs for a catcher, his 92 total far outpacing Bengie Molina in second place.

2) Bengie Molina

Benjie Molina holds a special place in the hearts of Angel fans. It was hard not to root for the lovable catcher who was behind the plate when the Angels won their first World Series in 2002.

Molina, who was considered a “glove only” catcher as a prospect in the Angels system, proved he could handle the bat pretty well, too. In the Angels’ Game 7, championship-clinching victory, Molina went 2-3 at the plate, including a key double in the bottom of the second inning that wiped away an early Giants lead.

The Puerto Rican catcher won back-to-back Gold Glove Awards in 2002 and 2003, proving himself to be one of the elite backstops in baseball. During his Gold Glove years, he led the American League in catching base runners, allowed the least pass balls, and ranked first in total zone runs, an advanced statistic that measures a catcher’s fielding impact in terms of runs above or below average.

His defensive accolades speak for themselves, but any reputation as a defense-only player, he made sure to disprove.

Molina ranks second in franchise history with 65 home runs as a catcher. During his final two seasons in Anaheim, he batted .279/.308/.425 with 24 home runs and 125 RBIs in 216 games played. He had developed into a consistent hitter, who rarely struck out.

Unfortunately, Molina’s divorce with the Angels would end ugly. He became upset when the team let him walk away as a free agent without making him an offer in 2005. He signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Blue Jays.

1) Bob Boone

It seems strange to consider someone as the best backstop in franchise history when he didn’t arrive in Anaheim until he was 34-years-old and had already played ten seasons with another ballclub, but Bob Boone defied the aging curve in staying behind the plate for 19 seasons in total.

The San Diego native arrived in California after acting as the Phillies representative during the 1981 Major League Baseball players strike. Whether that contributed to the team deciding to trade him is unclear, but he was also coming off an unproductive season at the plate where he batted a career-worst .211.

At 33-years-old, turning 34, it was easy to believe the All-Star catcher was near the end of the road in the Big Leagues.

However, he found new life with the Halos. In 1982, he improved his batting average to .256, cracked seven home runs, and won his first Gold Glove Award since 1979.

Over the next seven years, he would continue to defy the odds as a catcher in his late thirties, and early forties, winning four more Gold Gloves behind the plate for the Angels. He had the best caught stealing percentage among catchers in 1982, 1985, and 1987. He also led the league in double plays turned from behind the plate in 1983, 1985, and 1986.

Helped by his defensive mastery, he is the franchise’s all-time leader in wins above replacement as a catcher (13.1).

Boone was more of a steady compiler (he ended up playing in the 14th most games in club history) than a don’t-leave-your-seat-in-case-you-miss-something kind of player, but his longevity and consistency make him deserving to be listed atop the list of all-time great Halos catchers.