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.

3) Buck Rodgers

Buck Rodgers. The first catcher. While Earl Averill was technically the first full-time catcher in Angels history, starting 115 games in 1961, Rodgers was the first backstop to make an imprint on Halo history.

Beginning in 1962, he caught 895 games over nine seasons for the Angels. Only Bob Boone has caught more games for the franchise.

The switch-hitting Rodgers was best known for his defense, back in a a time when catchers were really only known for what they did behind the plate. Other than Joe Torre and Tom Haller, nobody really hit like a slugger while calling a game in the mid-sixties.

Rodgers took care of his pitchers as a backstop who could throw out base runners, turn double plays, and keep the ball in front of him. He led the American League in catching attempting base thieves three times over his career, finishing in the top five six times. And from 1962-1964 he committed the least number of errors among catchers.

Rodgers played his entire nine years in the majors with the Angels. He was a career .232 hitter and never hit more than 7 home runs in a season. But he held his own at the plate, finishing in the top ten several times for sacrifice flies, and even smacked the fifth most doubles in the American League in 1962.

The Delaware, Ohio native ended up managing the Angels several decades after retiring when he took over for Doug Radar in 1991. He was seriously injured in a team bus accident in 1992 that forced him away from the dugout for most of the season as he recovered from a broken right elbow, right rib and left knee injury.

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.