Yankee catcher Jorge Posada ends his career with some impressive accolades, including five All-Star game appearances and four World Series rings. Where he ranks among catchers all-time though is up for debate.
Here we start that debate by ranking the best catchers. For the purpose of this list, we are excluding those who played a significant part of their career before World War II, due to the difficulties in comparison. So, some great catchers such as Bill Dickey and Mickey Cochrane will not be ranked.
Also, note that Gold Glove Awards didn’t start until 1957, while Silver Sluggers weren’t handed out until 1980. On to the list:
10. Jorge Posada (1995–2011)—MVPs: 0, Gold Gloves: 0, Silver Sluggers: 5, All-Star Selections: 5, Home Runs: 275, RBIs: 1,065, Average/On Base Pct./Slugging: .273/.374/.474; Chosen: Posada’s accolades are just enough to beat out honorable mentions such as Joe Torre and Ted Simmons (among others) if you include his four World Series rings. Simmons actually was an All-Star more times (8) than Posada, but also played in era when few catchers put up decent numbers.
9. Carlton Fisk (1969–1993)—MVPs: 0, Gold Gloves: 1, Silver Sluggers: 3, All-Star Selections: 11, Home Runs: 376, RBIs: 1,330, AVG/OBP/SLG: .269/.341/.457; Chosen: Though Fisk never won an MVP Award, he finished in the top 10 in the voting four times (Posada had two) and was a better defensive catcher than Posada, who was actually removed as Burnett’s catcher in the 2009 playoffs.
8. Gary Carter (1974–1992)—MVPs: 0, Gold Gloves: 3, Silver Sluggers: 5, All-Star Selections: 11, Home Runs: 324, RBIs: 1,225, AVG/OBP/SLG: .262/.335/.439; Chosen: A very close call over Fisk, but while Carter’s statistics are comparable to Fisk’s (four finishes in the top 10 MVP voting) his defense was slightly better, as was his perfectly primped hair.
7. Mike Piazza (1992–2007)—MVPs: 0, Gold Gloves: 0, Silver Sluggers: 10, All-Star Selections: 12, Home Runs: 427, RBIs: 1,335, AVG/OBP/SLG: .308/.377/.545; Chosen: His bat. Piazza was never recognized for his defense, but the former Rookie of the Year’s hitting prowess landed him a pair of runner-up finishes in the MVP voting, including his 1997 season when he hit .362 with 40 home runs and a .638 slugging percentage—numbers almost unheard of for catchers until he came along.
6. Thurman Munson (1969–1979)—MVPs: 1, Gold Gloves: 3, Silver Sluggers: N/A, All-Star Selections: 7, Home Runs: 113, RBIs: 701, AVG/OBP/SLG: .292/.346/.410; Chosen: His MVP Award. As great as Piazza was, he never was complete enough to win an MVP. And though Piazza’s hitting totals are much better, Munson’s career was cut a bit short at age 32. He played in a different hitting era, and was clearly a better defensive catcher.
5. Joe Mauer (2004–2011)—MVPs: 1, Gold Gloves: 3, Silver Sluggers: 4, All-Star Selections: 4, Home Runs: 84, RBIs: 502, AVG/OBP/SLG: .323/.403/.471; Chosen: Through age 27 in the 2010 season, Mauer had already accomplished all of the above accolades, and that doesn’t include his three batting titles—which is three more than Munson or any other catcher on this list.
4. Roy Campanella...
4. Roy Campanella (1948–1957)—MVPs: 3, Gold Gloves: N/A, Silver Sluggers: N/A, All-Star Selections: 8, Home Runs: 242, RBIs: 856, AVG/OBP/SLG: .276/.360/.500; Chosen: Beginning with Campanella, the top four on the list really separate themselves from the rest, yet hardly from each other. Three MVPs in just 10 total seasons is absolutely incredible and might have been more had he not started his career in the Negro Leagues before joining the Dodgers at age 26.
3. Johnny Bench (1967–1983)—MVPs: 2, Gold Gloves: 10, Silver Sluggers: N/A, All-Star Selections: 14, Home Runs: 389, RBIs: 1,376, AVG/OBP/SLG: .267/.342/.476; Chosen: A difficult call here over Campanella, especially if you never saw either of them play. But, Bench gets the slight edge due to his numerous honors for his work behind the plate, exemplified by his 10 Gold Glove Awards—second all-time to Rodriguez.
2. Ivan Rodriguez (1991–2011)—MVPs: 1, Gold Gloves: 13, Silver Sluggers: 7, All-Star Selections: 14, Home Runs: 311, RBIs, 1,332, AVG/OBP/SLG: .296/.334/.464; Chosen: Sustained excellence. ‘Pudge’ started in the majors at age 19 and won his first Gold Glove the following season. Fifteen years later, Rodriguez was still an All-Star Selection and Gold Glove Award winner at age 35. In addition, the 1999 MVP winner was in the running for a second MVP in each of the next three seasons (with a combined line of .322/.357/.579) before freak injuries limited him to an average of just 103 games per season.
1. Yogi Berra (1946–1965)—MVPs: 3, Gold Gloves: N/A, Silver Sluggers: N/A, All-Star Selections: 15, Home Runs: 358, RBIs, 1,548, AVG/OBP/SLG: .285/.348/.482; Chosen: In addition to the above awards, Berra won 10 World Series titles as a player—still more than anyone in history. Berra also finished in top four of the MVP voting seven straight seasons (1950–1956) and garnered MVP votes 15 straight seasons.
