All Time All-Star Team

[Virginia Giant]

Baseball season approacheth, and to help build our excitment, lets piece together the Greatest would-be team ever. Each week we'll do a position and we'll all give out thoughts on who is/was the greatest to play that position. There will be a starter and a back up for all positions, 5 starting pitchers, a few relievers and 2 closers. The outfield will be 2 RF, 2 LF and 2 CF.

 

 

The one with the most nominations will be named starter, the one with the second most mentions will be the backup. You'll give your vote on starter and backup, just because of the lack of activity in this section.

 

 

 

 

This weeks position is...Catcher

[Plow]

Here are some names for people to consider for catcher...

 

Johnny Bench, Mickey Cochrane, Gabby Hartnett, Yogi Berra, Carlton Fisk, Bill Dickey, Gary Carter, Roy Campanella, Mike Piazza and Ivan Rodriguez.

 

My Picks:

Starter: Johnny Bench

2 time MVP, 389 career home runs, a part of the big red machine (2 rings), 14 time all star, 10 gold gloves. I dont think this is a very hard decision. He's obviously the best.

 

Backup: Yogi Berra (a bit of a homer pick because he is my favorite Yankee that i didn't get to see play)

3 time MVP, won 10 world series rings which can not be ignored. 358 home runs, .285 BA, 15 time all star. The only downside to him is that at the beginning of his career there were people who questioned has ability as a catcher. Elston Howard took over for him as catcher eventually where Yogi moved to the outfield. However, those were a lot of media generated rumors. If he was that bad with working with pitchers and could be stolen on so easily, then how did he win 10 world series? Yeah he had Dimaggio and Mantle, but 10 rings is the most ever for any player.

 

I know you just want 2 picks, but my next guy would have be Ivan Rodriguez. He's a great leader, and his 12 gold gloves is very impressive. He is the best catcher of my generation (yes better than Piazza).

[Virginia Giant]

I tried staying away from the homer vote, but maybe it's because I got to see him play so much, but here are my votes.

 

 

 

 

 

Starter...Ivan Rodriguez. Played 16 years, 12 time all star, 11 gold gloves. NLCS MVP, AL MVP....304 career batting average, 277 career home runs, 1119 career RBI's and 118 errors. All i know is, you did not run on the Rangers in the 90's.

 

 

 

Back Up...Johnny Bench. Will probly end up the starter and some say the greatest fielding catcher of all time. 14 time all star, 10 gold gloves, ROY, 2 time NL MVP, world series MVP. ....267 career batting average, 389 home runs, 1376 RBI, 151 errors.

[Plow]

wow VG, pudge best all time? I think he's the best catcher in the game now but not ever. I always tell people I'll take 3 guys on my team and you wont beat me. Those three are Ichiro, Jeter, and Pudge. They do all the small fundamentals of the game that are needed to win.

 

But hey at least you admit you're a homer.

[Virginia Giant]

wow VG, pudge best all time? I think he's the best catcher in the game now but not ever. I always tell people I'll take 3 guys on my team and you wont beat me. Those three are Ichiro, Jeter, and Pudge. They do all the small fundamentals of the game that are needed to win.

 

But hey at least you admit you're a homer.

Defensivly he's as good as any, except maybe Cochrane, throwing runers out he's the best and offensivly he's pretty damn good. Doesn't have Bench's HR's or Cochranes average, but has good power and over a 300 career BA.

 

He was our starting catcher at 19 years old, has never played another position on the field and if you got lazy at first you were meat.

[feefifoefum]

Mackey Sasser

[fringe]

Anthony John Pierzynski- what other catcher could cliam being traded for 2 starters and an all star closer?

[Blue Jeans]

Bench, with Piazza a backup and awesome power thread on the bench.

[LorfTVP]

I'm doing my best looking at statistics and trying not to let bias take over...so I'm going to throw in a vote for Mickey Cochrane of the Philadelphia Athletics and the Detroit Tigers. He leads all catchers in the Hall of Fame with a .320 batting average, averages a respectable 13 HRs a season...but here's the big thing, he has a career .419 OBP which is 20th all time. Though he only played for 11 full seasons before a beaning to the head by a Yankees pitcher put him out of baseball, he has two MVP trophies, He played in five World Series and won three as a player-manager. Maybe it's the sabermetrics in the Boston organization that are getting to me but only striking out 24 times in an average 162 game season is incredible and the fact that he only played until he was 34 because of getting beaned is a testament to his legacy.

[Virginia Giant]

I'm doing my best looking at statistics and trying not to let bias take over...so I'm going to throw in a vote for Mickey Cochrane of the Philadelphia Athletics and the Detroit Tigers. He leads all catchers in the Hall of Fame with a .320 batting average, averages a respectable 13 HRs a season...but here's the big thing, he has a career .419 OBP which is 20th all time. Though he only played for 11 full seasons before a beaning to the head by a Yankees pitcher put him out of baseball, he has two MVP trophies, He played in five World Series and won three as a player-manager. Maybe it's the sabermetrics in the Boston organization that are getting to me but only striking out 24 times in an average 162 game season is incredible and the fact that he only played until he was 34 because of getting beaned is a testament to his legacy.

Noone can argue with that choice, probly i should have voted for him.