Archive of SportingNews.com's old SOM Baseball forum

Couple of curiosities...

1. What do you have to do to get an "A" rating as a hit and run guy in this game? Am I missing something, because I've never seen a player with an "A" hit and run rating. Why have the grade if no one ever gets it? I mean, do you have to be frickin Joe Morgan or something?

2. Did you notice that Toby Hall has a 2/12 injury roll this year? Strange, as he has less PAs than certain other catchers with the 3/11 injury roll. Got me wondering... Has there ever been a catcher to catch all 162 (or 154..) games?... Or if not that, one to exceed 680 PA? Kendall? IRod? Bench? Yogi?

Please feel free to answer, comment, or add your own questions!

No one has a default H&R rating of A. A B-rated H&R guy becomes an A if the runner on base is being held.

I highly doubt anyone has caught every game in the era of the 154/162-game schedule, but don't know for sure. Your guesses for the most PA look pretty good, since Pudge had 685 PA in '96, and Kendall has been over 650 five times, although he's never hit 680. I dunno what that record would be. Part of it would be a question of defining "catcher;" Kendall has played a few games in the OF, and more significantly, you've got Mickey Tettleton types who alternate between catcher and other positions, who would naturally have an advantage staying healthy.

A player who is a B becomes an a when:

[quote:583c30152c]19.3 If the defense is playing the infield in or if a runner is being held on base, then the batter's hit-and-run rating is improved one grade (Example: The batter's B hit-and-run rating becomes an A).

[/quote:583c30152c]

Kendal had 678 PA's in 200 and 672 in 2001 in 152 and 157 games respectivly

I-Rod had 685 in 1996 in 153 games


Don't know about the oldtimers.

Games caught (games actually played as catcher)
Gary Carter 153 games in 1982 (630 PA's)
Bench 154 games in 1968 (595 PA's)
Yogi 149 games in 1954 (640 PA's)
Ted Simmons 154 games in 1975 (644 PA's)
Tony Pena 149 games in 1983 (573 PA's)
Benito Santiago 151 games in 1991 (603PA's)
Carlton Fisk 154 games in 1978 (642 PA's)
I-Rod only caught 146 of his 153 games in 1996

I checked another site that listed most games played in a season back thru time, and at no point did I see a cather lead the league, let alone play in all games as a catcher. Just FYI.

Ray "Iron Man" Mueller caught in all 155 games for the wartime 1944 Cincinnati Reds. He did not catch every inning, but he did catch in every game.

[url]http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/1944.shtml[/url]

Prior to that I don't believe it happened in the 20th century. It was a fairly common occurrence for catchers to catch every game before 1885, but they had a much shorter schedule then, and played 10 feet behind the batter!

~BK 8)

Let's not forget Jim Sundberg in 1975 caught 155 games for Texas and Randy Hundley caught 160 ! for the Cubs in 1968.

Wow, missed Sundberg... he caught 148+ games 5 different seasons... in the day where they still had frequent scheduled doubleheaders.

Lance Parrish got over 600 PA in '83 and '84, playing in 155 and 147 games respectively.

[quote:6c118a1210="bkoron"]Ray "Iron Man" Mueller caught in all 155 games for the wartime 1944 Cincinnati Reds. He did not catch every inning, but he did catch in every game.

[url]http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/1944.shtml[/url]

Prior to that I don't believe it happened in the 20th century. It was a fairly common occurrence for catchers to catch every game before 1885, but they had a much shorter schedule then, and played 10 feet behind the batter!

~BK 8)[/quote:6c118a1210]

I can just see it now. Some waxed handlebarred mustachio'd type dude 10' back catching the pitcher on one hop. Couldn'ta been too easy to ump from 12' back huh?!

If I had no friggin' mask, I'd be way the hell back there too man.

Double kudo's to Sundberg for doing it in the oppressive Texas weather.