Top 10 Backstops in MLB History

Author's Note: This list is with regard to Major League history, not baseball in general. Josh Gibson was undoubtedly one of the best catchers in history, but there is no way to accurately compare his numbers against the records of Major Leaguers.

10. Joe Torre

Torre's playing career has come to be overshadowed by his success as a manager, but his days as a backstop were nothing to be ashamed of. Torre ended his career with a .297 batting average and a .452 slugging percentage.

He also hit 252 home runs in a career that saw him win a National League Gold Glove in 1971 and an NL Most Valuable Player award in 1965.

9. Gary Carter

The most recent catcher to enter Cooperstown, Carter's best days were lost in the anonymity forced upon all players in Montreal.

Carter's career was capped by being part of the 1986 World Champion Mets, but it certainly wasn't limited to one season. He was an 11-time All Star, won three Gold Gloves, and ended his career with 324 home runs.

8. Mike Piazza

Piazza did not win any Gold Glove Awards, but is the career leader in home runs hit by a catcher. If these rankings were based strictly on offensive numbers, Piazza would be in the top three, with his 427 career home runs, .308 career batting average, and 1,335 runs batted in.

Piazza also has the highest slugging percentage on this list by .045 (.545), a substantial margin. He was the NL Rookie of the Year for the Dodgers and appeared in four All-Star Games.

7. Bill Dickey

One in a great line of Yankees catchers, Dickey is often forgotten when discussing Yankee legends. Dickey ended his illustrious career with a .313 batting average and entered the Hall of Fame wearing seven World Championship rings.

6. Mickey Cochran

Cochran ended his career with what is still the highest career average for a catcher at .320. He stole 64 bases in his career and had a slugging percentage of .478, both of which are good for the top five of all time at the position.

5. Roy Campenella

A career which was tragically cut short by an automobile accident, Campenella was a respected force behind the plate. He ended his career with a .500 slugging percentage and 242 home runs in only 1,215 major league games. He would win three MVP Awards with the Dodgers and handle some of the great pitching staffs of his generation.

4. Carlton Fisk

Fisk wore both Sox during a career that ended with him as the all-time leader in games played at the position. The Original (and to many still the only) "Pudge" hit 376 home runs, knocked in 1,330 runs, and had a career slugging percentage of .475.

He batted .269 between Boston and Chicago, was an 11-time All Star, and famously waved the ball just fair enough against the Reds in the World Series to enter Cooperstown on his first ballot.

Fisk also ended his career as the all-time leader in runs, at-bats, and stolen bases for catchers. The only shame about Fisk's career is that he spent it in Boston and Chicago; he never won the World Series.

3. Yogi Berra

The reason Dickey is so overlooked is because Berra is so loved in New York. Berra is to baseball what Bill Russell was to the NBA; he won, and won, and then won some more. As a player he would attend 15 consecutive All-Star games between 1948-1962 and would win 10 World Series rings!

Berra also won three MVP awards for the Bombers while amassing offensive numbers that embarrass those that assume he's famous for his one liners. Berra hit 358 career home runs, is the career leader in runs batted in by a catcher with 1,430, hit .285, and finished with a slugging percentage of .482.

2. Ivan Rodriguez

The best defensive catcher of his generation, Rodriguez has won 13 Gold Gloves and one MVP Award during the only active career on this list. He currently has a .301 career batting average, 295 home runs, and is less than two seasons away from passing Fisk for the all-time lead in games caught. (He needs 233 more to become No. 1.)

Rodriguez will pass Fisk for the all-time lead in runs this year with 24 more, and is less than 400 hits from 3,000. Rodriguez needs only five stolen bases to pass Fisk for the top spot in that category as well.

1. Johnny Bench

The anchor of the Big Red Machine of the 1970s, Bench was the top offensive and defensive catcher of his time. Bench ended his career with the all-time lead in home runs (since passed by Piazza), and is still the only catcher in history to win a regular season MVP, World Series ring, Gold Glove (10), and Rookie of the Year Award, while attending 14 All Star games.

Bench drove in 1,376 runs and slugged .476 while being the most feared arm behind the plate in the decade.

Honorable Mentions

Jorge Posada, Randy Hundley, Craig Biggio (yes, I said Biggio), Tony Pena, Jason Kendall