I always thought it would be tough for Jorge Posada to join his pals Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera in the Baseball Hall of Fame. But he's making a strong case for himself these days.
Posada is off to a phenomenal start this season, hitting .364 with two homers and five ribbies. More impressively, the New York Yankees catcher notched the 1,500th hit of his career, a feat all the more astounding when you consider the group of legendary Yankee catchers he joined: Bill Dickey, Yogi Berra and Thurman Munson. On Opening Day, he passed Mickey Mantle on the Yankees doubles list with 345.
His career average is .278 with 245 home runs and 969 ribbies. Despite being 38 years old, Posada shows no signs of slowing down from an offensive perspective, which could mean that he will be able to play a few more years and pad his resume even further.
His defense and relationship with pitchers has always been the weaker part of his game. But he has made progress in that area, with AJ Burnett giving him full credit for his fine start to the season. He hasn't been great at throwing out opposing base stealers, but the Yankee pitchers share some blame for that as none of them, except for Andy Pettitte, are good at holding runners on.
Are his numbers strong enough for the Hall of Fame? It will be close. He is undoubtedly one of the premier offensive catchers of his generation and those guys usually do get in the Hall. His five World Series rings should help push him in the direction of Cooperstown.
Posada is off to a phenomenal start this season, hitting .364 with two homers and five ribbies. More impressively, the New York Yankees catcher notched the 1,500th hit of his career, a feat all the more astounding when you consider the group of legendary Yankee catchers he joined: Bill Dickey, Yogi Berra and Thurman Munson. On Opening Day, he passed Mickey Mantle on the Yankees doubles list with 345.
His career average is .278 with 245 home runs and 969 ribbies. Despite being 38 years old, Posada shows no signs of slowing down from an offensive perspective, which could mean that he will be able to play a few more years and pad his resume even further.
His defense and relationship with pitchers has always been the weaker part of his game. But he has made progress in that area, with AJ Burnett giving him full credit for his fine start to the season. He hasn't been great at throwing out opposing base stealers, but the Yankee pitchers share some blame for that as none of them, except for Andy Pettitte, are good at holding runners on.
Are his numbers strong enough for the Hall of Fame? It will be close. He is undoubtedly one of the premier offensive catchers of his generation and those guys usually do get in the Hall. His five World Series rings should help push him in the direction of Cooperstown.
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