It’s been said by some that Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez is the best player to come out of Puerto Rico. Some may agree and others won’t. It’s also been said that Pudge is the best defensive catcher in MLB history. Once again, that’s open to interpretation. When compared to the man many consider baseball’s greatest catcher, Johnny Bench, there is a lot that could be said about Pudge Rodriguez and his abilities. Johnny had his strength and Pudge had his, but when it comes to catching, as opposed to overall career, I think Pudge has the edge.
Born on November 27, 1971 in ManatÃ, Puerto Rico, Pudge (sometimes called I-Rod) showed his baseball prowess early on, and at the age of 16 he was signed by the Texas Rangers. That was back in 1988 and he played with the Rangers for 12 seasons, from 1991-2002. In 2003, he was traded to the Florida Marlins and from 2004-the present he’s played for the Detroit Tigers.
In all, Pudge has played 18 seasons. In that time he has a .302 batting average. In comparison, Bench was a lifetime .267 hitter. While Bench has more homers than Pudge (Bench had 389 in his career, Pudge has 289 in 18 seasons). Pudge is less known for his power hitting and more known for doubling. In 2008, he hit 2,500 career hits and he now has 2,539 in total as of today. Bench may have had 100 more home runs than Pudge has thus far, but Pudge has already surpassed the slugger in hits, with Bench only hitting 2,048 times in his entire career. Of course, that’s just a comparison of their hitting abilities. There is no doubt that Bench is the better slugger, but what about on the field?
Johnny Bench played in 14 All Star Games in his career, which spanned 17 seasons. He also won ten consecutive Gold Gloves (during his first ten seasons he played) and two MVP awards. In comparison, Pudge has won 13 Gold Gloves. Of these, he has won a Gold Glove in ten consecutive years, the first ten seasons he played ball. This was from 1991-2001. He also won Gold Gloves in 2004, 2006, and 2007. Pudge has been the MVP once (1999) and has won seven silver slugger awards. While Bench has been on two World Series winning teams, Pudge helped to win the 2003 World Series with the Florida Marlins. He also played the catcher in the 2006 Detroit-St. Louis series.
In 2003, Pudge helped the Marlins win the division series, by preventing J.T. Snow of the San Francisco Giants, from scoring the tying run at the plate. This was the first time in MLB history that a team won a game by throwing a player out at home. Pudge has been a part of 14 All Star games and he’s caught for two no-hitter games in his career; one with Kenny Rogers for the Texas Rangers and one with Justin Verlander for the Detroit Tigers. Not bad for a catcher now in his 18th season!
Pudge Rodriguez has consistently led the AL in his percentage for throwing out players attempting to steal bases. Known for his power arm, Pudge seldom makes mistakes when catching and is known for his uncanny ability to deflect wild pitches. As a kid, playing ball, his manager (who also happened to be his dad) switched Pudge from the role of pitcher to catcher because he thought his son was scaring the batters since he threw the ball so hard.
So, who is the best catcher of all time? Is it Johnny Bench or Pudge Rodriguez? Maybe it is someone else. Whoever it is, it’s hard to ignore the illustrious career of one of Detroit’s favorites, because when asked who’s your Tiger, I’d have to say…it’s Pudge!
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Written by Dominick Evans - Visit Website
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