WHY THURMAN WAS GREAT

CATCHERS

The history of the New York Yankees is filled with legends. And even though their names have never been on the back of their uniforms, come April, and most Octobers, their names are always at the front of our minds. So who are the best of these legends? We start with the Yankee catchers. We ranked them from 3 to 1. Number 1 is the best Yankees catcher, in our opinion of course.

• #3 Thurman Munson: The hardest part in accurately judging #15 is to avoid “adding” stats or to think of what could have been. He died a terrible tragedy and God knows, if it never happened, his numbers would be truly great. But that being said, what Thurman accomplished while on this earth is just as amazing and will never be forgotten. Thurman's statistics, leadership, and character put him at my #3. But there is so much more. In 1970, Munson won the Rookie of the Year. In 1976, he was voted MVP. He received MVP votes almost every year of his career.

• PLAYING ABILITY: An excellent fielding backstop, Thurman won 3 Gold Gloves. He was also a perennial All-Star. For his career, he batted .292 and averaged 80 RBI a year. He was even better in the postseason, especially the World Series. In three consecutive Fall Classics, from 1976 to 1978, in 16 games, Munson hit .373 AVG, drove in 12 RBI, and scored 11 runs. His Yanks beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in both ’77 and ’78.

• LEADERSHIP: Thurman was the first Yankee Captain since Lou Gehrig.
  

• CHARACTER: A nugget not many know about Thurman. As you know, the late '70's the rivalry between the Yankee and the Kansas City Royals was huge. They hated each other. During one game, George Brett slid hard into third base and a brawl started. Brett got trapped at the bottom of the pile. Munson, who always showed sportsmanship, threw himself on top of Brett, shielding him, and said, “Don't worry, George. I won't let anybody hit you when you're down.” --This story was told be George Brett, by the way.

For most of his career, Munson hit third or fourth in the batting order. If you're batting third, you are the all-important run producing bat in the lineup. Munson was that bat at the all-important position of catcher for the Yankees, and will never be forgotten.

--Moonlight Graham BYB Staff Writer



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