As the 2013 MLB All-Star Game approaches, the voting for All-Star starters is heating up. One of the positions that may cause some controversy in the National League is catcher. So far, the top two vote-getters for the position are Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals and Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants. When their stats for 2013 are analyzed and both players are thoroughly considered, picking Yadier Molina as the starter is a no-brainer.
Buster Posey is coming off an MVP season in 2012. He is having another good year in 2013 with .325 batting average, 12 homeruns and 48 runs batted in. Posey has also been a bright spot in a sub-par season for the Giants (38-42).
Posey’s NL Central counterpart Molina (the Cardinals are 49-31) is also having a great season at the plate with a .346 batting average, six homeruns and 44 RBIs.
When you look at their offensive stats—including Posey’s .399 on-base percentage and Molina’s .388 OBP—it seems Posey is having a slightly better year. However, the discrepancy between the two—and what puts Molina way over the top—is how well they play their position at catcher.
This year Posey has allowed three passed balls to Molina’s one. Where they differ greatly is their caught stealing percentage. Out of the 41 runners who have tried stealing on the young catcher, Posey has thrown out 11. Out of the 16 runners that have attempted steals on Molina, 12 have been thrown out.
Some may argue that Molina has had much less runners try to steal on him. However, when you’ve thrown out 75 percent of the guys that have tried to run on you, managers start to believe issuing a steal sign may cost them a baserunner. Another stat which puts Molina ahead of Posey is the six double plays he’s turned. Posey has yet to turn one.
While Posey is a rising young player and could have a brighter and longer future than Molina (Posey is 26 years-old and Molina is 30 years-old) Molina has by far been the best catcher in the National League this year—and maybe all of baseball.
*All stats were researched using from ESPN.com and MLB.com.
