My Office - Behind The Plate

I loved catching - I had the whole game in front of me. I could see everything. Placing the fielders was my job. Seeing whether long fly balls were fair or foul. What the pitcher had or lacked, I saw, as well. Did the pitcher need a break in the action because he was tired? If he did I would pay a little visit to the mound. The general on the field is what I was. A direct link to the coach. Switching to catcher was the best thing I did as a player. I had so much fun behind the plate.

My office was behind the plate. Having played all the other positions was great, but I felt the best place to be, was catching. I could cash in on all the activity that was in front of me. I had an opportunity to shape the game. I had power in my office that I did not have anywhere else on the field except for maybe pitching. I loved that responsibility.

Seeing a batter leaning one way and then calling the pitch that I thought would get him out was one strategy I successfully used. Striking out a batter was a joint effort between the pitcher and I. I felt it was my job to study the batter and then relay any useful information I got, back to the pitcher.

My stock as a catcher increased when the pitcher pitched well. I felt I had to find the weakness in the batter. That was part of my job. And then calling the game was the essence of being a catcher.

If there was a background check on all the catchers that ever played, I think there is one thing that would be common. They all studied the game.

Johnny Bench, Roy Campanella, Bill Dickey, Yogi Berra, Thurman Munson, Elston Howard, and Ivan Rodriguez are a few of my catching heroes. Johnny Bench for his incredible arm and amazing power. Roy Campenella for his amazing arm and incredible power. Hey that sounds familiar. I loved all the Yankees. And Ivan - just an incredible talent.

Feel Free to pass this article on to anyone you think would enjoy reading it.

Author Bio
Aron Wallad has been a baseball lover for over 45 years. You will love his honesty and his passion.. You will be touched by the heartwarming stories. The unusual statistics will amaze you and the quotes will make you laugh... Sometimes. Go here right now to join his ezine www.baseballsprideandjoy.com

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