List of Major League Baseball career putouts as a catcher leaders

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Yadier Molina, the leader in all-time putouts by a catcher

In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by PO) is given to a defensive player who records an out by tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tagout), catching a batted or thrown ball and tagging a base to put out a batter or runner (a force out), catching a thrown ball and tagging a base to record an out on an appeal play, catching a third strike (a strikeout), catching a batted ball on the fly (a flyout), or being positioned closest to a batter or runner called out for interference. The catcher is a defensive position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his/her turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to these primary duties, the catcher is also called upon to master many other skills in order to field the position well. The role of the catcher is similar to that of the wicket-keeper in cricket. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the catcher is assigned the number 2.

The great majority of putouts recorded by catchers result from strikeouts, with almost all of the rest resulting from catching pop-ups and retiring runners tagged out or forced out at home plate, including attempts to steal home. On rare occasions, a catcher can record two putouts on a single play, usually by tagging out a runner trying to steal home immediately after the batter has struck out; on August 2, 1985, Carlton Fisk of the Chicago White Sox tagged out two New York Yankees moments apart at home plate when both tried to score on a double. The feat was duplicated by Paul Lo Duca of the New York Mets in Game 1 of the 2006 National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Putout totals are often not regarded as a strong indicator of a catcher's defensive skill because of the high number resulting from strikeouts. As trends in baseball have changed, with an increasing number of strikeouts per game, the proportion of catchers' putouts from strikeouts has risen steadily. In 1901, about 73% of catchers' putouts in the major leagues resulted from strikeouts (the figure is imprecise due to the occasional uncaught third strike either resulting in no putout or a putout being awarded to a different player); that figure rose to 78% in 1930, 84% in 1950 and 92% in 1980. In the 2021 season, 99% of catchers' putouts resulted from strikeouts; remarkably, the Atlanta Braves pitching staff recorded 1,417 strikeouts, but the team's catchers only recorded 1,394 putouts. Accordingly, putout totals for catchers have also risen steadily; through 2021, the top six major league catchers in career putouts, and 11 of the top 16, all made their major league debuts after 1990, with all 16 debuting in 1969 or later. Through 2021, 12 of the top 13 single-season totals were recorded in 2016 or later, and 90 of the top 100 were recorded since 1993.

Yadier Molina holds the record for the most putouts by a catcher with 15,122.[1] Molina surpassed the previous holder, Hall of Famer Iván Rodríguez, on June 14, 2022, in the first game of a doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Pirates.[2][3][4][5] Rodríguez (14,864) remains the only other catcher to record 14,000 career putouts.

Key

Rank Among leaders in career putouts. A blank field indicates a tie.
Player (2024 POs) Recorded putouts in 2024
MLB Career putouts as a catcher in Major League Baseball
* Denotes elected to National Baseball Hall of Fame
Bold Active player[a]

List

Salvador Pérez, the active leader in career putouts as a catcher and 27th all-time.
Ivan Rodríguez, holder of the American League career record.
Gary Carter, the first catcher to record 10,000 putouts.
Carlton Fisk held the American League record for 17 years.
Gabby Hartnett held the National League record for 30 years.
Ray Schalk led the American League in putouts a record nine times.
  • Stats updated as of the end of the 2023 season.
Rank Player (2024 POs) Putouts as a catcher Other leagues, notes
MLB American League National League
1 Yadier Molina 15,122 0 15,122
2 Iván Rodríguez* 14,864 12,377 2,487 Held major league record, 2007-2022
3 Jason Kendall 13,019 3,116 9,903
4 Brad Ausmus 12,839 2,104 10,735
5 A. J. Pierzynski 12,600 10,562 2,038
6 Brian McCann 12,048 4,086 7,962
7 Gary Carter* 11,785 0 11,785 Held major league record, 1988-1989, 1991-2007; held NL record, 1987-2018
8 Russell Martin 11,612 4,815 6,797
9 Carlton Fisk* 11,369 11,369 0 Held American League record, 1990-2007
10 Bob Boone 11,260 5,583 5,677 Held major league record, 1989-1991
11 Tony Peña 11,212 4,408 6,804
12 Kurt Suzuki 10,869 7,755 3,114
13 Mike Piazza* 10,844 0 10,844
14 Benito Santiago 10,816 894 9,922
15 Jason Varitek 10,166 10,166 0
16 Jorge Posada 10,016 10,016 0
17 Bill Freehan 9,941 9,941 0 Held major league record, 1975-1988; held AL record, 1973-1990; held AL single-season record, 1967-1997
18 Jim Sundberg 9,767 9,406 361
19 Lance Parrish 9,647 8,059 1,588
20 John Roseboro 9,291 1,396 7,895 Held major league record, 1969-1975; held NL record, 1966-1972; held single-season record, 1959-1963
21 Johnny Bench* 9,249 0 9,249 Held National League record, 1980-1987
22 Ramón Hernández 9,012 5,740 3,272
23 Javy López 8,990 1,570 7,420
24 Johnny Edwards 8,925 0 8,925 Held National League record, 1972-1980; held the single-season record, 1963-2019
25 Ted Simmons* 8,906 1,330 7,576
26 Yogi Berra* 8,738 8,723 15 Held major league record, 1959-1969; held AL record, 1959-1973
27 Salvador Pérez (0) 8,689 8,689 0
28 Yasmani Grandal (0) 8,547 2,235 6,312 Holds the single-season record of 1,169 (set in 2019)
29 Martín Maldonado (0) 8,505 6,400 2,105
30 J. T. Realmuto (0) 8,503 0 8,503
31 Buster Posey 8,359 0 8,359
32 Mike Scioscia 8,335 0 8,335
33 Tim McCarver 8,206 55 8,151
34 Yan Gomes (0) 8,133 5,203 2,930 Held AL single-season record, 2014-2019
35 Bengie Molina 8,122 4,989 3,133
36 Dan Wilson 8,109 7,921 188 Held AL single-season record, 1997-2014
37 Jerry Grote 8,081 87 7,994
38 Jonathan Lucroy 8,041 2,183 5,858
39 Bill Dickey* 7,965 7,965 0 Held major league record, 1942-1959; held AL record, 1942-1959
40 Mike Lieberthal 7,829 0 7,829
41 Matt Wieters 7,697 5,597 2,100
42 Carlos Ruiz 7,668 282 7,386
43 Sandy Alomar Jr. 7,667 7,335 332
44 Joe Girardi 7,619 2,626 4,993
45 Chris Iannetta 7,613 3,310 4,303
46 Miguel Montero 7,516 192 7,324
47 Jim Hegan 7,506 7,170 336
48 Terry Steinbach 7,505 7,505 0
49 Rick Dempsey 7,367 6,556 811
50 Del Crandall 7,352 304 7,048
51 Gabby Hartnett* 7,292 0 7,292 Held major league record, 1941-1942; held NL record, 1936-1966
52 Wilson Ramos 7,256 1,311 5,945
53 Rick Ferrell* 7,248 7,248 0
54 Charles Johnson 7,218 1,582 5,636
55 Ray Schalk* 7,168 7,161 7 Held major league record, 1925-1941; held AL record 1920-1942
56 Mike Matheny 7,117 1,860 5,257
57 Alan Ashby 7,086 1,991 5,095
58 Sherm Lollar 7,059 7,059 0
59 Tom Haller 7,012 220 6,792
60 Roy Campanella* 6,924 0 6,520 Includes 404 in Negro National League (incomplete); held single-season record, 1953-1959
61 Deacon McGuire 6,856 1,661 4,041 Includes 1,154 in American Association; held major league record, 1901-1925
62 Mike Zunino 6,832 6,832 0
63 Rod Barajas 6,768 3,416 3,352
64 Darrell Porter 6,756 4,497 2,259
65 John Buck 6,733 4,264 2,469
66 Damian Miller 6,696 786 5,910
67 Darrin Fletcher 6,678 2,992 3,686
68 Miguel Olivo 6,675 3,950 2,725
69 Alex Avila 6,658 5,373 1,285
70 Al López* 6,644 144 6,500
71 Terry Kennedy 6,555 1,082 5,473
72 Rick Cerone 6,548 5,634 914
73 Todd Hundley 6,535 0 6,535
74 Christian Vázquez (0) 6,463 6,463 0
75 Elston Howard 6,447 6,447 0 Held AL single-season record, 1964-1967
76 Mickey Cochrane* 6,414 6,414 0
77 Jason Castro 6,323 5,264 1,059
78 Paul Lo Duca 6,311 0 6,311
79 Jeff Mathis 6,294 3,843 2,451
80 Butch Wynegar 6,281 6,281 0
81 Thurman Munson 6,253 6,253 0
82 Brent Mayne 6,186 3,706 2,480
83 Earl Battey 6,176 6,176 0 Held AL single-season record, 1961-1964
84 Don Slaught 6,158 3,911 2,247
85 Tucker Barnhart (0) 6,140 653 5,487
86 Gregg Zaun 6,134 4,465 1,669
87 Dioner Navarro 6,113 4,651 1,462
88 Steve Yeager 6,110 234 5,876
89 James McCann (0) 6,100 4,699 1,401
90 Ernie Whitt 6,091 5,795 296
91 Joe Oliver 6,059 1,329 4,730
92 Nick Hundley 6,045 529 5,516
93 José Molina 6,033 5,989 44
94 Michael Barrett 6,020 34 5,986
95 Travis d'Arnaud (0) 6,004 659 5,345
96 Manny Sanguillén 5,996 341 5,655
97 Brian Schneider 5,987 0 5,987
98 Steve O'Neill 5,967 5,967 0
99 Rollie Hemsley 5,868 4,251 1,617
100 Joe Mauer* 5,831 5,831 0

Other Hall of Famers

Player Putouts as catcher Other leagues, notes
MLB American League National League
Ernie Lombardi* 5,694 0 5,694
Wilbert Robinson* 5,174 497 2,503 Includes 2,174 in American Association
Joe Torre* 4,850 0 4,850
Roger Bresnahan* 4,309 266 4,043
Buck Ewing* 3,301 0 2,929 Includes 372 in Players' League
Connie Mack* 2,701 0 2,252 Includes 449 in Players' League
Craig Biggio* 2,456 0 2,456
Josh Gibson* 2,306 0 0 Includes 2,306 in Negro National League (second) (incomplete)
King Kelly* 2,198 0 1,766 Includes 233 in American Association, 199 in Players' League
Biz Mackey* 2,196 0 0 Includes 847 in Negro National League (second), 635 in Eastern Colored League,
493 in Negro National League (first), 221 in American Negro League (incomplete)
Deacon White* 2,182 0 1,150 Includes 1,032 in National Association
Jim O'Rourke* 918 0 855 Includes 63 in National Association
Jimmie Foxx* 420 411 9
Louis Santop* 145 0 0 Includes 145 in Eastern Colored League (incomplete)

Notes

  1. ^ A player is considered inactive if he has announced his retirement or has not played for a full season.

References

  1. ^ "Yadier Molina Career Stats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  2. ^ "With 14,865th putout, Yadi sets MLB record". Major League Baseball. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
  3. ^ "Iván Rodríguez Career Stats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  4. ^ West, Steve. "Ivan Rodriguez Bio". Society For American Baseball Research. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  5. ^ "Iván Rodríguez Hall of Fame Profile". National Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 1, 2021.

External links

"Career Leaders & Records for Putouts as C". Baseball-Reference.com.