I was struck recently when two separate lists of the “All-Time Baltimore Orioles” included Gus Triandos as the best catcher in Orioles history. If that is truly the case, then we need Matt Wieters worse than I originally thought.
Not that I have anything against Gus Triandos, he was a solid player in the early years after the Orioles moved from St. Louis. However, if a player who played 50 years ago and had a .249 batting average, 142 home runs, and 517 RBI is the best your franchise can offer at a position, you have some issues.
Now I have been a fan of the Orioles for my entire life (42 years come next month) and until now never truly realized just how mediocre the lineup of catchers has been in franchise history.
Oh, I knew that Rick Dempsey or Andy Etchebarren would never be confused with Johnny Bench or Carlton Fisk, but both of those guys were behind the plate for World Series victories, so I don’t know if I even cared.
However, as I look at the list of all-time Orioles selected by the talented baseball historian Cliff Eastham, I am struck at just how many great players the Orioles have had at seemingly every position except for catcher.
Included among the all-time Orioles are Hall of Famers Brooks Robinson, Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer, and Cal Ripken Jr. along with legendary Orioles Boog Powell, Ken Singleton, Dave McNally, and Mike Cuellar.
I mean, this is a team that is so talented that Hall of Famer Frank Robinson couldn’t even make the lineup even though he helped lead the Orioles to four World Series appearances in six years.
Other great Orioles who couldn’t crack the squad include Hall of Fame shortstop Luis Aparicio, great first basemen Jim Gentile and Lee May, Cy Young winner Mike Flanagan, and 20-game winner Mike Boddicker.
But right there, as the first player featured, is good old Gus Triandos.
Considering how bad the Orioles were for most of his tenure with the club, Gus was probably the brightest star among Baltimore players of his day.
He was, after all, named to four All-Star teams and matched a then-Major League record with 30 home runs in 1958.
Now Triandos being on four All-Star teams might in some way be a result of the fact that somebody had to represent the Orioles and he was the best they could find.
However, he was the starting catcher in two of his four appearances and actually drove home two runs in the first of two All-Star games played in 1959. Considering that the other catchers for the American League were Yogi Berra, Sherm Lollar and Elston Howard, I find that kind of impressive.
But I just can’t get over the fact that the Orioles haven’t been able to find a single catcher to overtake Triandos in the last 50 years.
The three primary catchers for the Orioles from the mid-1960s through the early 1980s were really very similar. All were primarily known for their defensive prowess and if they helped offensively, then that was a bonus.
Fortunately, the Orioles teams of those eras could afford to have players with below average offensive skills on the field as long as they pulled their weight defensively.
In 12 years with the Orioles, Andy Etchebarren never hit better than .270 in a season and in fact he had career highs with 11 home runs and 50 RBI during his rookie season of 1966. His batting average as an Oriole was .232 and he hit only 45 home runs and drove home 255 runs in 12 years.
For much of his career, Etchebarren split catching duties with Elrod Hendricks. Hendricks was the primary starter during the 1969-'71 period when the O’s made three straight trips to the World Series.
Hendricks was actually decent offensively during those three seasons as he averaged 11 home runs and 40 RBI, but never hit higher than .250. However, his totals in 11 seasons with the O’s were not great (.222, 56 home runs, 214 RBI).
The Orioles tried to replace the duo of Hendricks and Etchebarren first with Earl Williams and then with Dave Duncan, but neither proved to be the long-term answer.
In 1976 they acquired veteran backstop Rick Dempsey as part of a multi-player trade that also included future Baltimore pitching stars Tippy Martinez and Scott McGregor.
Dempsey was similar in defensive prowess to Etchebarren and Hendricks, but slightly better at the plate.
He helped mold the Baltimore pitching staff of the late 1970s into the best in the game while providing adequate offensive production.
In 11 seasons as the starting catcher for the Orioles, Dempsey hit .238 with 75 home runs and 355 RBI. His best offensive production came in 1985 when he his .254 with 12 home runs and 52 RBI.
Of course, Dempsey’s greatest contribution to the Orioles came in 1983 when he was named the MVP of the World Series as Baltimore defeated Philadelphia in five games.
Following Dempsey, the Orioles acquired All-Star Terry Kennedy in hopes of improving offensive production from the position. Kennedy was an All-Star in his first season with the O’s and hit 18 home runs, but he fizzled the following season and was soon gone.
Mickey Tettleton came after Kennedy and nearly matched the offensive production of Hendricks, Etchebarren and Dempsey in his three seasons with the O’s. He hit 52 home runs and drove home 153 while hitting .245.
However, before the 1991 season he was shipped to Detroit where he had three seasons of 30 or more home runs (he had a fourth with Texas in 1995).
In 1988 the Orioles acquired a young catcher from Detroit as part of a trade for Fred Lynn and by 1991 Chris Hoiles was ready to assume duties behind the plate for the Birds.
For nearly a decade, Hoiles provided pop behind the plate and finally gave the Orioles a catcher capable of rivaling Gus Triandos for a spot on the all-time Orioles.
While helping lead Baltimore to success in the mid-1990s, Hoiles blasted 151 home runs with 449 RBI and a .262 batting average. He hit 29 home runs in 1993 and 25 in 1996.
Unfortunately, injuries robbed Hoiles of his chance to distinguish himself as an all-time Oriole. In eight seasons as the regular catcher, he never played in more than 127 games in a season and four times played in less than 100 games.
Over the last decade, the Orioles have tried a number of veteran catchers, including Charles Johnson, Javy Lopez and Ramon Hernandez. While they achieved a few productive seasons, none proved to be the long-term solution.
Which now brings us to Matt Wieters.
He is the first catcher of promise to make his major league debut with the Orioles since Hoiles nearly 20 years ago. He seems to be the combination of offensive and defensive stalwart that the Orioles have long needed behind the plate.
Given his prowess in the minor leagues, lets hope that he doesn’t suffer the same misfortune as Hoiles and instead is able to string together enough productive seasons to finally replace Gus Triandos as the best catcher in franchise history.
So not only is Wieters needed to serve as the savior of the Baltimore Orioles over the next decade, he also is being counted on to rescue our all-time team.
No pressure!
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