Summary[]
Ben Lindbergh and Jeff Sullivan banter about a new newsletter about baseball debuts, Shohei Ohtani's latest exploits, the pitiful state of the AL Central, the even more pitiful performance of Orioles starter Chris Tillman, pitchers' perplexing lack of respect for the Braves' Ronald Acuña, Ichiro's debut as a bench coach and future in baseball, and the ongoing battle between the Yankees and Red Sox. Then (29:58) they bring on the three tallest catchers in MLB history—current Tigers catcher Grayson Greiner, former Brewers and Phillies catcher Pete Koegel, and former Red Sox catcher Don Gile—to discuss the perils of playing a smaller person's position despite standing 6'6″, the skeptics they proved wrong, how their size affected their framing, blocking, throwing, and health, the evolution in the treatment and prevention of brain injuries, Koegel's memories of Steve Carlton's incredible 1972 season, and Gile's memories of his teammate Ted Williams.
Topics[]
- Any of you not 6'6”
- Did people doubt you due to height
- Challenges for tall catchers
- Origin stories
- Catching equipment
- Catching interference
- Was height an advantage when blocking the plate?
- Umpire issues
- Preparation through the decades
- Is it more difficult to catch cleanly throughout careers
- The 1972 Phillies
- Don Gile memories of Ted Williams
Banter[]
- Player debut newsletter
- Shohei Ohtani
- The very bad AL central
- Chris Tillman
- Ichiro ultimate utility man
- The Los Angeles Angels of…. Los Angeles
- Stopping Ronald Acuña
- Red Sox and Yankees
- David Price Carpal Tunnel injury
- Sean Doolittle bullpen cart use
Notes[]
- Shortest active catcher is Tomas Telis.
- The AL Central has a combined winning percentage under .400, lowest since 1994 is .437.
- Grayson Greiner was 2nd in framing runs saved, and 3rd in blocking runs saved last year in AA.
- Steve Carlton would only allow Pete Koegel to catch him in warm ups, noone else, but never caught him in a game.
- In 1972, the Phillies only won 59 games, Steve Carlton won 27.