CaCO3Girl posted:RJM posted:CaCO3Girl posted:I was surprised to see the amount of Catchers on the super high end of the PG top prospects list. Do MLB teams like catchers to mature in College first or does a HS catcher have a decent shot of making the first round?
It's not important to put much thought into what position a kid plays (position players). Most of them will change positions at the next level (college or pro). Those who move on can hit and are athletic enough to play any position. The exception are a handful of big time mashers.
Buster Posey was FSU's starting shortstop before moving to catcher. He volunteered for the move. It was a combination of the previous catcher leaving and an all SEC shortstop transferring in.
I'm not knocking anyone....BUT.....I read a report awhile back on CNN that said catchers in MLB are lacking in one key area...CATCHING! If people rarely recruit catchers to BE catchers this could explain a lot.
CaCO3
RJM is correct. College coaches and pro organizations will determine at which positions where the player will play. While the class is full of catchers, so few, in fact very few will catch at a higher level. The amount of work put in to be a catcher is amazing. In college, not only do you have to work with your pitchers you are to work at hitting. And accuracy with the throw and pop times, etc., etc. Keep in mind that Yadi is so successful at stopping runners from stealing, that's essential. It's just the one position that multi tasks more than any other. This is strongly a part of who becomes a catcher (makeup) and who doesn't, and while its so much fun to catch in middle or high school, that's a walk in the park compared to college and college compared to pro ball. Its a very hard job and most can't do it. They take a beating like no other and if you are aware, it has been a very dangerous position as well.
Not sure if you checked lately, but some of the best players in the game today are catchers! While some are exceptional, most have the same qualities. Their leadership and management is A+, they can hit and catch. They also have great relationships with their pitchers. And of course to put your body through hell is a very large part of it. Framing is a skill, it also has to be learned along with the other skills required to catch. But you can not catch at the big league level unless you can hit.
It's important to note that many MLB managers were catchers.