Is it worth it to carry three catchers on varsity or third string should be just a catcher and able to play another position?
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IMO HS catchers should all be able to play other positions.
If they can hit that's even better.
I don't think so. We'll use two catchers regularly and like to have a bullpen catcher available whenever needed. However, that has never translated into having three "catcher only's". Sometimes the bullpen catcher is strictly a role player who gets little field time or another position player who can catch in a pinch. I think if your #3 catcher is primarily a catcher and you see him contributing to the program down the road, he is better off playing JV and getting game reps.
Nothing wrong with calling up a catcher or two from JV for practices where you will be doing lots of catching drills or having multiple P's throwing bullpens. This also helps better prepare the "next man up" for next year or in case #1 or #2 are suddenly out. Next to pitching, this is by far the most important position to have reliable depth at.
I should add... we are not a large program. Perhaps with the right depth and numbers, a #3 makes more sense. As always, each situation has its own unique circumstances.
When I was in high school, I was the bullpen catcher (and third catcher). As a freshman, I was with the varsity any time that the freshmen team did not have a game. I went to a varsity game over freshmen practice. But freshmen game took priority over varsity game. As a sophomore, same thing. If the JV team had a game, I was with the JV. Otherwise, I was with varsity.
Son's HS seems to like to keep "organizational soldiers" around to handle day-to-day backup/bullpen duties at the Varsity level, with the real heir-apparent nominally on Varsity but primarily playing at the JV level. So if the C depth chart in the program is 1-2-3-4-5, and one of 3/4/5 is a junior/senior, 1's the V starter, the oldest guy at the bottom of the depth chart is the V backup/bullpen C, and 2 is on V but usually playing JV while ready to step into the 1's shoes if he's out for more than a game for some reason. Due to this setup, the V backup almost never sees actual game time (I'm not sure the junior backup last year got an AB).
Originally Posted by TPM:
IMO HS catchers should all be able to play other positions.
If they can hit that's even better.
TPM, I have to say that it's better for ANY position player to play other positions. Most position players are athletic enough to do this. Please don't pick on the catchers - sounds like you think catching may be the easiest position on the field.....please let me know what position your son played in HS, College and currently?
At our HS team, we carried 22 varsity players. For sure there were at least three who could catch.
My son's college team currently has 35 players and 5 catchers on the roster.
Passion4Baseball - agree with most replies on this thread. 2 catchers and 1 bullpen catcher is the norm in Texas (HS). The bullpen catcher is also playing JV during non-district play. During District and State Playoff, he (#3) is on the roster.
Originally Posted by ilovebaseball:
Originally Posted by TPM:
IMO HS catchers should all be able to play other positions.
If they can hit that's even better.
TPM, I have to say that it's better for ANY position player to play other positions. Most position players are athletic enough to do this. Please don't pick on the catchers - sounds like you think catching may be the easiest position on the field.....please let me know what position your son played in HS, College and currently?
Maybe you misunderstood what I was trying to say, but JMoff put it in perspective, make sure that you have players that can catch, not just catch. And I do not believe that all players in HS are athletic enough to play any position at any given time.
My son is a pitcher, who may or may not have just finished playing his last year of pro ball. I am not sure why that would matter other than I have found threw college and in the pros more catchers sit than catch (unless they can hit they will not sit at all), so my advice would be to be able to play other positions (not all) because sitting on the bench or your knees as a BP/part time catcher only really isnt a lot of fun unless you are getting good $$ to do so. Besides there seems to often be a lot of parents that come here asking why their catcher has not had any interest from better programs.
Anyway, I am not dissing on catchers, not sure where son would be without them (lol).
The pitcher is only as good as his catcher!
Originally Posted by Passion4baseball:
Is it worth it to carry three catchers on varsity or third string should be just a catcher and able to play another position?
Back when my son played HS the varsity team had two primary catchers and a bullpen "emergency" catcher. The starter played almost every game. The backup was used on occasion and the bullpen catcher almost never used in a game - he was the "emergency" catcher if the first two went down.
The starting catcher aside, the backup catcher's also practiced other positions. With a roster of only 15 or so, everyone needed to be able to play alternate positions if possible.