Your All Time Favorite O's Catcher

[Mike B]

Earl Williams.

BIG MONEY. "With a catcher like him I can win a pennant" Even Earl can be wrong.

[sakata_catching]

*paging sakatacatching*

I'm in. Here be the token vote for Lenn Sakata.

And really — no love for John Orsino?

This organization may not have had any truly great catchers in it (yet), but they've had plenty of interesting ones.

[BRob51]

Used to be Javy, but now it's Wieters. Zaun, Bako, and Fasano round out the top 5.

[weams]

1) Hoiles was awesome because he was...the tractor mechanic. Never showed any emotion and he could flat out rake.

2) Tettleton was so strong. Never heard a louder crack of the bat than when he squared up on one. Once saw him hit a homer off Nolan Ryan and it was the loudest hit I ever heard.

And as bad as it is that we traded Tettleton tot he Tigers for Jeff Robinson, remember that we actually fleeced the Tigers in getting Hoiles for a bunch of nothing before that. What comes around, goes around....

Luke Scott strong. And yes. The Tractor was the factor.

[Rake]

Rick Dempsey by far, I never saw someone smash so many foul balls-most unluckly hitter I remember, though it all was made up for in the 1983 WS. Secondly I remember Dave Scaggs and was always amazed whenever he hit anything. His first two (of only three lifetime homeruns) were hit on the last day of two successive seasons off of Rick Wise!

[OFFNY]

marty41 said:

 

Gus Triandos and Clint Courtney. Gus was just a big, slow guy who put everything into it, and Courtney was a real character.

 

o

 

Clint Courtney was born on this day in 1927.

Courtney was one of the "original" Orioles of the franchise, having played for the St. Louis Browns in 1953, and for the Orioles in their first year in Baltimore in 1954.

 

o

[Rene88]

Used to be Javy, but now it's Wieters. Zaun, Bako, and Fasano round out the top 5.

Always thought Sal and Zahn never got enough love!

No Bob Melvin love?

Here's a list:

http://bb_catchers.tripod.com/catchers/bal1.htm

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BohKnowsBmore]

Chris Hoiles.

I was at the game where he hit the game winning GS with a full count in the bottom of the ninth and down by three. Immortal as far as I'm concerned.

[scOtt]

Chris Hoiles. Had the D and the HRs.

Mickey Tettleton Honorable Mention for his batting stance.

Caleb should be on my list too.

[InsideCoroner]

Al Pardo.

Just because the guy probably checks this list every year or so, hoping against hope.

[weams]

Chris Hoiles. Had the D and the HRs.

Mickey Tettleton Honorable Mention for his batting stance.

Caleb should be on my list too.

Hoiles was great until the arthritis took over. He did not even last the three year deal. Catchers are fragile.

[Redskins Rick]

Hoiles was great until the arthritis took over. He did not even last the three year deal. Catchers are fragile.

Which is a reason, I have so much respect for the Dempster. Only 1 of 29 catchers to play in 4 decades of baseball.

Of course, the 1983 helps push him to the top of my fav list.

[Moose Milligan]

Chris Hoiles.

I was at the game where he hit the game winning GS with a full count in the bottom of the ninth and down by three. Immortal as far as I'm concerned.

Hoiles gets my vote. When he was hot, he was absolutely on fire.

I remember that game and going crazy.

Link to the video if no ones posted it: http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/6479266/v20097235/seabal-hoiles-hits-a-walkoff-grand-slam

Forgot that it was Norm Charlton who gave it up. Wrong thread, but I'd add Norm Charlton to the least liked players list.

[bobmc]

Clint Courtney was born on this day in 1927.

Courtney was one of the "original" Orioles of the franchise, having played for the St. Louis Browns in 1953, and for the Orioles in their first year in Baltimore in 1954.

Knowing the following, how can he not be one of the GOAT? I remember him as I was a fan of the NY Giants and always hated the Yanks. I forgot this incident, however.

Nicknamed "Scrap Iron", Courtney was frequently embroiled in fights. Two of his more celebrated brawls involved the Yankees. The first came in 1952, when he spiked Billy Martin and then slugged him when Martin hit Courtney between the eyes. A year later, he touched off a free-for-all by spiking Phil Rizzuto in trying to stretch a single into a double. Then Martin jumped on Courtney in a wild melee that produced a then American League record $850 in fines.[1] The episode cost Courtney $250. Off the field, his temperament was reportedly more genial and affable.[2]

On July 16, 1953, Courtney entered the record books when the Browns tied, by then, a Major League mark with three successive home runs during the first inning of an 8–6 victory over the Yankees. Courtney started the feat, followed by solo shots of Dick Kryhoski and Jim Dyck. In 1954, Courtney remained with the team, which had moved to Baltimore and was in its first season as the Orioles. On Opening Day, he hit the first home run in Memorial Stadium history. He finished with a .270 average in 397 at bats, and struck out a league-low seven times, the lowest since Joe Sewell in 1933."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clint_Courtney

[Moose Milligan]

Tettleton, (with Detroit) hitting the first Eutaw street homer. Lowenstein on the call.

Fruit Loops from the '89 Why Not video. I think I still have this tape committed to memory. Jon Miller doing the narration.

I loved Mickey, too.

EDIT: The highlight of Mickey hitting a homer in that Fruit Loops video might have been the homer that the above poster Rolotomassie was talking about. It was off Nolan Ryan.