He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 24th round of the 1990 MLB Draft as an infielder. He made his major league debut on September 4, 1995 as a catcher. He would win five Silver Slugger Awards, an award given out each year to the best offensive player in each position. Former pitcher David Cone called him stubborn, but strong and determined. His former manager, Joe Torre claimed he was clutch, that when he came up with the bases loaded or men on base, he was like ice. Another former pitcher David Wells described Posada as he knew him, “Jorge was exceptional behind the plate. He gave you so much in terms of his target, working the umpires, and with the level of communication that he had. To me, the pitcher has to be comfortable and in-sync with the catcher. He fought with me, worked with me, and knew the counts. If I didn’t see something that he did, I would shake off his sign, and he would just put down the same sign again. Whenever that happened, I realized that he knew something I didn’t. It speaks to the trust I had in him. He always wanted the pitcher to feel as comfortable as he could. That’s why in my mind, he was the greatest catcher.” David Wells, Yankee teammate 1997-98, 2002-03; with Posada as catcher, tossed a perfect game May 17,1998 vs. Minnesota.
On January 7, 2012, WFAN radio in New York was the first to report that Jorge Posada plans to retire after 17th years as a New York Yankee. On January 24, 2012, Jorge Posada announced his
retirement to the world. An emotional Posada said “I could never wear another uniform”. He also quoted Joe Dimaggio’s famous words ” I want to thank the good Lord for making me a
Yankee”.
It is a sad day as a Yankee fan, but not one that comes as much of a surprise. The switch-
hitter’s last season with the Yankees was a bumpy ride. Posada said recently that he was “not
comfortable” with the way his final season went. There were rumors early in the offseason that
there were a few teams interested in his services. But, ultimately, it seems as if Posada
would rather retire as a Yankee. With Posada’s baseball career behind him, the hall of fame
question has begun to arise. Is Jorge Posada a hall of famer?
My answer: Absolutely. First ballot, doubtful, but a hall of famer nonetheless. For starters, Posada’s has played in 1829 games, with 1664 hits, 275 HR, 1065 RBI’s, and finished with
an average of .273. There are currently 13 catchers in the hall of fame. If you look at the statistics of the 16 catchers, Posada’s numbers fit right in: http://www.baseball-almanac.com/hof/hofstca.shtml. He is one of only five major league catchers with 1,500 hits, 350 doubles, 275 home runs, and 1,000 RBI’s in a career. In addition to that, he is the only major league catcher to hit .330, with 40 doubles, 20 home runs, and 90 RBI’s in a single season. Oh, and he is just a five time all star, with five championship rings under his belt.
For me there is no argument as to if he will be inducted to the hall of fame, it is just a matter of when. As a Yankee fan, I am just thankful for the memories and countless walk off runs he provided.
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