WHY I THINK BOB BOONE SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK BOB BOONE SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN 

By- Damien 

Bob Boone’s Hall of Fame case is heavily based on the underappreciated job that every catcher has to play (see a previous post, Catchers and Third Basemen). As for Boone in particular, he was the most durable catcher of the modern era. He retired with the career record for games caught, played his last season at 42, and had two of his best offensive seasons at 40 and 41. Bob Boone started his career with the Phillies in 1972, batting .275 in 16 games. Boone took over as the Phils’ regular catcher in 1973, hitting 10 homers and driving in 61 runs en route to a third place finish in the NL Rookie of the Year Award balloting. In 1976, Boone batted .271 and was named to his first all-star team. He did better in 1977, batting .284 with 11 homers, but didn’t get the nod. No matter. He got it in 1978 with nearly identical offensive numbers and his first of seven Gold Glove awards. Boone had another fine season in 1979 but slumped in 1980, batting .229. He made up for his lackluster regular season performance by helping the Phillies to their first ever World Series Championship, batting .412 with four RBI’s and catching all six games against the Royals. In 1981, the strike hit, splitting the season in half. Boone led the Phillies to another postseason but was largely unappreciated because he led the players in negotiations during the strike. He was traded to the Angels after the season and helped the Angels to their second ever division title. Boone homered and drove in four runs in the ALCS, but they lost out to the Brewers. Boone had another all-star season in 1983 but hit solid ground in 1984, batting a career worst .202. At 36, it looked like his career was over, but in 1986 he helped the Angels to the postseason and started a mini-streak by winning four consecutive Gold Gloves. In 1988, Boone hit a robust .295, and had one last big year in 1989 with a .274 mark for the Royals. Boone played part of the 1990 season, but a broken finger led to his retirement. While Boone was a renowned defensive catcher and a convincing hitter, he was best known for his family ties. He was the son of Ray Boone, quite the player himself in the 1950’s. Two of his sons - Bret and Aaron - also made the Big Leagues and both became famous. Anyway, Bob Boone was a legendary defensive catcher, incredibly durable, and a strong hitter for a backstopper. Anyone who knows baseball and the Hall of Fame well enough can understand why Bob Boone is included here, and he really should be in Cooperstown today. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS 

Games career: 2,264 season high: 150 in 1985 

At Bats career: 7,245 season high: 521 in 1973 

Hits career: 1,838 season high: 136 in 1973 

Doubles career: 303 season high: 26 in 1977 

Triples career: 26 season high: 4 in 1977 and 1978 

Home Runs career: 105 season high: 12 in 1978 

Runs career: 679 season high: 55 in 1977 

Runs Batted In career: 826 season high: 66 in 1977 

Stolen Bases career: 38 season high: 5 in 1977 

Walks career: 663 season high: 49 in 1979 and 1989 

Strikeouts career: 608 season high: 54 in 1977 

Batting Average career: .254 season high: .295 in 1988 

On Base Percentage career: .315 season high: .352 in 1988 

Slugging Percentage career: .346 season high: .436 in 1977 

Total Bases career: 2,508 season high: 192 in 1977 

Sacrifice Hits career: 142 season high: 23 in 1982 

Fielding Percentage career: .986 season high: .991 in 1989 led NL C: .991 in 1978 

Double Plays career: 155 season high: 16 in 1973 and 1986 led AL C: 12 in 1983, 15 in 1985, 16 in 1986 

Putouts career: 11,325 season high: 868 in 1973 led NL C: 825 in 1974 led AL C: 650 in 1982, 752 in 1989 

Assists career: 1,185 season high: 89 in 1973 led NL C: 89 in 1973 led AL C: 87 in 1982, 83 in 1983, 71 in 1984, 84 in 1986, 66 in 1988 

Caught Stealing Percentage career: .397 season high: .582 in 1982 led AL C: .582 in 1982, .441 in 1985, .463 in 1987 

Pickoffs career: 79 season high: 9 in 1973 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-finished 16th in the AL MVP Award voting in 1982 

-finished 23rd in the NL MVP Award voting in 1978 

-batted .400 with two RBI’s in four all-star games 

-went 2-for-3 with an RBI in his final MLB game 

-batted .311 in 36 career postseason games 

-caught 117 career shutouts 

-six times led the AL in games caught and three times led his league in caught stealing 

-caught Mike Witt’s perfect game on September 30, 1984 

-hit four home runs off of Hall of Famer Jack Morris, two off of Don Sutton, and one each off of Phil Niekro and Juan Marichal 

-went 371-444 as a manager and managed son Aaron on the Reds from 2001 to 2003 

-among MLB catchers, ranks third in career games caught, seventh in double plays, tenth in putouts, 26th in assists, and 27th in caught stealing 

-also played eight games at first base, seven at third base, one in leftfield, one as a DH, 50 as a pinch hitter, and one as a pinch runner 

-coached the Reds in 1994