Cuicchi: History shows Yankee backstops are key to dynasty teams
From SABR member Richard Cuicchi at The Tenth Inning Blog on November 17, 2013:
Several times in New York Yankees history there have been periods of “Dynasty” teams, more than any other franchise. Most of these Yankees’ teams were carried by the big bats of “Bronx Bombers” like Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, Maris, Jackson, and Jeter, and pitching staffs that included aces such as Hoyt, Pennock, Gomez, Lopat, Ford, Guidry, Rivera, and Pettit.
If you study carefully the makeup of these teams throughout the years, there has been another consistent component among them. They each featured outstanding catchers, guys who helped carry the Yankees to multiple World Series championships, while also achieving individual honors such as multiple All-Star selections that further illustrated their dominance.
In the 113 years of the Yankees franchise, 60 of their seasons were manned by only six players who served as the primary catcher of the team. These six catchers were involved in 35 of the 40 World Series appearances the Yankees achieved, and they also contributed for 24 of the 27 World Championship teams in the franchise’s history. To help put those startling numbers into perspective, during the Yankees’ longest dry spell without a post-season appearance (1982-1994), they had seven different regular catchers in just those thirteen seasons.
Read the full article here: http://thetenthinning.com/blog.php?s=history-shows-yankee-backstops-are-key-to-dynasty-teams
Originally published: November 21, 2013. Last Updated: November 21, 2013.