Noodle Arm Catchers

[OT2000]

I've been looking to play the speed game since I wasn't blessed with such talents as Reyes, Crawford & Ramirez. Instead I've got a number of guys who swipe between 20-30. But I can use a boost with the help of Willits, Harris & Lofton..

What are some of the easiest catchers to run on in the AL & NL?

I've already got a few pinned, but can you name any others I should know about? It seems like there could also be some rookie C's out there as well as some slow-delivery pitchers to try and time right.


Who TO run on:

V. Martinez (CLE)
J. Posada (NYY)
J. Bard (SD)



Who NOT to run on:

Y. Molina (STL)
D. Ross (CIN)
R. Pauline (PIT)


any others to add to the list?

TIA

[Knights]

J. Bard (TOR)

He would play for San Diego... never worn a Jays uniform in his playing career

[Payne Dailey]

Rotoworld has a weekly rundown on which catcher to run on and which ones not to.

this weeks column:

Caught Stealing %:
Toughest to steal against (SB/SBA, CS%)
1. Paul Lo Duca, NYM 6-for-16 SB (62.5%) – 4 vs CHC, 3 vs NYY
2. Yadier Molina, STL 5-for-11 SB (54.5%) – 3 @ LA, 3 @ DET
3. David Ross, CIN 6-for-13 SB (53.8%) – 3 @ SD, 3 @ CLE
4. Ronny Paulino, PIT 11-for-23 SB (52.5%) – 4 vs FLA, 3 vs ARI
5. Gerald Laird, TEX 14-for-24 SB (41.7%) – 1 vs LAA, 3 @ TB, 3 @ HOU

Facing these elite catchers is bad news for the following players in the stolen base category: Juan Pierre (14-for-18 SB), Grady Sizemore (12-for-12 SB), Russell Martin (5-for-5 SB), Hanley Ramirez (10-for-12 SB), Eric Byrnes (8-for-10 SB), Reggie Willits (6-for-6 SB), Gary Matthews (7-for-9 SB), B.J. Upton (6-for-8 SB), Carl Crawford (10-for-13 SB)

Easiest to steal against (SB/SBA, CS%)
1. Jason Varitek, BOS 8-for-9 SB (11.1%) – 4 vs DET, 3 vs ATL
2. Jorge Posada, NYY 26-for-30 SB (13.3%) – 3 @ CHW, 3 @ NYM
3. Ivan Rodriguez, DET 15-for-18 SB (16.7 %) – 4 @ BOS, 3 vs STL
4. A.J. Pierzynski, CHW 12-for-15 SB (20.0%) – 3 vs NYY, 3 @ CHC
5. Brian McCann, ATL 15-for-19 SB (21.1%) – 4 @ WAS, 3 @ BOS

Facing these catchers is good news Jose Reyes (20-for-25 SB), Carlos Beltran (5-for-7 SB), Darin Erstad (5-for-6 SB), Gary Sheffield (5-for-8 SB), Julio Lugo (11-for-11 SB), Coco Crisp (7-for-8 SB), Felipe Lopez (5-for-8 SB)

[OT2000]

J. Bard (TOR)

He would play for San Diego... never worn a Jays uniform in his playing career

Good lookin' out, thanks.

[DevilDriver]

easy to run on:

Barrett (Chc)
Pierzynski (Chw)
Ausmus (Hou)
McCann (Atl)
Varitek (Bos)
Phillips (Tor)
Ruiz (Phi)

[OT2000]

J. Bard (TOR)

He would play for San Diego... never worn a Jays uniform in his playing career

Good lookin' out, thanks.

[Niekro Nik]

Reyes is going to have a SB feast this weekend.

[The Jury]

How much of it is on the catcher though? A battery consists of the pitcher and the catcher, so stealing a base is dependent on both as well.

[offpudding]

Well, assuming the catcher catches all the pitchers in the rotation, you can average the numbers out. Even if the rate is somewhat pitcher dependent, if a catcher is averaging 20% CS overall, that's still pretty bad and is probably more catcher than pitcher.

[deerayfan072]

Navarro (TB) sucks at throwing out runners