Samuel Basallo is doing things never before seen in the history of Major League Baseball. Yes, you read that correctly.
In the midst of what has been another lost season for the Orioles before it ever began, this 21-year-old is catching more than almost anyone has since 1871 at this age, and he is hitting while catching, literally, more powerfully than anyone in the history of the game. Not in the history of the Orioles. Not in the last 20 years … In the history of the game.
His thanks for this has been the Orioles constantly resting and coddling Adley Rutschman, Mike Elias’s first ever draft pick who is apparently beyond reproach and isn’t better than Basallo at the plate now, let alone when the 28-year-old was just 21. Basallo’s thanks for this was for is overmatched and bumbling rookie skipper, himself a former catcher, to come out and try to publicly shame him for not being tough enough at the very same time this franchise was running interference for another Adley boo-boo.
Anyone who knows baseball understood intrinsically what an anomaly it was for Basallo to even be a back-up catcher at this age, but for him to almost be equal with Rutschman in innings caught this season – his first full season in MLB – and for him to be producing the power numbers he is, it’s relatively unprecedented. At a time when Gunnar Henderson has been lost and Jackson Holliday hasn’t even established as a major leaguer at just second base, this young man is off to a more impactful start than arguably any catcher in MLB history at this age -Yogi Berra, Al Lopez, Johnny Bench, Gary Carter, you name him.
The Numbers Are Staggering
For starters, per the wonderful Stathead feature on baseballreference.com you can search spans to start a career and filter by position when making a plate appearance and age. And there are only 25 players in MLB history who have caught even 60 games before turning 22. And when you sort for what those individuals did at the plate in games they caught – not games when they played first base or when they were the designated hitter (just caught) – no one has ever done what Basallo has.
Basallo (who started just 209 games at catcher in his minor-league career) caught his 61st career game Friday in Cincinnati (back-to-back days without donning the gear for Adley again!). Basallo turns 22 on Aug. 13. Basallo entered play Friday with 95 totals bases in those 60 games he caught, with a .223/.284/.442 slash, with 22 extra base hits.
He also homered Friday, while catching, against the Reds, driving in two more runs in the process (and another four total bases). But let’s leave that blast aside for a minute and look at his first 60 games when catching.
Here’s where ranked in total bses in the history of the game for catchers under 22 in their first 60 games (while catching):
Butch Wynegar 94 Gary Carter 84 Al Lopez 82 Bill Freehan 79
Jason Kendall 76 Ivan Rodriguez 74 Johnny Bench 72 Ted Simmons 68
Basallo also has 12 home runs and 36 RBIs in those 60 games he has caught. There were 45 home runs hit when a catcher was under 22 – within the first 60 games caught of his career – in the history of the game before Basallo made his debut. No one had more than seven individually. Big Sam almost doubled that.
Consider:
Rk Player PA HR RBI BA OBP SLG OPS TB
1 Bill Freehan 236 7 25 .232 .328 .389 .717 79
2 Butch Wynegar 252 6 26 .299 .404 .445 .849 94
3 Darrell Porter 220 5 20 .184 .283 . 295. .578 56
4 Gary Carter 253 4 25 .300 .377 .387 .764 84
5 Del Crandall 234 4 34 260. .289 .368 .657 82
6 Frankie Hayes 183 4 23 .228 .275 .351 .626 60
7 Johnny Bench 230 3 27 .221 .256 .347 .603 74
8 Jerry Grote 213 3 17 .165 .230 .268 .498 52
9 Joe Garagiola 208 3 17 .219 .295 .294 .589 55
10 Ivan Rodriguez 213 2 19 .273 .278 .364 .642 76
11 Orlando Mercado188 2 20 .202 .253 .324 .576 56
12 Ted Simmons 248 2 20 .233 .315 .311 .625 68
13 Jason Kendall 225 1 25 .297 .350 .376 .726 76
14 Al Lopez 242 1 19 .299 .355 .371 .726 82
You think naive manager Craig Albernaz had a clue about how unprecedented this is, how rare a talent he was entrusted with, when he starting taking aim on Basallo and nitpicks his decisions behind the plate challenging pitches or gets a little too specific critiquing how the kid has handled incredibly rare situations that have popped up a bunch (because, again, Adley never does his job and has caught four days in a row just twice all season).
Wanna rank this group by OPS in their first 60 games catching before age 22?
Why not, right?
Wynegar .849 Carter .764 Basallo .726 Lopez .726 Kendall .726
Only Wynegar had a higher SLG in his first 60 games catching at this age.
Protect This Asset
Maybe they can keep this in mind in The Warehouse when they go out of their way to gaslight you about their precious draft picks, who largely have been in decline or regress. Hopefully, they have a clue how to develop this young man and provide him ample rest and recovery – since, you know, he is the only “core” position player signed long term in the entire organization – in their zest to defer to Rutschman, who needs to be dealt ASAP, on any and everything
In case you were wondering, Adley, going on 25 when he made his debut, had eight homers and 24 RBI in his first 60 games catching at the MLB level (he did have a sterling .829 OPS). Basallo has more homers and RBIs in his first 60 games caught from the start of his career than anyone in franchise history at any age.
Seems like the kind of thing the people who run a baseball team and manage a baseball team and do PR for a baseball team and market a baseball team might want to know. Especially before they expose themselves with petty criticism and ridiculous double standards.
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