people talk about pudge throwing out a higher % of runners.....thats true....he did......but the slide step had not been put into practice during johnny bench's era.....most of the successful bases stolen "against" bench were actually stolen off of the pitchers.....its a lot easier to throw runners out now than it was then.....also, theres more to being a great catcher than how many guys you throw out.....johhny went A WHOLE YEAR without a passed ball...both were great but ill take bench
I'd like to see a comprehensive video of Bench throwing runners out at second (and first and thrird too, of course). Ideally it would have info on the the teams, dates of the games and the situation at the time of the throw. Does such a video exist?
The "Big Red Machine" proved that you can't dominate a league, no matter how good an offense or defense you have (and the Reds had the best starting lineup in history), without good pitching. It's too bad. I hated the Steve Garvey/Ron Cey Dodgers.
Bench was amazing. He was like a comic book super hero. He made his pitchers better through the shear force of his personality. He threw base runners out with dart like throws. He would throw behind base runners for putouts. He was the first to even attempt to catch with one hand regularly and to this day no one does it effectively like he did with those huge paws. He blocked the plated like a 80 ton rig. He hit for power like Mickey Mantle. He was the greatest catcher to ever play the position.
Johnny Bench sucks .. he was always the biggest a-hole when he came to the Hall of Fame each summer .. nobody liked him ... always made an ass of himself .. showed up drunk to an autograph session and made a fool of himself ..
@nakedvolleyball ha, ha . .judgemental ?? Ha, h a.. your comment is funny .. "ever try to understand anything?" .. ha, ha .. uh, yeah .. i understood that he was a complete a-hiole when he came to the Hall Of Fame .. and all the employees thought so to .... hmm .. maybe i should understand a guy showing up drunk to an autograph session and acting liek a jerk in front of a bunch of kids ....
an atrocious 267 batting average, 342 on base percentage, only 2000 hits for an entire career, well below 500 homeruns, and 68 career stolen bases and got caught half the time. Yeah, hes a great player alright!
Have watched them all for 50+ years. Bench was the best; he revolutionized the catcher's position. No catcher picked runners off 1st base before Bench. Nobody ran on Bench either; even Brock in his prime behaved. His hitting suffered after the surgery in 1972; never had the same power after that. But he called a great game, handled his position better than anyone I've seen, and anchored arguably the greatest starting 8 in baseball history.
That ain't apples to apples...also pitching was a hell of a lot better in the early '70s. And again those things called Gold Gloves show that Bench was a complete player. Anyone can argue about who is the best catcher...Pudge? Defensive wizard...Piazza? Offensive dynamo...Bench? Best of both worlds...One more thing....Bench has other hardware...a couple of rings to also add to his resume. End of discussion
@jkoff76 No argument from this Reds fan. Maybe the greatest starting 8 ever. In 1976 the Reds led the league in every single team offensive category; hits, doubles, triples, home runs, runs, rbi, stolen bases, slugging pct., etc. And in defense. The 1961 Yankees are the only team I've seen that could compare to the 1976 Reds. And then we had to go and trade Perez.....
Top Gay baseball players of all time include two great catchers,Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza....But baseballs best gay players ever are Johnny Damon,Lenny Dysktra,Dick Pole,Brady Anderson,Glenn Burke,Alan Wiggins,John "The Hammer" Milner,Rico Petrocelli,Roberto Alomar,Robin Ventura,Brant Alyea,Robin Ventura,Larry Cox,Gary Peters,Denny Riddleberger,Paul Lindblad andBud Selig.
greatest catcher ever, pudge is a steroid joke who should be banned with the rest of the steroid clowns. Now baseball is like wrestling. Ban Bud Selig while we are at it, How can there be more teams in the national league than the american, it is unfair and a joke.
Last time I checked, steroids really don't help your defense. In fact, it pretty much destorys it (ask Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Raffy Palmeiro, etc.)
Bench is neither the greatest defensive catcher of all-time, nor the greatest offensive catcher of all-time. So, it absolutely puzzles me that he can be considered the greatest catcher ever.
Between 1968 and 1977, bench was the greatest catcher. Check out how many bases were stolen on him in the playoffs and world series. Also, the only catcher to lead the league in home runs and rbis. Defensively, he changed catching. Offensively, the greatest power hitting catcher. Look up the numbers, they don't lie. Easily the greatest catcher ever. Pudge ain't close. Steroid inflated numbers.
Piazza is without question the greatest hitting catcher of all-time. He has substantial leads in OBP, SLG, OPS, OPS+, home runs, total bases, and EqA.
Ivan Rodriguez leads Bench in CS%, range factor, FRAA, FRAR, EqR, Rtot, and even though I believe them to be terribly misleading things, he also leads him FP and Gold Gloves.
It's really easy to lead your league in home runs when it's a much worse hitting league. Look at who Piazza had to compete with on the leaderboards.
First of all, Piazza was a joke at defense and not close in power. Problem with Piazza's stats is they are steroid enhances like pudge. I have no use for the 90's ballplayer, everything from that time through now is tainted goods. With that being said, when Bench retired he was the all time hr king among catchers, won more gg's and is the standard for modern catchers. On one stole off him in the playoffs until 1979. 2 time MVP, 2 time hr champ, 3 time rbi leader, the best.
Okay, so let's ignore every single thing that Derek Jeter, Mike Piazza, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Mariano Rivera, Chipper Jones, Craig Biggio, and countless other greats from that era. Because, despite the fact that most of them are not linked to steroids in any way, they came from that era so they must've been 'roided up. Your logic is flawless.
And you are hilariously wrong if you think RsBI measure how good a player is.
That is the sad thing about the roids era, until the players who did it stand up, everyone is fair game. Who would of thought Andy Pettite did roids. Piazza and biggio have had rumors, guilt by association. The astros were loaded with roids. Also, baseball has taken on the WWe mentality, with the home run barrage, inter league play, gimmick stadiums, to many teams. Bench was the best catcher I ever saw, my opinion. Now baseball is a freak show circus, bought and sold.
Andy Pettitte used HGH. HGH and steroids are completely different. Biggio, I highly doubt used steroids. Bagwell I can see. The only person who claims Piazza used steroids was some guy who never played on the same team, or even the same league as Piazza. Griffey, Maddux, Glavine, Jeter, Ripken, Larkin, Rivera, Billy Wagner, Trevor Hoffman, and countless other players from that era have no plausible evidence against them for steroids.
Bench led the league in home runs and rbi's in 70 and 72. Piazza never led the league in those stats. If bench played in the inflated inter league era, his numbers would be even better. He is the only catcher to lead the league in those stats and is a 10 time gg winner-piazza 0. Cochrane and dickey are comparable, but they did not play against blacks. Bench is the greatest catcher 68-78, no question, YOU ARE WRONG. W.S. M.V,P. 1976.
And I really do love how you ignore every single stat that I brought up. That's great debating right there.
Bench had Rose, Morgan, Perez, and a slew of other players that got on base at a good rate. It's really easy to have a lot of RsBI when you have great teammates. Piazza had no such luxury.
And I would love to know how, despite the fact that Piazza has major leads in home runs and slugging percentage, you came away thinking that Bench was the more powerful hitter.
Piazza was a nice offensive player, but never an M.V.P. also his numbers are inflated in the steroids era. I don't know if he did any but that is the stigma of the last twenty years. Also, interleague play alters stats. It is hard to compare eras. Bench had bigger individual seasons, 70, 72, 74, and was much better defensively. Maybe yogi berra in his prime could compare, no one else, sorry, just the truth.
Once again, it's very hard for him to be MVP with players like Sosa, Bonds, Caminiti, and various other players of that sort.
Piazza twice led the league in OPS+, which means that, given the disadvantage of both playing at Dodger Stadium and the league averages and quality, he was the best hitter in the league, meaning that he should have two MVPs. Piazza's 1995 and 1997 seasons are WAY better than Bench's 1970 and 1972 seasons.
Mickey Cochrane and Bill Dickey were better than Bench.
Piazza could never win a gold glove, so the better catcher is Johnny Bench, as far as hitting, Bench hit his Home Runs before the steroid era, which adds to his numbers being all that more impressive. Piazza will be a first ballot hall of famer but I highly doubt anyone would say Piazza was a better catcher than Johnny Bench.
I never argued Bench's catching ability. I argued that Piazza was the better hitting catcher. The stats clearly prove that.
Gold Gloves are meaningless pieces of hardware given out to the popular players. I don't need to look at Gold Gloves to know that Pudge Rodriguez was the greatest defensive catcher of all-time. Yes, he was better than Bench, in fact he was a lot better.
Mickey Cochrane and Bill Dickey were both better overall catchers than Bench.
Top ten catchers of all time... #1 Johnny Bench #2 Yogi Berra #3 Elrod Hendricks #4 Jerry McNertney #5 Don Pavletich #6 Tom Satriano #7 Jim Price #8 Bill Plummer #9 Mike Piazza #10 Earl Williams
Bench innovated the catcher's positioning and throwing. That's why he is considered the best. Grote had the quickest release and accuracy in throwing to the bases (better than Bench's), but was a poor hitter. And you can't discount Bench's leadership on the Reds; where ever he went the Reds won. He's # 1.
To answer your question, I have to refer to Reds' manager, Sparky Anderson, who in 1974, wanted to move Bench to third base to preserve his career. Who did Anderson say was the only catcher capable of replacing Bench behind the plate? NY Mets receiver, Jerry Grote.
Well bike, you're in a very small group who would rate Bench anywhere other than the very best. His reputation and accomplishments stand up on their own and make your comment laughable.
I don't argue that Bench was the best all-around catcher of this, or any other, era. But some knowledgeable folks rate Jerry Grote's defensive skills just as high. They include Tom Seaver and Tim McCarver.
Obviously, what I'm saying is somewhat controversial, but it's not something I'm simply making up. It's true Grote never beat out Bench for the Gold Glove award (including one year, 1972, when Grote had a record low two passed balls) Also, for full disclosure, I am a long-time Mets fan.
Spring Training 1968, Catching Jim Malone. Bench tells Malone "your fast ball is not popping." Bench goes back behind the plate, calls for a fastball. After the release, he catches the fastball. Bare handed. - I love it.
I'm familiar with that story. But it wasn't Jim Maloney who was pitching. (Maloney threw at 97mph) It was Gerry Arrigo, and after Bench caught it barehanded, he threw it back to Arrigo harder than Arrigo had thrown it to him.
And for the record, little girl, all you've done is insulted one of best players to ever play the game and without question the best hitting catcher of all-time. Yet, you never once say who you think is the greatest hitting catcher of all-time and why. I would highly suggest you post your opinion so I can properly destroy you.
And in case you can't read, or you're too stubborn to actually read my entire post, I never said that Piazza hit the most important home runs in the history of the game. I said he was clutch, countless people say the same. He hit one of the most important home runs in New York baseball history, and made it okay to be happy in a city that suffered the worst distaster imaginable, even if only for a moment. Who else, except for Derek Jeter, has done that? If that's not clutch, I don't know what is.
Piazza hit some of the most important and most memorable home runs in baseball. -
that was a quote from you 1 day ago
as tragic as 9/11 was there are more tragic events and here are some Hrs that were more important in New York Baseball History
Babe Ruth's called shot against the cubs in the world series
the shot heard round the world Aaron Boone's walk off Hr in 2003 Bucky Dent's Hr just to name a few so obviously you have no idea about anything baseball so shout the fuck up
Excuse me? Okay, number one, Ruth never called his shot. Not only that, it was at Wrigley in Chicago. Bucky Dent's homer was in Boston. We're talking about NEW YORK baseball. Now, in case you don't know what that means, it means it had to have happened in NEW YORK. Piazza lifted an entire city with one swing of the bat. People started smiling and cheering again because of one swing. I obviously don't know anything about baseball? Get off your period, and then try to act like you know anything.
Did you even bother reading my last post? What did I say in the sixth sentence? I'm talking about baseball IN New York. Ruth called his shot? What are you, six years old? No one ever bothered to tell you that it was myth? Do you believe in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy too? I mean, honest to God, if you truly believe that Ruth is pointing to center field in those pictures and in the video, you are obviously easily influenced and gulliable. Although, it's not really shocking coming from you.
AHHHHH~ just found this! AWESOME~ had the BIGGEST crush on this man..back in the day~ oy vey..I'm showin' my age now..lol..oh well..GREAT TRIBUTE TO THE GREAT JOHNNY BENCH! FIVE STARS! *****
In the 70s I played Catcher in Khoury League softball[girls still couldn't play baseball!], and JB was my hero...one day, my mother, who was a secretary for a Cincinnati insurance company fielded [no pun intended] a call from him, wanting to talk to his insurance agent. Just before she transferred his call, she mentioned how I too was a catcher and how much I admired him. He told her to pass on to pass on to me his good wishes in doing so...that was the year we won our division!
Johhny Bench is a good family friend. He went to Highschool with my Grandma. And My Great Grandpa Was a teacher of his. He thanked My great grandpa in a spech after being accepted to MLB.
It used to be a special thing to have the signature of a famous person. This whole business of buying and selling autographs takes away the whole purpose of even having them. "Collectors" started the whole thing by selling signatures at card shows years ago. Here's another instance where greed has ruined yet another aspect of professional sports. I feel sorry for the kids.
what kids? i have a ball from a reds game 2 years back and when you get it your like "i will never give this up" and when you get older you look into the value of it to sell it. it is just plain wrong. i wish there was a rule of every baseball card was one price. i love to learn about the honus wagner t206 card. i am reading a book called "the card". it is about the wayne gretzky card and other stories of people who own honus wagner t206 cards. its pretty good. check it out some time.
I saw the Wagner card at a baseball card show back in 1975. The guy was asking $1000.00 which was the going rate for that card at the time. Call it a missed opportunity, but I was 14 years old at the time and made about 5 dollars per week delivering papers!
I agree MM! I was 13 at Wrigley in`73 when my older and taller cousin and I were trying to get autographs from him he shouted at me to "Get off of the Goddamn kid". I was crushed. He had been my hero my whole childhood.
Piazza was a horrible catcher. He could just hit the hell out of the ball. Pudge may be better, but he's basically the prototypical all-around catcher, just like Bench was. Fisk was terrible. The guy played for 24 seasons and didn't even get 2,500 hits and he won one Gold Glove. Bench hit 389 home runs and won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves at catcher. So perhaps you should get your facts correct.
Bench is without question the greatest catcher of All time. Bench also led the National League in HRs and RBIs TWICE! Piazza had done neither even once! Bench was nearly a unanimous first ballot HOF inductee, and proved without doobt that there never will be a unanimous vote ballot. Bench is also an All Century player.
Why does that prove without a doubt that there will never be a unanimous HOFer? If anyone, Greg Maddux will be the first. Piazza is without question the greatest hitting catcher of all-time. It's pretty hard to lead the league in RBIs and home runs during the steroid era with guys like Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, and Mark McGwire in the same league.
I saw JB play, and I saw Piazza play. I'm born and raised in New Jersey, and am a die hard Mets fan. But the truth is what it is. Bench changed the way teams played the Reds because he threw out eveybody. I didn't really know why Piazza even bothered throwing to second. Bench was a clutch hitter. Look what he did in the 76 Series. He'd kill you when it mattered. Piazza hit for average, and he was good at it, but did the Mets win with him? Bench has 2 rings.
Ok, but we're not discussing defense. If you go back and closely look at what I wrote, something you obviously didn't do the first time, you would find that I said Piazza is the greatest HITTING catcher of all-time, something that is impervious to arguement. Bench was clutch? For a few at-bats maybe. Piazza was widely regarded as the most clutch hitter of his time, outside of Derek Jeter. Yes, the Mets won with him. Considering what they were before Piazza came. 430-475 before Piazza. '00 WS.
Numerous baseball experts have called Piazza clutch. Piazza hit some of the most important and most memorable home runs in baseball. Really? So Piazza is not the greatest hitting catcher of all-time? Who is then? Bench? Don't make me laugh. If you say anyone other than Yogi Berra has a chance at topping Piazza, you obviously don't know a whole lot about baseball.
and give me moments when he hit the most important home runs in baseball because last time I checked he didn't hit any that popped up and said thats as good as Hank Aarons 715, or Carters home run to win the series in 93
So Hank Aaron break Ruth's record is your definition of clutch? Your's differs from mine apparently. You want "actual fucking names"? Chill out. Look his name up on Google. You will see countless topics, blogs, and experts talking about Piazza's clutch hitting. You want a moment? I'll give you the greatest moment of his career and quite possibly the greatest moment in the history of New York baseball. On September 21, 2001, ten days after 9/11, Piazza hit a game-tying home run. Look it up.
My uncle, Chris Pelekoudas, was the umpire who called Aaron out after hitting the homerun when he stepped too far out of the batters box. He was behind the plate when he tied Ruth`s record and at 3rd when he broke it.
Pleez with that crap! A game-tying home run? It didn't even win the game? And just another regular season game, too? Ssssppppt ! Big Archie Bunker raspberries to that.
`72 playoffs against the Pirates. Clemente`s last game. Bottom of the 9th, Reds down 3-2, Bench hits that homer over Clemente in right field. That was clutch!
Bench didn't play with all the league expansion Piazza did. Every 4th pitcher Piazza faced wouldn't have been in the Majors when Bench played. Bench has those rings because he led his league in HR and Rib eye steaks twice. And he was a league leader when he didn't. All Piazza has is a bat thrown at him from Clemens. What do you think Pete Rose would have done about that? Clemens would be pulling that bat out his ass that's what.
You are seriously going to belittle Piazza's career? You have proved once and for all that you are nothing but a homer with a hard on for Johnny Bench. More teams were added during Bench's career than Piazza's. I'm not entirely sure how you can even think to compare pitchers of the '60s and the '70s to those of today and the last decade. Bench didn't play against powerhouses like McGwire, Bonds, Sosa, Sheffield, and other HR and RBI leaders that were all juiced up. We're not discussing Rose.
No, but you're acting like Bench is the almighty and that one of the classiest and best players to ever play the game pales in comparison to Bench because he didn't lead his league in RBIs or home runs. Then you completely denounce the steroids thing like it doesn't mean anything. It's really very hard to "accomplish" what Bench did when you have three of the most prolific juiced-up sluggers in your league.
people talk about pudge throwing out a higher % of runners.....thats true....he did......but the slide step had not been put into practice during johnny bench's era.....most of the successful bases stolen "against" bench were actually stolen off of the pitchers.....its a lot easier to throw runners out now than it was then.....also, theres more to being a great catcher than how many guys you throw out.....johhny went A WHOLE YEAR without a passed ball...both were great but ill take bench
jdstox1 4 months ago
heeeeeeeeerrs Johnny Gives me chills!!! 47yo fan from indianapolis
ozzyruleshere 4 months ago
He revolutionize the catcher position. All todays catchers are molded from style.
544delta 6 months ago
Johnny..........the best.
maxcesse5 8 months ago
yeah hes from my town
countryboy4lfe 8 months ago
Bench was the best catcher, a childhood hero of mine. He could really throw and hit HRs too...
The big red machine, pretty good lineup there, Rose, Griffey, Morgan, Bench, Perez, Foster...not bad...
They had Lee May too before Morgan came, good deal getting Morgan geronimo and Billingham for May
Cheessa 10 months ago
Bench, the greatest catcher, ever, period, end of discussion!
harp1925 10 months ago 2
I'd like to see a comprehensive video of Bench throwing runners out at second (and first and thrird too, of course). Ideally it would have info on the the teams, dates of the games and the situation at the time of the throw. Does such a video exist?
highlandsh 11 months ago
Isn't it funny that the greatest catchers last name was bench when it looks like a catcher is sitting on a bench. It was meant to be!
Bench was the greatest!!!
elvisfan22 11 months ago
The "Big Red Machine" proved that you can't dominate a league, no matter how good an offense or defense you have (and the Reds had the best starting lineup in history), without good pitching. It's too bad. I hated the Steve Garvey/Ron Cey Dodgers.
faffaflunkie 11 months ago
Bench was amazing. He was like a comic book super hero. He made his pitchers better through the shear force of his personality. He threw base runners out with dart like throws. He would throw behind base runners for putouts. He was the first to even attempt to catch with one hand regularly and to this day no one does it effectively like he did with those huge paws. He blocked the plated like a 80 ton rig. He hit for power like Mickey Mantle. He was the greatest catcher to ever play the position.
Explode36 1 year ago
Damn right he was the greatest!
FreedomZealot 1 year ago
JOHNNY THE BEST!
maxcesse5 1 year ago
The best thing was to watch him pick baserunners off third base.
MrRabbitskunk 1 year ago
He changed the position of catching forever.
BTW- Great video, music sucks.
rayjr62 1 year ago
This makes me want to see how many baseballs i can hold in one hand.
jlh6310 1 year ago
Almost 30 years after Johnny Bench's retirement he's still the greatest all around Catcher of all time
FRSFreeState 1 year ago
creed sucks
hootjohnson 1 year ago
@hootjohnson we dont care
fbravis 1 year ago
@hootjohnson more ppl like them than you
jlh6310 1 year ago
Great catcher, asshole personality.
uricehe4 1 year ago
Johnny Bench sucks .. he was always the biggest a-hole when he came to the Hall of Fame each summer .. nobody liked him ... always made an ass of himself .. showed up drunk to an autograph session and made a fool of himself ..
samsoup8 1 year ago
@samsoup8 You are kind of sucky too. Kind of judgmental. Ever tried to understand anything? He certainly was the best catcher.
nakedvolleyball 1 year ago
@nakedvolleyball ha, ha . .judgemental ?? Ha, h a.. your comment is funny .. "ever try to understand anything?" .. ha, ha .. uh, yeah .. i understood that he was a complete a-hiole when he came to the Hall Of Fame .. and all the employees thought so to .... hmm .. maybe i should understand a guy showing up drunk to an autograph session and acting liek a jerk in front of a bunch of kids ....
samsoup8 1 year ago
Simply the best there ever was.
dgjaspers 1 year ago
Simply the best there ever was.
dgjaspers 1 year ago
jonny bench personality is a mean bully
bear022013 1 year ago
@bear022013 English obviously isn't your first language...so Johnny would kick your fucking ass.
nakedvolleyball 1 year ago
Johnny Bench was the best and this is coming from a NY Yankee fan.
UncleFooFoo68 2 years ago 6
@UncleFooFoo68 RED SOX!!!!!!!!
krazykid4president 2 years ago
Comment removed
Tecumseh1812 2 years ago
i'd say yogi berra
LiuetenantDan93 1 year ago
@UncleFooFoo68 Holy shit!
nakedvolleyball 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
an atrocious 267 batting average, 342 on base percentage, only 2000 hits for an entire career, well below 500 homeruns, and 68 career stolen bases and got caught half the time. Yeah, hes a great player alright!
tatomuck18 2 years ago
Comment removed
tatomuck18 2 years ago
Have watched them all for 50+ years. Bench was the best; he revolutionized the catcher's position. No catcher picked runners off 1st base before Bench. Nobody ran on Bench either; even Brock in his prime behaved. His hitting suffered after the surgery in 1972; never had the same power after that. But he called a great game, handled his position better than anyone I've seen, and anchored arguably the greatest starting 8 in baseball history.
buckfan1969 2 years ago 3
Best seasons
Piazza-40 HR 124 RBI
Bench-45 HR 148 RBI
That ain't apples to apples...also pitching was a hell of a lot better in the early '70s. And again those things called Gold Gloves show that Bench was a complete player. Anyone can argue about who is the best catcher...Pudge? Defensive wizard...Piazza? Offensive dynamo...Bench? Best of both worlds...One more thing....Bench has other hardware...a couple of rings to also add to his resume. End of discussion
dblack1983 2 years ago 3
Johhny Bench the Greatest All Around Catcher in MLB History.
FrsBigeasy 2 years ago 21
Mike Piazza and Johnny Bench both allowed me to buttfuck them.
evosuckdick 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Johnny Bench loved to suck big dicks and swallow all da juice,much like his Gay lover Dick Pole who played for the Boston Red Sox.
TheCumshot666 2 years ago
I am of the opinion that the 1975-76 Big Red Machine, were the greatest team in baseball history!!
AND I AM A YANKEE FAN!!
jkoff76 2 years ago 18
@jkoff76 Are you from Britain? In American English, things like teams are singular nouns...and when you talk baseball, speak American English.
nakedvolleyball 1 year ago
@jkoff76 No argument from this Reds fan. Maybe the greatest starting 8 ever. In 1976 the Reds led the league in every single team offensive category; hits, doubles, triples, home runs, runs, rbi, stolen bases, slugging pct., etc. And in defense. The 1961 Yankees are the only team I've seen that could compare to the 1976 Reds. And then we had to go and trade Perez.....
buckfan1969 1 year ago
The Reds are my favorite team and Bench was great(maybe top 5) but defensively not better than Ivan Rodriguez not even Y.Molina(cards)
lapicacamuy 2 years ago
Another heir to Bench and his style of catching who's unmentioned here is Hall of Famer Gary Carter.
bikefixer 2 years ago
Top Gay baseball players of all time include two great catchers,Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza....But baseballs best gay players ever are Johnny Damon,Lenny Dysktra,Dick Pole,Brady Anderson,Glenn Burke,Alan Wiggins,John "The Hammer" Milner,Rico Petrocelli,Roberto Alomar,Robin Ventura,Brant Alyea,Robin Ventura,Larry Cox,Gary Peters,Denny Riddleberger,Paul Lindblad andBud Selig.
cucumberinmypants 2 years ago
what you have said makes me wonder ; who gives a shit ?
PBR1973 2 years ago
u suck your own balls.
jjbostonceltics 2 years ago
greatest catcher ever, pudge is a steroid joke who should be banned with the rest of the steroid clowns. Now baseball is like wrestling. Ban Bud Selig while we are at it, How can there be more teams in the national league than the american, it is unfair and a joke.
harp1925 2 years ago
Last time I checked, steroids really don't help your defense. In fact, it pretty much destorys it (ask Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Raffy Palmeiro, etc.)
Bench is neither the greatest defensive catcher of all-time, nor the greatest offensive catcher of all-time. So, it absolutely puzzles me that he can be considered the greatest catcher ever.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Between 1968 and 1977, bench was the greatest catcher. Check out how many bases were stolen on him in the playoffs and world series. Also, the only catcher to lead the league in home runs and rbis. Defensively, he changed catching. Offensively, the greatest power hitting catcher. Look up the numbers, they don't lie. Easily the greatest catcher ever. Pudge ain't close. Steroid inflated numbers.
harp1925 2 years ago
Piazza is without question the greatest hitting catcher of all-time. He has substantial leads in OBP, SLG, OPS, OPS+, home runs, total bases, and EqA.
Ivan Rodriguez leads Bench in CS%, range factor, FRAA, FRAR, EqR, Rtot, and even though I believe them to be terribly misleading things, he also leads him FP and Gold Gloves.
It's really easy to lead your league in home runs when it's a much worse hitting league. Look at who Piazza had to compete with on the leaderboards.
EricAnno 2 years ago
First of all, Piazza was a joke at defense and not close in power. Problem with Piazza's stats is they are steroid enhances like pudge. I have no use for the 90's ballplayer, everything from that time through now is tainted goods. With that being said, when Bench retired he was the all time hr king among catchers, won more gg's and is the standard for modern catchers. On one stole off him in the playoffs until 1979. 2 time MVP, 2 time hr champ, 3 time rbi leader, the best.
harp1925 2 years ago
Okay, so let's ignore every single thing that Derek Jeter, Mike Piazza, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Mariano Rivera, Chipper Jones, Craig Biggio, and countless other greats from that era. Because, despite the fact that most of them are not linked to steroids in any way, they came from that era so they must've been 'roided up. Your logic is flawless.
And you are hilariously wrong if you think RsBI measure how good a player is.
EricAnno 2 years ago
That is the sad thing about the roids era, until the players who did it stand up, everyone is fair game. Who would of thought Andy Pettite did roids. Piazza and biggio have had rumors, guilt by association. The astros were loaded with roids. Also, baseball has taken on the WWe mentality, with the home run barrage, inter league play, gimmick stadiums, to many teams. Bench was the best catcher I ever saw, my opinion. Now baseball is a freak show circus, bought and sold.
harp1925 2 years ago
Andy Pettitte used HGH. HGH and steroids are completely different. Biggio, I highly doubt used steroids. Bagwell I can see. The only person who claims Piazza used steroids was some guy who never played on the same team, or even the same league as Piazza. Griffey, Maddux, Glavine, Jeter, Ripken, Larkin, Rivera, Billy Wagner, Trevor Hoffman, and countless other players from that era have no plausible evidence against them for steroids.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Bench led the league in home runs and rbi's in 70 and 72. Piazza never led the league in those stats. If bench played in the inflated inter league era, his numbers would be even better. He is the only catcher to lead the league in those stats and is a 10 time gg winner-piazza 0. Cochrane and dickey are comparable, but they did not play against blacks. Bench is the greatest catcher 68-78, no question, YOU ARE WRONG. W.S. M.V,P. 1976.
harp1925 2 years ago
And I really do love how you ignore every single stat that I brought up. That's great debating right there.
Bench had Rose, Morgan, Perez, and a slew of other players that got on base at a good rate. It's really easy to have a lot of RsBI when you have great teammates. Piazza had no such luxury.
And I would love to know how, despite the fact that Piazza has major leads in home runs and slugging percentage, you came away thinking that Bench was the more powerful hitter.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Piazza was a nice offensive player, but never an M.V.P. also his numbers are inflated in the steroids era. I don't know if he did any but that is the stigma of the last twenty years. Also, interleague play alters stats. It is hard to compare eras. Bench had bigger individual seasons, 70, 72, 74, and was much better defensively. Maybe yogi berra in his prime could compare, no one else, sorry, just the truth.
harp1925 2 years ago
Once again, it's very hard for him to be MVP with players like Sosa, Bonds, Caminiti, and various other players of that sort.
Piazza twice led the league in OPS+, which means that, given the disadvantage of both playing at Dodger Stadium and the league averages and quality, he was the best hitter in the league, meaning that he should have two MVPs. Piazza's 1995 and 1997 seasons are WAY better than Bench's 1970 and 1972 seasons.
Mickey Cochrane and Bill Dickey were better than Bench.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Piazza could never win a gold glove, so the better catcher is Johnny Bench, as far as hitting, Bench hit his Home Runs before the steroid era, which adds to his numbers being all that more impressive. Piazza will be a first ballot hall of famer but I highly doubt anyone would say Piazza was a better catcher than Johnny Bench.
jimw12 2 years ago 2
I never argued Bench's catching ability. I argued that Piazza was the better hitting catcher. The stats clearly prove that.
Gold Gloves are meaningless pieces of hardware given out to the popular players. I don't need to look at Gold Gloves to know that Pudge Rodriguez was the greatest defensive catcher of all-time. Yes, he was better than Bench, in fact he was a lot better.
Mickey Cochrane and Bill Dickey were both better overall catchers than Bench.
EricAnno 2 years ago
watch alot of cickey and cochrane , did ya ? you must be old as methuselah
Tecumseh1812 2 years ago
@Tecumseh1812 You must be a twat
nakedvolleyball 1 year ago
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Tecumseh1812 1 year ago
Clearly my favorite baseball player of all time.
indufan 2 years ago 2
Pudge Fisk would be #13 on my list,behind Andy Etchebarren and Lenny Webster,and right ahead ofThurman munson.
MrHippoDick 2 years ago
I doubt he's talking about Fisk, and your list is hilarious, you are very obviously making a joke.
EricAnno 2 years ago
MrHippoDick 2 years ago
what about pudge?
ryanark12345 2 years ago
No Elston Howard, No Roy Campanella. No Fisk, Munson or Pudge (not to mention countless others) Sorry..can't take this too seriously.
jdsoultrn 2 years ago
you are either joking ,insane , or don't watch much baseball .
PBR1973 2 years ago
the johnny bench intention walk fake greatest play ever
abcdefghij73 2 years ago
Bench innovated the catcher's positioning and throwing. That's why he is considered the best. Grote had the quickest release and accuracy in throwing to the bases (better than Bench's), but was a poor hitter. And you can't discount Bench's leadership on the Reds; where ever he went the Reds won. He's # 1.
ozwaldp 2 years ago
Defensively? Perhaps.
Offensively? Not even close.
Overall? Definitely not.
EricAnno 2 years ago
I love Bench. He's the second best defensive catcher of his era.
bikefixer 2 years ago
oh and who was the best
OHIOSTATEUNIVERSITY4 2 years ago
To answer your question, I have to refer to Reds' manager, Sparky Anderson, who in 1974, wanted to move Bench to third base to preserve his career. Who did Anderson say was the only catcher capable of replacing Bench behind the plate? NY Mets receiver, Jerry Grote.
mandolindley 2 years ago
thats only because that other guy was the second best and NO ONE could replace bench
OHIOSTATEUNIVERSITY4 2 years ago
Well bike, you're in a very small group who would rate Bench anywhere other than the very best. His reputation and accomplishments stand up on their own and make your comment laughable.
markofla 2 years ago
I don't argue that Bench was the best all-around catcher of this, or any other, era. But some knowledgeable folks rate Jerry Grote's defensive skills just as high. They include Tom Seaver and Tim McCarver.
Obviously, what I'm saying is somewhat controversial, but it's not something I'm simply making up. It's true Grote never beat out Bench for the Gold Glove award (including one year, 1972, when Grote had a record low two passed balls) Also, for full disclosure, I am a long-time Mets fan.
bikefixer 2 years ago
Spring Training 1968, Catching Jim Malone. Bench tells Malone "your fast ball is not popping." Bench goes back behind the plate, calls for a fastball. After the release, he catches the fastball. Bare handed. - I love it.
ezelder 2 years ago
I'm familiar with that story. But it wasn't Jim Maloney who was pitching. (Maloney threw at 97mph) It was Gerry Arrigo, and after Bench caught it barehanded, he threw it back to Arrigo harder than Arrigo had thrown it to him.
buckfan1969 2 years ago
If anyone ever caught a Jim Maloney fastball barehanded ,he would likely not be playing again for a long time , if ever .
PBR1973 2 years ago
Great song choice! I think I appreciate Johnny Bench more now.
bioluminance 2 years ago
Easily the greatest catcher in baseball history.
mbwolf61 2 years ago
And for the record, little girl, all you've done is insulted one of best players to ever play the game and without question the best hitting catcher of all-time. Yet, you never once say who you think is the greatest hitting catcher of all-time and why. I would highly suggest you post your opinion so I can properly destroy you.
EricAnno 2 years ago
And in case you can't read, or you're too stubborn to actually read my entire post, I never said that Piazza hit the most important home runs in the history of the game. I said he was clutch, countless people say the same. He hit one of the most important home runs in New York baseball history, and made it okay to be happy in a city that suffered the worst distaster imaginable, even if only for a moment. Who else, except for Derek Jeter, has done that? If that's not clutch, I don't know what is.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Piazza hit some of the most important and most memorable home runs in baseball. -
that was a quote from you 1 day ago
as tragic as 9/11 was there are more tragic events and here are some Hrs that were more important in New York Baseball History
Babe Ruth's called shot against the cubs in the world series
the shot heard round the world Aaron Boone's walk off Hr in 2003 Bucky Dent's Hr just to name a few so obviously you have no idea about anything baseball so shout the fuck up
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
Excuse me? Okay, number one, Ruth never called his shot. Not only that, it was at Wrigley in Chicago. Bucky Dent's homer was in Boston. We're talking about NEW YORK baseball. Now, in case you don't know what that means, it means it had to have happened in NEW YORK. Piazza lifted an entire city with one swing of the bat. People started smiling and cheering again because of one swing. I obviously don't know anything about baseball? Get off your period, and then try to act like you know anything.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Ok you obvously have sand in your Vagina because what team was bucky dent and Ruth on ??? therefore its new york baseball
and the shot heard round the world won the NL championship for the Giants in 51
and yes Ruth did call his shot
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
Did you even bother reading my last post? What did I say in the sixth sentence? I'm talking about baseball IN New York. Ruth called his shot? What are you, six years old? No one ever bothered to tell you that it was myth? Do you believe in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy too? I mean, honest to God, if you truly believe that Ruth is pointing to center field in those pictures and in the video, you are obviously easily influenced and gulliable. Although, it's not really shocking coming from you.
EricAnno 2 years ago
umm first of all you dont know me and second of all why cant that be true ???
is it impossible that he pointed his bat to center feild
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
Yes, it is. Because:
A.) He didn't point his bat at anything. He pointed his finger.
and
B.) The photos clearly show that he pointed first at the Cubs dugout and then to the pitcher while his back was turned.
So yes, it is impossible that he "called his shot".
EricAnno 2 years ago 2
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abrahamlincoln0900 2 years ago 2
Ask any baseball expert, any, and they will tell you that either Bench or Yogi were the greatest catchers ever. Piazza isn't even in the top-10.
zzremington 2 years ago
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abrahamlincoln0900 2 years ago
he grew up in binger oklahoma and we play them alot the field is also named after him so is a street and their tournaments
budlighter99 2 years ago
Any video of Bench throwing someone out from the crouch?
highlandsh 2 years ago
AHHHHH~ just found this! AWESOME~ had the BIGGEST crush on this man..back in the day~ oy vey..I'm showin' my age now..lol..oh well..GREAT TRIBUTE TO THE GREAT JOHNNY BENCH! FIVE STARS! *****
crazyforcrowe 3 years ago
In the 70s I played Catcher in Khoury League softball[girls still couldn't play baseball!], and JB was my hero...one day, my mother, who was a secretary for a Cincinnati insurance company fielded [no pun intended] a call from him, wanting to talk to his insurance agent. Just before she transferred his call, she mentioned how I too was a catcher and how much I admired him. He told her to pass on to pass on to me his good wishes in doing so...that was the year we won our division!
harwetopa 3 years ago
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abrahamlincoln0900 3 years ago
who won? haha nice job that sounds fun
thepickens 3 years ago
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abrahamlincoln0900 3 years ago
Johhny Bench is a good family friend. He went to Highschool with my Grandma. And My Great Grandpa Was a teacher of his. He thanked My great grandpa in a spech after being accepted to MLB.
wackdak 3 years ago
Johnny Bench might be a wonderful friend, but his public persona leaves much to be desired, especially when there are no cameras around.
mm3861 3 years ago
my best friend and my youtube side-kick,rob, his mom went out with johnny bench. he lives in ohio and rob gets to see him 3 times a year.
flabbybacon 3 years ago
Bench was a great catcher, but he was never good to the fans.... He's rude & arrogant.
mm3861 3 years ago
things have changed since then. pete rose charged my dad 25$ to have his ticket from the game where pete hit his 4192.
flabbybacon 3 years ago
It used to be a special thing to have the signature of a famous person. This whole business of buying and selling autographs takes away the whole purpose of even having them. "Collectors" started the whole thing by selling signatures at card shows years ago. Here's another instance where greed has ruined yet another aspect of professional sports. I feel sorry for the kids.
mm3861 3 years ago
what kids? i have a ball from a reds game 2 years back and when you get it your like "i will never give this up" and when you get older you look into the value of it to sell it. it is just plain wrong. i wish there was a rule of every baseball card was one price. i love to learn about the honus wagner t206 card. i am reading a book called "the card". it is about the wayne gretzky card and other stories of people who own honus wagner t206 cards. its pretty good. check it out some time.
flabbybacon 3 years ago
I saw the Wagner card at a baseball card show back in 1975. The guy was asking $1000.00 which was the going rate for that card at the time. Call it a missed opportunity, but I was 14 years old at the time and made about 5 dollars per week delivering papers!
mm3861 3 years ago
wow that would have been nice if you had bought that... 2.2 million $ later... :)
thepickens 3 years ago
I agree MM! I was 13 at Wrigley in`73 when my older and taller cousin and I were trying to get autographs from him he shouted at me to "Get off of the Goddamn kid". I was crushed. He had been my hero my whole childhood.
Maptcb 2 years ago
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abrahamlincoln0900 2 years ago
If he didn't he should have.
obamanationkoolaid 2 years ago
This a great video...I love it!
rbench5 3 years ago 3
Piazza could'nt throw out your grandma. Pudge is the closest to Bench that there is. Fisk was just an average catcher.
silverado7163 3 years ago 2
piazza is the greatest hitting catcher of all-time no doubt, but Bench is the greatest of all-time.
averynyr16 3 years ago 7
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Piazza and Pudge and maybe even Fisk are better!
mm3861 3 years ago
no way they cant match him.
flabbybacon 3 years ago 2
Piazza was a horrible catcher. He could just hit the hell out of the ball. Pudge may be better, but he's basically the prototypical all-around catcher, just like Bench was. Fisk was terrible. The guy played for 24 seasons and didn't even get 2,500 hits and he won one Gold Glove. Bench hit 389 home runs and won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves at catcher. So perhaps you should get your facts correct.
EricAnno 3 years ago 3
Bench is without question the greatest catcher of All time. Bench also led the National League in HRs and RBIs TWICE! Piazza had done neither even once! Bench was nearly a unanimous first ballot HOF inductee, and proved without doobt that there never will be a unanimous vote ballot. Bench is also an All Century player.
MyTymeBand08 3 years ago
Why does that prove without a doubt that there will never be a unanimous HOFer? If anyone, Greg Maddux will be the first. Piazza is without question the greatest hitting catcher of all-time. It's pretty hard to lead the league in RBIs and home runs during the steroid era with guys like Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, and Mark McGwire in the same league.
EricAnno 3 years ago
I saw JB play, and I saw Piazza play. I'm born and raised in New Jersey, and am a die hard Mets fan. But the truth is what it is. Bench changed the way teams played the Reds because he threw out eveybody. I didn't really know why Piazza even bothered throwing to second. Bench was a clutch hitter. Look what he did in the 76 Series. He'd kill you when it mattered. Piazza hit for average, and he was good at it, but did the Mets win with him? Bench has 2 rings.
MyTymeBand08 3 years ago 2
Ok, but we're not discussing defense. If you go back and closely look at what I wrote, something you obviously didn't do the first time, you would find that I said Piazza is the greatest HITTING catcher of all-time, something that is impervious to arguement. Bench was clutch? For a few at-bats maybe. Piazza was widely regarded as the most clutch hitter of his time, outside of Derek Jeter. Yes, the Mets won with him. Considering what they were before Piazza came. 430-475 before Piazza. '00 WS.
EricAnno 3 years ago
who are you talking about when you say that Piazza was regarded as the most clutch hitter of his time outside of jeter
nobody says anything about Piazza being a clutch hitter except maybe on sny the shittiest sports channel ever
and he is definetly not the best hitting catcher just the one with the most home runs
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
Numerous baseball experts have called Piazza clutch. Piazza hit some of the most important and most memorable home runs in baseball. Really? So Piazza is not the greatest hitting catcher of all-time? Who is then? Bench? Don't make me laugh. If you say anyone other than Yogi Berra has a chance at topping Piazza, you obviously don't know a whole lot about baseball.
EricAnno 2 years ago
No when I said who I want actual fucking names
and give me moments when he hit the most important home runs in baseball because last time I checked he didn't hit any that popped up and said thats as good as Hank Aarons 715, or Carters home run to win the series in 93
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
So Hank Aaron break Ruth's record is your definition of clutch? Your's differs from mine apparently. You want "actual fucking names"? Chill out. Look his name up on Google. You will see countless topics, blogs, and experts talking about Piazza's clutch hitting. You want a moment? I'll give you the greatest moment of his career and quite possibly the greatest moment in the history of New York baseball. On September 21, 2001, ten days after 9/11, Piazza hit a game-tying home run. Look it up.
EricAnno 2 years ago
Hank Aaron's Home run was important
And last time I checked September wasn't in the post season
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
My uncle, Chris Pelekoudas, was the umpire who called Aaron out after hitting the homerun when he stepped too far out of the batters box. He was behind the plate when he tied Ruth`s record and at 3rd when he broke it.
Maptcb 2 years ago
cool
chalouxjohn 2 years ago
Pleez with that crap! A game-tying home run? It didn't even win the game? And just another regular season game, too? Ssssppppt ! Big Archie Bunker raspberries to that.
exile103 2 years ago
A little late to the party aren't we?
This argument is over.
Your comment is meaningless, and I'm sorry you wasted your time typing it, though it appears it didn't take much effort.
EricAnno 2 years ago
`72 playoffs against the Pirates. Clemente`s last game. Bottom of the 9th, Reds down 3-2, Bench hits that homer over Clemente in right field. That was clutch!
Maptcb 2 years ago
Also, don't go nuts on all this steroid shit.
Bench didn't play with all the league expansion Piazza did. Every 4th pitcher Piazza faced wouldn't have been in the Majors when Bench played. Bench has those rings because he led his league in HR and Rib eye steaks twice. And he was a league leader when he didn't. All Piazza has is a bat thrown at him from Clemens. What do you think Pete Rose would have done about that? Clemens would be pulling that bat out his ass that's what.
MyTymeBand08 3 years ago 2
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abrahamlincoln0900 3 years ago
You are seriously going to belittle Piazza's career? You have proved once and for all that you are nothing but a homer with a hard on for Johnny Bench. More teams were added during Bench's career than Piazza's. I'm not entirely sure how you can even think to compare pitchers of the '60s and the '70s to those of today and the last decade. Bench didn't play against powerhouses like McGwire, Bonds, Sosa, Sheffield, and other HR and RBI leaders that were all juiced up. We're not discussing Rose.
EricAnno 3 years ago
Hey man, don't be an asshole. I didn't insult you in any way.
MyTymeBand08 3 years ago
No, but you're acting like Bench is the almighty and that one of the classiest and best players to ever play the game pales in comparison to Bench because he didn't lead his league in RBIs or home runs. Then you completely denounce the steroids thing like it doesn't mean anything. It's really very hard to "accomplish" what Bench did when you have three of the most prolific juiced-up sluggers in your league.
EricAnno 3 years ago