Wrong.. wrong...

I used to be a fielder/pitcher.. played for just over 10 years. Basically I was a two or three pitch guy and while I had the speed, I didn't have the movement on the ball to be overly effective.

It was because of the later that I found myself converted to playing the outfield. I still pitched on occasion, but I was placed in the outfield because of my strong arm.

One day we were playing at home when our catcher was taken out at a play at the plate. Our other catcher was injured, so the coach pulled me in from the field, threw the gear on me, and stuck me behind the plate. After all, I had one of the best arms on the team.

I had never caught in my life. The coach ran over the signs, and called the pitches from the bench. I can tell you this from my experience, the CATCHER is a very UNIQUE position in baseball. Probably the MOST unique position.

After just 3 innings my legs were aching from squatting behind the plate, and trying to stand and throw to second on a steal is NOT easy. Even with my arm I did not nail ONE baserunner. I wasn't even close. I even sailed one into center.

It was AWFUL. The ONLY redeeming portion of my time behind the plate was standing my ground at hold to tag out a runner in my first inning behind the plate.

I NEVER played behind the plate again, and would NEVER accept the position if asked.

Outfielders and Infielders and Pitchers - yes.. they can be interchanged with some negatives. We've all seen position players take the mound once in a while, some with good results. But trust me, you cannot just throw ANYONE behind the plate. It requires a whole DIFFERENT kind of conditioning.

As for arm strength... again, I had one of the best on my team, and I could nail a single runner. Not a one. It is a different thing coming out of the crouch to throw. Very different.

Just my two cents...

RobG
W9 - Port Huron