Ever wonder why those seats behind home plate are so expensive? It’s not just the fact that you are so close to the field you can smell the fresh-cut grass and see the beads of sweat on the players. You can smell and see those things at any of the other close-to-the-field-locations throughout the ballpark. It’s not the private, personal service of waiters and waitresses serving you drinks and food. People enjoyed sitting behind home plate long before the rich took over and demanded more. Ever wondered why a mediocre catcher can survive in such a competitive league for so long? Or why catchers command so much respect?
These questions are not as unrelated as you might think. Sitting behind the plate, for both fans and catchers, allows a total and complete view of the field. You can see things others in the park simply can’t. You know things before anyone else has a clue. Fans pay the extra money for this. Catchers use it to lead and manage a team from the field.
Mike Matheny, the new Cardinals manager, may seem like an odd, out of the blue choice. His announcement has not attracted criticism for the most part. It has not attracted praise either. By and large, Mike Matheny has settled into the Cardinals offices as their new manager almost unnoticed. You’d think the new manager for a team such as St. Louis would bring more press, but that’s irrelevant. Mike Matheny was a good choice.
He compiled a career triple-slash of .239/.293/.344. Yet even with such yawn-inspiring numbers, he spent 13 years in the big leagues. He won four Gold Gloves and was always considered a team leader. Which brings me back to my original premise. Sitting behind home plate gives you a different perspective. For catchers, it makes you the field general. You call the pitches. You relay the signs. You notice the defensive positioning needing changes. You see a runner taking too big a lead. You calm your pitcher down and pump him up. You take the hits, but you push through. You do it all. And that’s why you make the best managers.
Of the 30 current Major League managers this season Fredi Gonzalez, Mike Scioscia, Joe Madden, Joe Girardi, Bruce Bochy, Jim Leyland, Ned Yost, Bob Melvin (Bob Geren before him), Eric Wedge, and Clint Hurdle were catchers in their playing careers. You can add Mike Matheny to that list.
Matheny’s six years in St. Louis surely gave him an inside track that other candidates did not have, but he will not have an easy path to continued success. Winning is not easy, especially with the prospect of losing an average of 8 WAR per year in Albert Pujols. But if Matheny were to pick any year to take over, this would be it. Fresh off a World Series victory, a young hero in David Freese, the return of Adam Wainwright, and Lance Berkman locked up.
The truth about whether Matheny will succeed will have to wait until the season begins. For now, all we can do is theorize. Mike Matheny’s catching experience should help him overcome his complete inexperience in coaching at the Major League level.
So, the next time you sit behind home plate, take it all in. See what the catchers see. See what they do. What you’ll be watching is a field general studying the game. What you’ll see is a catcher running the show. And when you flip on the television and Mike Matheny is standing at the top of the dugout steps in Busch, you’ll be seeing the same thing.
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