Mike Piazza - Catcher Comparison

Mike Piazza -
Catcher Comparison

Is Mike Piazza on his way to becoming the best-hitting catcher of all time? Compare his statistics thus far to the first five Major League seasons of baseball's greatest catchers. First rank is in bold and second rank is in Italics. Mike ranks first in Hits, Home Runs, RBI's and Average, and second in Runs Scored, even though he's third in total At Bats.

 Player (ages)          Years    AB     R     H    HR   RBI    Avg.
Mike Piazza (24-28)     93-97   2489   418   838  167   526   .337
Johnny Bench (20-24)    68-72   2800   414   767  153   506   .274
Yogi Berra (24-28)      49-53   2596   444   763  132   509   .294
Roy Campanella (27-31)  49-53   2365   401   700  149   518   .296
Mickey Cochrane (22-26) 25-29   2204   404   693   43   334   .314
Bill Dickey (21-25)     29-33   2191   304   708   50   389   .323

Piazza's numbers are certainly impressive for a catcher, especially when you consider the company he's in, along with the at-bats he missed because of the players' strike in 1994 and injuries in 1995 (22 games).

Mike's Batting Practice Mini Pizza
1 13-ounce can refrigerated pizza dough
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 pound lean ground beef
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated
dash of salt

Divide dough into four equal pieces, roll out to 1/4-inch thick circles and place on a baking sheet.
Heat oil in frying pan, add onions and cook for about five minutes.
Add the beef, tomato paste, sugar, cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper and dash of salt.
Cook for five more minutes, until meat is browned, then remove from heat.
Spoon the beef mixture onto the pizza rounds, and add cheese to each one.
Bake the pizzas for about 15 minutes at 450 degrees F.
Serves one catcher.
Copyright © 1996 Patrick Spreng.