A key member of the late-90s Yankee dynasty, catcher Jorge Posada won four World Series titles in pinstripes.
Though he’s been retired for close to a decade, Posada is currently available as an unlockable player in MLB® The Show™ 20 . To enhance your gaming experience, test your knowledge of Posada’s career with the following trivia questions.
Posada hit the first home run at the new Yankee Stadium in 2009. Which ballpark did he hit the final home run at that year?
Posada christened the new Yankee Stadium by launching the first home run at the park, a game-tying solo shot off reigning Cy Young winner Cliff Lee. The homer landed in Monument Park in center field, the place where Posada would one day be honored with a plaque of his own.
Derek Jeter was accurate in his postgame declaration that Posada’s feat would be a trivia question for quite some time.
But while many fans remember the first homer at the new Yankee Stadium, they may not remember that Posada was also the last player to go yard at the Metrodome in Minnesota.
The Yankees swept the Twins in the 2009 ALDS, and in the third game of that series, Posada went deep off former teammate Carl Pavano in the seventh inning.
Posada finished his career with 275 home runs, the most by a switch-hitting catcher. Who is second on that list?
Despite not playing his first full season until the age of 26, Posada finished his career with 275 home runs, the most ever by a switch-hitting catcher. The man who ranks second on that list was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Can’t think of who this particular switch-hitting catcher might be? Here’s a hint: he was once traded from the Cardinals to the Brewers along with Rollie Fingers and Pete Vuckovich.
The switch-hitting catcher I am alluding to is Ted Simmons, who clubbed 248 home runs over the course of his 21-year big league career. Posada’s career offensive numbers are comparable to those of Simmons, and in some cases, superior.
Though Simmons had a higher bWAR (50.3) than Posada (42.7), Posada ended his major league tenure with a slightly higher adjusted OPS (121 to 118).
Posada also had eight games where he homered from both sides of the plate, compared to just three for Simmons.
On April 23rd, 2000, Posada and another Yankee became the first teammates to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game. Who was that teammate?
The most recent Yankees dynasty was defined by postseason dominance, as well as historic regular season feats like the perfect games thrown by David Wells and David Cone.
The Bombers continued to rewrite the record books in 2000, a year that would culminate in the team’s fourth World Series title in five years. In the first month of that season, Jorge Posada and another Yankee switch-hitter became the first pair of teammates to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game.
That teammate was Bernie Williams, who issued a challenge to Posada after hitting his second roundtripper of the day at Toronto’s SkyDome. Said Williams to Posada, “Why don’t you get one too?”
Posada obliged by going deep from the right side just moments later. Williams and Posada combined for eight RBIs that afternoon, helping starter Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez earn a win despite allowing four homers of his own.
The feat would not be matched until Opening Day of 2009, when Diamondbacks teammates Tony Clark and Felipe Lopez turned the trick.
Whose perfect game did Posada catch?
A year before Joe Girardi caught David Cone’s perfect game, Jorge Posada was behind the plate for a different pitcher’s flawless performance.
May 17, 1998 was Beanie Baby Day at Yankee Stadium. A reported crowd of 49,820 gathered in the Bronx to catch a game against the Twins and bring home a white stuffed bear named Valentino.
They’d leave the ballpark with something far more valuable: a memory to last a lifetime.
It was 27 up, 27 down for David Wells, the hefty lefty who claims to have been partying with the SNL crew until the wee hours of that morning. The hangover didn’t seem to affect Wells, who collaborated with catcher Jorge Posada on the second perfect game in Yankee history.
In recent years, Posada has stated that catching this game was his most memorable moment behind the plate.
As a side note, my favorite bit of trivia regarding Yankee perfect games is that the late Don Larsen was connected to all three to date. Larsen threw the first Yankee perfecto in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series. He attended the same San Diego high school as David Wells (Point Loma) and was in attendance for David Cone’s perfect game in 1999 as part of “Yogi Berra Day.”
Which other catchers have had their number retired by the Yankees?
Posada joined an exclusive club when his #20 was retired by the Yankees in 2015. He was the nineteenth player to receive the honor from the organization, as well as the fifth catcher in that group.
The first two catchers to be recognized by the Yankees in such a fashion actually wore the same number. Hall of Famers Bill Dickey and Yogi Berra both wore #8, which was retired in a joint ceremony on July 22, 1972.
The next backstop to receive the honor was Thurman Munson. Considered the heart and soul of the Yankees, Munson’s life came to a tragic end when he crashed the plane he was flying in 1979. The club captain’s #15 was retired immediately after his death.
Five years after Munson’s abrupt passing, Elston Howard had his #32 posthumously retired. Howard was the first black player in Yankees history, as well as a twelve-time All-Star, two-time Gold Glove winner, and the 1963 American League MVP.
Searle’s Final Say
Jorge Posada is not what I would consider an obvious Hall of Famer, but I do think it’s a shame that he lasted just one year on the ballot. After all, Posada was one of the best offensive catchers of his era. And although his defensive game was flawed, his communication skills made him a valuable asset to the Yankees pitching staff. Gamers who unlock his diamond card in MLB® The Show™ 20 are sure to be cheering “Hip, hip, Jorge!” once more.
