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// JUNE/JULY 2018 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM
hether it's the perspective from
their position behind the plate
or their ability to multi-task on
the field, conventional baseball
wisdom says that catchers make
good managers.
A look up and down the organi-
zational charts of any Major League
franchise shows a number of former
catchers who have made the transition from back-
stops to bench bosses.
What is it about the position that makes a
catcher better suited to serve as a skipper than
many of their teammates?
"I g et that question a lot," said St. Louis
Cardinals skipper and hockey dad Mike Matheny.
"It's just part of the job description for a catcher,
where you have to understand what's going on
with the pitching, what's going on with certain
defenses, what's going on with the status of the
team and understanding the game situation, not
just my space right here."
It's more than just the "tools of ignorance" – a
term long used to describe a catcher's protective
Battle Tested By The Position, Former Goaltenders
Find Their Calling Behind The Bench
By Harry Thompson
FROM CREASE TO
