Braves catchers did well in 2020

Braves catchers produced great offense in 2020

Atlanta’s four catchers this season – William Contreras, Travis d’Arnaud, Tyler Flowers and Alex Jackson – batted a collective .299/.371/.491 (67-for-224), with an .862 OPS which ranked fifth in the majors…The league average for the catcher position is .232 with a .706 OPS…Those four players combined to have a 1.7 fWAR, tied with the Reds for the third best in the National League (Phillies, 2.4 and Dodgers, 2.0). 

Alex Jackson and William Contreras opened the season on the active roster…Both Travis d’Arnaud and Tyler Flowers made the Opening Day roster but were held out as a precaution to COVID. • Jackson, who started on Opening Day, recorded his first major league hit on July 28, when he doubled off the Rays’ Yonny Chirinos…He began his major league career 0-for-17. 

Contreras, the younger brother of the Cubs’ Willson, made his major league debut as a defensive replacement on Opening Day… At 22 years, 213 days, Contreras became the youngest Braves catcher to debut since Jarrod Saltalamacchia did so on his 22nd birthday in 2007. • In his first career plate appearance, on July 25, Contreras doubled home a run in the 10th inning. 

Willson Contreras also made his debut as a defensive replacement (June 17, 2016), before also collecting an extra-base hit in his first career plate appearance in his second game (a home run on June 19).  

For more Atlanta Braves coverage, listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on SportsRadio 93.1 FM WXKO TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter @billshanks and email him at TheBillShanksShow@yahoo.com. 


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