Hall Of Fame Flashback: Mike Piazza

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Mike Piazza, the all-time leader in homers by a catcher, was among two players to be voted into the Hall of Fame Wednesday.

Considered the best offensive catcher in baseball history, Piazza ranks first in homers by a catcher (396; he hit 427 overall), OPS+ (143), first in slugging, first in offensive WAR and fourth in slugging.

But the righthanded slugger was a long shot to make the majors or even get drafted out of Miami-Dade CC in 1988. As is well-documented, Piazza was drafted by the Dodgers in the 62nd round (No. 1,390 overall) as a courtesy to then-manager Tommy Lasorda, who was a childhood friend of Piazza’s father, Vince.


See Also: Piazza’s 1986 scouting report


After two mediocre seasons in short-season ball and the Florida State League, Piazza began showing something with the bat at high Class-A Bakersfield in 1991, when he hit 29 homers and had an OPS of .884. After a tremendous 1992 season at Double-A San Antonio and Triple-A Albuquerque, he went to the Arizona Fall League and impressed, making our Top 10 AFL Prospects List at No. 9.

Here’s what Jack Magruder wrote.

The heir apparent to Mike Scioscia has done nothing to hurt his future. Piazza, 24, had nine extra base hits and 14 RBIs in 84 at-bats while sharing time on a catcher-heavy Sun Cities team that includes Brook Fordyce (Mets) and Derek Parks (Twins). “He hit a home run on a breaking ball down and in that I thought was a good pitch,” Phoenix manager Scott Ullger said. “He has a short swing for a power hitter.”

“He came down here and dominated excellent pitching,” Sun Cities manager Jerry Royster said. “He can hit in the middle three spots in the order and throw people out.”


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Piazza was then chosen as the Dodgers’ No. 1 prospect entering the 1993 season.
Here’s what Ken Gurnick wrote:

So much for the science of drafting. The Dodgers waste a decade of first-round picks, and wind up with a 62nd-rounder who reaches the big leagues. Piazza’s story is pretty well-known by now. Drafted as a favor to his godfather Tommy Lasorda, the son of a wealthy car dealer worked his way through the farm system with a display of power at all levels and a work ethic that turned him into a decent catcher.

In fact, for all the big offensive numbers he posted last year, management was more impressed with Piazza’s improving defense, considering he was a first baseman in school.

He has a strong arm, he’s learning to block balls in the first and major league pitchers say he handles them well. The Dodgers think so highly of Piazza, they didn’t mind letting catching fixture Mike Scioscia walk.

For his combination of catching skills and power hitting, Piazza draws favorable comparisons to eight-time all-star Lance Parrish. That is an irony, in that Parrish has been invited to spring training and could become a combination backup/teacher for Piazza.

What is most impressive about Piazza is that despite a silver-spoon upbringing and obvious well-placed connections, he works hard for everything. To win the starting job this spring from Carlos Hernandez, Piazza must impress the entire coaching staff. Lasorda says he will avoid charges of nepotism by letting his coaches decide who should start.


Year Club Class AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO OBP SLG OPS
1989 Salem SS .268 57 198 22 53 11 0 8 25 13 51 .318 .444 .762
1990 Vero Beach A .250 88 272 27 68 20 0 6 45 11 68 .281 .390 .671
1991 Bakersfield A .277 117 448 71 124 27 2 29 80 47 83 .344 .540 .884
1992 San Antonio AA .377 31 114 18 43 11 0 7 21 13 18 .441 .658 1.099
1992 Albuquerque AAA .341 94 358 54 122 22 5 16 69 37 57 .405 .564 .969
1992 Los Angeles MAJ .232 21 69 5 16 3 0 1 7 4 12 .284 .319 .603
1993 Los Angeles MAJ .318 149 547 81 174 24 2 35 112 46 86 .370 .561 .931
1994 Los Angeles MAJ .319 107 405 64 129 18 0 24 92 33 65 .370 .541 .911
1995 Los Angeles MAJ .346 112 434 82 150 17 0 32 93 39 80 .400 .606 1.006
1996 Los Angeles MAJ .336 148 547 87 184 16 0 36 105 81 93 .422 .563 .985
1997 Los Angeles MAJ .362 152 556 104 201 32 1 40 124 69 77 .431 .638 1.069
1998 Los Angeles MAJ .282 37 149 20 42 5 0 9 30 11 27 .329 .497 .826
1998 Florida MAJ .278 5 18 1 5 0 1 0 5 0 0 .263 .389 .652
1998 New York MAJ .348 109 394 67 137 33 0 23 76 47 53 .417 .607 1.024
1999 New York MAJ .303 141 534 100 162 25 0 40 124 51 70 .361 .575 .936
2000 New York MAJ .324 136 482 90 156 26 0 38 113 58 69 .398 .614 1.012
2001 New York MAJ .300 141 503 81 151 29 0 36 94 67 87 .384 .573 .957
2002 New York MAJ .280 135 478 69 134 23 2 33 98 57 82 .359 .544 .903
2003 Norfolk AAA .176 5 17 2 3 0 0 1 2 1 3 .222 .353 .575
2003 New York MAJ .286 68 234 37 67 13 0 11 34 35 40 .377 .483 .860
2004 St. Lucie HiA .500 2 6 0 3 1 0 0 2 1 0 .500 .667 1.167
2004 New York MAJ .266 129 455 47 121 21 0 20 54 68 78 .362 .444 .806
2005 New York MAJ .251 113 398 41 100 23 0 19 62 41 67 .326 .452 .778
2006 San Diego MAJ .283 126 399 39 113 19 1 22 68 34 66 .342 .501 .843
2007 Sacramento AAA .412 3 17 1 7 2 0 0 1 0 3 .412 .529 .941
2007 Stockton HiA .333 3 9 2 3 0 0 2 4 2 3 .455 1.000 1.455
2007 Oakland MAJ .275 83 309 33 85 17 1 8 44 18 61 .313 .414 .727
Major League Totals .308 1912 6911 1048 2127 344 8 427 1335 759 1113 .377 .545 .922
Minor League Totals .296 400 1439 197 426 94 7 69 249 125 286 .353 .515 .868

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