Johnny Bench

Infobox MLB retired


name=Johnny Bench
position=Catcher
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1947|12|7
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
debutdate=August 28
debutyear=by|1967
debutteam=Cincinnati Reds
finaldate=September 29
finalyear=by|1983
finalteam=Cincinnati Reds
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.267
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=389
stat3label=Runs batted in
stat3value=1,376
teams=
* Cincinnati Reds (by|1967-by|1983)
highlights=
* 14x All-Star selection (1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983)
* 2x World Series champion (1975, 1976)
* 10x Gold Glove Award winner (1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977)
* 2x NL MVP (1970, 1972)
* 1968 NL Rookie of the Year
* 1976 World Series MVP
* 1976 Babe Ruth Award
* 1975 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
* 1981 Hutch Award
* Cincinnati Reds #5 retired
hofdate=1989
hofvote=96.42%

Johnny Lee Bench (born December 7, 1947) is a former American baseball player for the Cincinnati Reds from 1967 to 1983, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in Major League Baseball history. He is currently on the Board of Directors for the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame.

Bench was a key member of the Reds' 1975 and 1976 World Series championship teams known as "The Big Red Machine."

Professional career

Bench was a standout baseball player for Binger High School, in the small western Oklahoma town of Binger, the seat of Caddo County, formerly known as Hoss Spit Flats. His father advised him that the fastest route to the majors was being a catcher. He was drafted in the second round of the 1965 amateur draft and was called up in August, 1967 where he hit just .163, but impressed many with his defensive prowess and strong throwing arm. Among those he impressed during his first taste of big league ball was Hall of Famer Ted Williams, who signed a baseball for him: "A Hall of Famer for sure!"

In addition to being an outstanding fielder, Bench was also a great hitter. In 1970, his finest statistical season, Bench hit .293 with 45 home runs and 148 RBIs. He hit .267 with 389 home runs and 1,376 runs-batted-in during his 17-year Major League career, all spent with the Reds. His career home runs by a catcher record stood until surpassed by the former New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza.

He won the 1968 National League Rookie of the Year Award, batting .275 with 15 home runs and 82 RBIs, and the honors and accomplishments only continued to pile up. In his career, Bench earned 10 Gold Gloves, was the 1970 and 1972 Most Valuable Player and was named to the National League All-Star team 12 times. He also won such awards as the Lou Gehrig Award (1975), the Babe Ruth Award (1976), and the Hutch Award (1981). His most dramatic home run was likely his ninth inning lead-off opposite field home run in the final game of the 1972 NLCS vs. Pittsburgh. The solo shot tied the game 3-3, allowing the Reds to win later in the inning on a wild pitch, 4-3. It was hailed after the game as "one of the great clutch home runs of all time."

Although baseball history is filled with many outstanding catchers, such as Yogi Berra, Bill Dickey, Gabby Hartnett and Mickey Cochrane, arguably, no player revolutionized the position like Johnny Bench. The catcher's equipment was traditionally called "the tools of ignorance" as many catchers lacked the fielding skills to play elsewhere. But Bench inspired many young ballplayers to become catchers. His use of the hinged catcher's mitt, thought to be a gimmick when he first used it after returning to action following a stint on the disabled list because of a thumb injury on his right hand, became standard equipment soon afterward. The new mitt replaced the traditional rigid trapper-style mitt and allowed Bench to tuck his throwing arm safely to the side.

One day when a pitcher insisted on throwing fastballs even though he didn't have much velocity, Bench caught one of the pitches with his bare hand, just to make the point.

He also tended to block breaking balls in the dirt by scooping them with one hand instead of the more common and fundamentally proper way: dropping to both knees and blocking the ball using the chest protector.

However, by 1978, the years behind the plate began taking their toll on Bench's knees, a common ailment for catchers, and for the last three years of his career, he played mostly third base or first base with the occasional start at catcher, appearing in only 13 games behind the plate those last three seasons. During one of his final games on September 17, 1983, proclaimed "Johnny Bench Night" at Riverfront Stadium, he hit his 389th and final home run.

Honors

Bench was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York in 1989, appearing on 96% of the ballots — the third-highest ever at the time.

He was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1989 and had his #5 retired.

In 1999, he ranked Number 16 on "The Sporting News"' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranking catcher, and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

Starting with the 2000 college baseball season, the best collegiate catcher annually receives the Johnny Bench Award.

Personal

Bench was born in Oklahoma City, but grew up in Binger. He had a boyhood dream of becoming a professional baseball player.

In his post-playing career, Bench has broadcast games on television and radio and is an avid golfer. He has performed in several Champions Tour tournaments.

In 1985, Bench starred as Joe Boyd/Joe Hardy in a Cincinnati stage production of the musical "Damn Yankees", which also included Gwen Verdon and Gary Sandy.

Bench does an impression of Harry Caray,fact|date=October 2007 and occasionally during the Hall of Fame inductions, acting as Caray, leads the crowd in singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game".

Bench has a son at St. Xavier High School, Cincinnati who is the third string tight end on the football team. He tried out for the baseball team twice to follow in his father's footsteps but was cut from the team both times.cite news|url=http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071018/SPT03/71018024/-1/BACK|title=Not like father, like son|author=Tom Groeschen|first=Tom|last=Groeschen|work=The Cincinnati Enquirer|publisher=Gannett Company|date=2007-10-18|accessdate=2007-11-27]

The size of Bench's hands is legendary. A fan wrote a letter asking if he could really hold 7 baseballs in one hand. He responded in a popular photograph that is well known to this day.

Hip replacement

In 2004, Bench received a hip replacement after his hip joint had worn down to bone-on-bone. The problem likely resulted from his having squatted an estimated 400,000 times behind the plate during his baseball career. On June 24, 2008, Bench spoke about his health before a gathering at the convention center in Pineville, Louisiana: "I know pain. I could hardly sleep." In addition to bone fractures, Bench has had seven broken cups.

Bench said that a physician recommended that he receive a Stryker ceramic-on-ceramic hip. Since that time, Bench has gone around the country holding seminars and meetings to promote Stryker's products and to explain the benefits of a total hip replacement. [ [http://www.thetowntalk.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080625/SPORTS/806250345&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL Hall of Famer Johnny Bench touts hip replacement to locals | thetowntalk.com | The Town Talk ] ]

References

ee also

* Top 500 home run hitters of all time
* List of major league players with 2,000 hits
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
* List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
* List of Major League Baseball home run champions
* Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game

External links

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* [http://www.johnnybench.com/ johnnybench.com] Official Website