Is Buster Posey Already an All-Time Great?

Buster Posey is 28 years old and is already considered by some to be one of the greatest catchers of all-time. Heading into his age 29 season, are we witnessing one of the greatest careers in baseball history? There are many factors when deciding whether or not someone is an all-time great. First and foremost is a comparison to others that play his position. So let's take a look at where Posey stacks up against the rest of his peers.

If you simply look at Wins Above Replacement, Posey is the 37th greatest catcher to ever play. Not exactly an all-time great. However, when you compare the number of games played versus the 36 catchers above him, it looks more impressive. Posey has played in 753 Major League games. By comparison, every other player above him has played at least 1,062 games and some have played over 2,000 like Johnny Bench and Yogi Berra.

Bench was a 14 time All-Star, a two time World Series champion, a two time National League MVP, as well as a Rookie of the Year, and ten time Gold Glove winner.

Berra was an 18 time All-Star, a 13 time World Series champion and a three time American League MVP.

When talking about all-time greats, Bench and Berra are head and shoulders above all other catchers. For Posey to come close to either, he would need to maintain his current level of success for another decade.

If you look at catchers who had a season of 4 WAR or above, Posey is 20th all-time. He has had four straight seasons with a WAR of 4 or more. If he were to have three more seasons at that level, he would be tied with Berra for 6th on the same list. This not only shows how rare a 4 WAR season is for a catcher, but also how close Posey is to be in the conversation with the all-time greats.

Posey has a NL Rookie of the Year award, an NL Most Valuable Player award, a batting title, as well as being a three time All-Star among other accolades. He has also won three World Series. When you start looking at other catchers with similar resumes, the number shrinks even more.

Roy Campanella was an eight time All-Star, a World Series champion, as well as a three time NL MVP.

Gary Carter was an eleven time All-Star, a World Series champion, as well as a three time NL Gold Glove winner.

Mickey Cochrane was a two time All-Star, a three time World Series champion, as well as a two time AL MVP. He would have gone to more Midsummer Classics, but they weren't created until the end of his career.

Carlton Fisk was an eleven time All-Star, an AL Rookie of the Year and one time Gold Glove winner.

Joe Mauer is currently a six time All-Star, an AL MVP, a three time batting champ, as well as a three time Gold Glove winner.

Yadier Molina is currently a seven time All-Star, a two time World Series champion, as well as an eight time Gold Glove winner.

Thurman Munson was a seven time All-Star, a two time World Series champ, as well as an AL MVP and a Rookie of the Year. He was also a three time Gold Glove winner.

Mike Piazza was a 12 time All-Star and a NL Rookie of the Year.

Jorge Posada was a five time All-Star and a four time World Series champion.

Ivan Rodriguez was a 14 time All-Star, a World Series champion, an AL MVP as well as a 13 time Gold Glove winner.

You could argue that Posey is already among the ten greatest catchers of all-time. You could argue that other catchers like Gene Tenace, Ted Simmons, Joe Torre and others are still better than Posey. Wherever you place Posey on an All-Time list, it is clear that he is knocking on the door to be a part of the conversation and we are currently witnessing one of the greatest careers of all-time.

Buster Posey is an MVP Candidate again

As the Giants try to defend their championship for the third time in the last five years, the face of their franchise is quietly having his second MVP worthy season of his career. The 2012 Most Valuable Player already has more home runs and runs batted in this season than he did in all of 2013. He has only struck out 33 times this season while hitting a slashline of .327/.386/.507. His .893 OPS is the second highest of his career since his MVP campaign of 2012 of .957.

His defense this season is even better than three years ago. That is what set him apart in 2012. His ability to catch a top pitching staff is what led most voters to choose Posey for the award over Ryan Braun and others.

Posey has an impressive trophy case already in his young career, with three world series rings, an MVP, a Comeback Player of the Year award, All-Star appearances and Silver Sluggers. Winning a second MVP, however, would put him a step closer to a path that few catchers have been to. Posey has often been compared to Hall of Famers like Johnny Bench and Yogi Berra, and winning multiple MVP awards is something Posey must do for that conversation to continue. Bench and Berra not only own many World Series rings like Posey does, but they also won multiple MVP's which Posey has yet to do.

This season, the other candidates include Bryce Harper, Paul Goldschmidt, and pitchers like Zach Greinke and Max Scherzer. Last year when Clayton Kershaw won the award, there weren't any legitimate hitters to compete with his historic season. This year, Harper, Goldschmidt and Posey are all deserving of the award.

Based on Wins Above Replacement, Harper (6.9) is the choice over Greinke (6.7) with a slim lead. Goldschmidt, who plays for a below .500 team has a WAR of 6.1, while Posey is at 5.3.  Harper could end up winning in a landslide because his Nationals are competing for the playoffs and his numbers suggest he has far and away the best hitter. But a lot can happen in August and September, and voters in years past would suggest that those months mean more in their final tally. If Harper continues to produce, Posey could be on the outside looking in come awards season. However, if Posey continues to perform the way he has since the All-Star break, we may be seeing a second MVP for the defending champs best player.