Do the names Jack O'Connor or John Wathan mean anything to you?

If you're a baseball fan, then they probably should.

Read on to learn more about these catchers and their place in the stolen base record books.

Most Career Stolen Bases by a Catcher 

When it comes to baseball statistics there's often a bunch of different ways you can slice and dice the data.

For catchers with the most stolen bases in a career, we base it on this: a player who played the majority of their major league career games (e.g., 51% or more) as a catcher.

When we look across baseball history, the player with the most stolen bases by a catcher in a career (based on the criteria above) is Jack O'Connor with 219 lifetime stolen bases.

O'Connor broke into the big leagues in 1887 with the Cincinnati Red Stockings and spent 21 seasons in the league, retiring after the 1910 season.

He was a consistent base stealer (especially during the first half of his career) and was also a pretty good defensive catcher, leading league catchers in a few defensive categories over multiple seasons.

Second on the career stolen bases list is Hall of Fame catcher Roger Bresnahan. Over his 17 year playing career Bresnahan swiped 212 bags.

He even stole a base during the famous 1905 World Series, which John McGraw's New York Giants won.

Third on our list is Wilbert Robinson with 196 career stolen bases. The 18th century catcher had a good playing career but an even better tenure as a manager, making the Hall of Fame as a manager after a long career leading the Brooklyn Robins.  

The catcher with the most career steals in the modern era also happens to be fourth on the all-time list. That former catcher is Jason Kendall, who ended his 15 years in the MLB with 189 stolen bases.

In Summary - Top 3 Catchers With the Most Career Steals:

1. Jack O'Connor - 219 stolen bases

2. Roger Bresnahan - 212 stolen bases

3. Wilbert Robinson - 196 stolen bases

Most Stolen Bases by a Catcher in a Single Season

The criteria we use for ranking the catcher with the most steals in a season is a player with 100 or more games in a season played behind the plate.

The player with the most stolen bases by a catcher in a single season is John Wathan, who collected a record 36 steals in 1982.

The former Kansas City Royals catcher was 32 years old during his record-setting season. He also had an impressive 28 SB the following season, but after that Wathan never again got close to the record.

Second on the list of single-season leaders for stolen bases among catchers is former Chicago White Sox backstop Ray Schalk. In 1916, Schalk swiped 30 bags and helped power the Sox to a second place finish in the American League (AL).

The third place finisher on the single-season list is none other than Jack O'Connor. He stole 29 bases in 1890 for the Columbus Salons of the American Association. That season O'Connor also played in a career high 106 games behind the plate.

Interestingly, O'Connor also stole 29 bases in 1893. However, he only played in 56 games as a catcher that season.

In Summary - Top 3 Catchers With The Most Single-Season Steals:

1. John Wathan - 36 stolen bases in 1982

2. Ray Schalk - 30 stolen bases in 1916

3. Jack O'Connor - 29 stolen bases in 1890

Frequently Asked Questions

What catchers have 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season? 

Ivan Rodriguez and J.T. Realmuto are the only two catchers to reach 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases (20/20) in the same season.

Rodriguez hit a career high 35 home runs and stole a career high 25 bases on his way to the AL MVP in 1999.

Realmuto hit 22 HR and collected 21 stolen bases in 2022.

Which Hall of Fame catcher has the most career stolen bases?

The Hall of Fame catcher - who played the majority of his career behind the plate - with the most lifetime stolen bases is Roger Bresnahan with 212. 

Of note, Hall of Famer Buck Ewing collected 354 steals, but less than half (47%, to be exact) of his career defensive games were played as a catcher.

Which Hall of Fame catcher has the least career stolen bases?

Catcher Ernie Lombardi is the Hall of Famer with the fewest career stolen bases, with just eight (8). 

Lombardi was a large man and was known for being super slow. A New York Times columnist once said that Lombardi "couldn't outrace a snail, even with a headstart."

With that in mind, it's pretty shocking that he even stole 8 bases!

Which catcher has the most stolen bases in a single game?

Buck Ewing had 3 stolen bases in a single game in 1888, which is a record for a catcher.

Which catcher has the most career steals of home?

Carlton Fisk has stolen home three (3) different times, which is most all time by a catcher.

Thanks for Reading!

We hope you enjoyed this article and learned something new.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact us.

Thanks for stopping by Catchers Home.

 

Sources

• Baseball Reference
• National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
• Retrosheet