The catching shift: Rupp earning a long look

Cameron Rupp, in a younger day. Image- Jay FloydSince 1940, the Phillies have started six catchers for more than five seasons. Together, Andy Seminick, Clay Dalrymple, Bob Boone, Darren Daulton, Mike Lieberthal and Carlos Ruiz have a career average WAR of 20.8. Boone is a little higher than the others, while Lieberthal is a tad lower than the others. But nobody is near the threshold for Hall of Fame discussion, and nobody is certainly just average.

So it’s remarkable that, through their modern history, the Phillies have employed such a large collection of above-average, non-elite catchers who have helped to define that team’s specific era.

Now we come to the end of yet another era, that of a…