Right shoulder surgery last season raised plenty of doubt about Jorge Posada's future as a catcher. There were never any worries about his ability in the batter's box, though.
Posada enjoyed another big game Friday, when he went 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs and delivered the game-winning two-run single in the ninth inning to complete a frantic comeback and give the Yankees a 9-8 win over the Angels at Yankee Stadium. Posada will go down as the best offensive catcher of this decade -- he leads all catchers in home runs (190) and RBIs (756) since 2000 -- and he continues to swing a potent bat even as he approaches his 38th birthday in August. His 18 RBIs are tied for most among big league catchers with the Giants' Bengie Molina and his four homers tie him with several others for second behind the Indians' Victor Martinez. In addition, Posada has reached base via a hit or walk in all but one of his 18 starts.
Even last year, when he battled shoulder woes all season until he finally underwent surgery in July, Posada delivered 17 extra-base hits in just 168 at-bats.
Posada has also regained his form behind the plate, though he is not back there as often as he'd like. Posada has thrown out 36 percent of the baserunners attempting to steal against him (10-of-28), an impressive figure for someone who has caught 30 percent or more of opposing baserunners just four times in 12 big-league seasons.
The presence of quality backup Jose Molina has allowed manager Joe Girardi -- who shared time behind the plate with Posada a decade ago -- to try and strike a delicate balance with Posada, who takes pride in his durability and made at least 120 starts behind the plate every year from 2000 through 2007.
Posada has started 15 of the Yankees' first 23 games at catcher, though he expressed displeasure when Girardi lifted him for Molina for defensive purposes in the ninth inning against the Indians April 17. As he proved once again Friday, though, it's impossible to keep his bat out of the lineup.
YANKEES 10, ANGELS 9: Jorge Posada's two-run single with none out in the ninth inning capped a dramatic comeback by the Yankees, who squandered an early four-run lead but scored six runs in the last two innings to stun the Angels at Yankee Stadium. Posada's two-run homer in the first capped a four-run first for the Yankees, but the Angels stormed back with six in the sixth and three more in the seventh before the Yankees mounted their own comeback. Robinson Cano was 3-for-5 with an RBI while Ramiro Pena went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Jonathan Albaladejo, the fifth Yankees pitcher, earned the win with a perfect ninth. Andy Pettitte struggled with his command all evening before the Angels broke through in the sixth. Pettitte, who threw just 61 strikes among his 108 pitches, was charged with five runs on nine hits and four walks while striking out just two in 5 2/3 innings.
