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Wilson Ramos picked up his 50th RBI tonight with a base hit off of Tim Hudson in the second inning. It may not seem like a notable milestone to you, but it made me wonder where the Nats' catching corps stands in terms of offensive production, all-time, for Washington major league baseball.
Best as I can tell, the 2011 Nationals' receivers - Ramos, Pudge Rodriguez and Jesus Flores - are No. 1 all-time, but not by a lot. As things stand this minute, the 2011 Washington catching trio has hit 17 home runs and driven in 71. The 1961 first-year expansion Senators employed four catchers - Gene Green, Pete Daley, Ken Retzer and Dutch Dotterer - who combined to also hit 17 home runs (Green hit 18 for the season, but only 14 as a catcher) and drive in 69 runs.
Granted, it's a pretty modest number, but the old Nationals/Senators never really had much offense behind the plate. Even their Hall of Fame catcher Rick Ferrell was far better known for his glove - he handled a rotation that contained four knuckleballers - than his bat - three home runs and 237 RBIs in 659 games for the Nats.
It's a safe assumption that Ramos will get better as he gains more experience. Still, if you're a local baseball fan, every milestone merits a mention.
