Brian McCann
McCann's 2006 breakout season remains one of the most dominant catching campaigns of the modern era. At just 22, he posted a .333 average with 24 homers — offensive numbers that would make any catcher a perennial MVP candidate today, when the position has become offensively barren.
What made McCann special wasn't just the peak performance but the sustained excellence. Six Silver Sluggers tell the story of a catcher who consistently outproduced his peers at baseball's most demanding position. His 282 career home runs rank among the highest totals for catchers in the expansion era.
The OPS+ of 106 across 15 seasons understates his value — catching offense has declined significantly since McCann's prime. He was the rare backstop who could anchor a lineup's middle while handling the rigors behind the plate year after year.
Career · Batting
15 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | ATL | 59 | 180 | 5 | 23 | .278 | .745 | 99 |
| 2006 | ATL | 130 | 442 | 24 | 93 | .333 | .961 | 125 |
| 2007 | ATL | 139 | 504 | 18 | 92 | .270 | .772 | 102 |
| 2008 | ATL | 145 | 509 | 23 | 87 | .301 | .896 | 120 |
| 2009 | ATL | 138 | 488 | 21 | 94 | .281 | .834 | 111 |
| 2010 | ATL | 143 | 479 | 21 | 77 | .269 | .828 | 114 |
| 2011 | ATL | 128 | 466 | 24 | 71 | .270 | .817 | 114 |
| 2012 | ATL | 121 | 439 | 20 | 67 | .230 | .698 | 96 |
| 2013 | ATL | 102 | 356 | 20 | 57 | .256 | .796 | 111 |
| 2014 | NYY | 140 | 495 | 23 | 75 | .232 | .692 | 99 |
| 2015 | NYY | 135 | 465 | 26 | 94 | .232 | .756 | 105 |
| 2016 | NYY | 130 | 429 | 20 | 58 | .242 | .748 | 101 |
| 2017 | HOU | 97 | 349 | 18 | 62 | .241 | .759 | 101 |
| 2018 | HOU | 63 | 189 | 7 | 23 | .212 | .640 | 88 |
| 2019 | ATL | 85 | 277 | 12 | 45 | .249 | .734 | 97 |
| Career | 1755 | 6067 | 282 | 1018 | .262 | — | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.