Roster Breakdown: Catchers

The final stop on our roster breakdown is the all important and yet sometimes forgotten catcher position. The Phils have 2 great catchers in Carlos Ruiz and veteran back up Brian Schneider. Let me tell you a little bit about them and what you can expect from Ruiz and Schneider in 2011.

Carlos Ruiz: On a team that features possibly the best starting rotation in all of baseball and some of the best hitters in the game, it's sometimes easy to forget about a guy like Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz is quiet, and is not a guy who is going to draw a whole lot of attention to himself. Instead Ruiz lets his game do the talking. Last year Ruiz led the Phillies in hitting with a .302 batting average. He also had 8 HR and 53 RBI's to cap off a solid year offensively. While guys went on and off the disabled list and battled slumps, Ruiz remained consistent and was the one guy on this team who you could always count on offensively. Defensively Ruiz had an excellent year behind the plate. He called Roy Halladay's perfect game as well as his post season no hitter. Looking ahead to this year, I expect Ruiz to have another solid year offensively. I don't expect him to lead the team in hitting again as I expect other guys like Rollins, Utley and Victorino to have very high averages. Defensively I can't stress enough the importance of a guy like Carlos Ruiz. He has experience with all these guys including Cliff Lee. He knows what they like to throw in certain situations and he knows how to get the most out of everyone. He may be quiet, but he's one of best players on the Phils and probably the most under rated players in all of baseball.

Brian Schneider: When the Phillies first signed Brian Schneider during last year's off season I was extremely happy. For years the Phillies had tried to find a suitable backup to starter Carlos Ruiz by bringing in guys like Sal Fasano and Rod Barajas. I really like Schneider and I think he is the perfect backup catcher for this team. He is a veteran guy who knows how to do the little things to win games. He also has a great understanding of the game and knows how to call an effective game for any given pitcher. Although he didn't have a statistically strong year last season, he did manage to contribute when Ruiz needed a breather. Schneider is a great clubhouse presence and a guy I really like as the backup for this year and in the future.

Ruiz was the unsung hero last year for the Phils. Hopefully this year he will not go under the radar as much and people will begin to appreciate him as one of the best players on this team. As for Schneider, hopefully he can bounce back and have a little stronger year at the plate. I really like the catchers that we have and I think it is so important to have smart catchers that can deal with a highly talented starting staff like the one the Phillies have.