Yadier Benjamín Molina (; born July 13, 1982) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball manager, adviser, and former catcher who is the manager of Navegantes del Magallanes of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP) and a special assistant to the president of baseball operations for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played his entire 19-year MLB career with the St. Louis Cardinals from 2004 to 2022. Widely considered one of the greatest defensive catchers of all time for his blocking ability and caught-stealing percentage, Molina won nine Rawlings Gold Gloves and six Fielding Bible Awards. A two-time World Series champion, he played for Cardinals teams that made 12 playoff appearances and won four National League pennants. Molina also played for the Puerto Rican national team in four World Baseball Classic (WBC) tournaments, winning two silver medals.
When he retired after the 2022 season, Molina ranked first all-time among catchers in putouts and second all-time among catchers with 130 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS); among active players, he ranked first with 845 assists, 40.21% of runners caught stealing, and 55 pickoffs. Along with pitcher Adam Wainwright, Molina holds the records for most games started and won as a battery. As a hitter, Molina accrued more than 2,100 hits, 150 home runs, and 1,000 runs batted in (RBIs); he batted over .300 in five seasons. Other distinctions include selection to ten MLB All-Star Games, four Platinum Glove Awards, and one Silver Slugger Award. He was a two-time selection to the All-WBC Tournament Team and was a member of the 2018 MLB Japan All-Star Series.
The product of a baseball family, Molina was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. His father was an amateur second baseman and the all-time hits leader in Puerto Rican baseball, and his two older brothers, Bengie and José, also developed into standout defensive catchers with lengthy MLB careers. The Cardinals' fourth-round selection in the 2000 MLB draft, Molina entered the major leagues in the 2004 season and quickly showed one of the strongest and most accurate arms in the game. Over his career, he earned a reputation as a team leader, eventually formulating pregame plans to handle opposing hitters, including pitching strategies and fielder positioning.
Molina appeared on five NL Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) ballots, including finishing fourth in 2012 and third in 2013. When Hurricane Maria ravaged the island of Puerto Rico in September 2017, Molina began relief efforts for victims of the catastrophe, consequently receiving the Roberto Clemente Award in 2018.
Early life
Yadier Benjamín Molina was born on July 13, 1982, in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, the youngest of three boys to Gladys Matta and Benjamín Molina, Sr. He attended Maestro Ladislao Martínez High School in Vega Alta.–Baseball in Puerto Rico is a significant part of the island's culture. Molina's father played second base as an amateur and worked as a tools technician 10 hours per day in a Westinghouse factory. The all-time hits leader in Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente (or Doble-A Beísbol) history, the elder Molina delivered a .320 career batting average and gained election to the Puerto Rican baseball hall of fame in 2002. Molina's two older brothers, Bengie and José, also developed into distinguished defensive catchers with lengthy careers in Major League Baseball (MLB), and each of the three won at least one World Series championship.
Each day when he completed work, Molina's father went directly home, ate dinner with his family, and crossed the street from his family's home with his sons and his son's friend Carlos Diaz to Jesús Mambe Kuilan Park, spending countless evening hours teaching them the fundamentals of the sport. He remained hopeful that his sons would become professional baseball players.
Molina's catching aptitude showed as early as age five and developed quickly.
Molina's father also sought to accelerate him on the diamond. Following Yadier's suspension from a youth league about age 15, he anticipated the desistance would stagnate his development, so he searched for an alternative. Against the wishes of coaches, family members and friends, he scheduled Yadier for a workout with the Hatillo Tigres, an amateur league team. Molina made the team after a single workout and immediately became the starting catcher. The Tigres played in a league composed mainly of players 10 or more years older than Molina, well before he was eligible for the MLB draft.
Professional career
Draft and minor leagues
Minnesota Twins scout Edwin Rodríguez followed and scrutinized Molina starting in high school. He observed that Molina's skills closely resembled that of both his older brothers—both accomplished major league catchers—and decided that his defense was "polished" enough to be considered more advanced than most high schoolers in the United States. However, Molina's hitting lagged behind his defense. The initial report on his skill set was "defensive catcher, great arm, weak bat"; the closest comparable hitter as catcher was one whom the Cardinals eventually placed at the top of their organizational ladder, his future manager Mike Matheny.
Before he was drafted, Molina worked out for the Cincinnati Reds. He put on a spectacle at Riverfront Stadium with his arm and bat that grabbed the attention of executives, scouts, and prominent former Reds players, including Johnny Bench and Bob Boone. As Molina recalled, he left the session with the impression that Cincinnati intended to draft him. Undeterred by the universal reservations about his offensive ceiling, the St. Louis Cardinals instead took Molina in the fourth round of the 2000 MLB draft and signed him for $325,000.
In a May 27 game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park in San Diego with the Cardinals holding a 4–3 lead in the bottom of the ninth, Molina picked Brian Giles off first to end the game, the first pickoff to end a major league game in nearly four years. The Cardinals faced the Padres again in the National League Division Series (NLDS) playoff game in the playoffs, he again picked a Padre off at first, this time Mike Piazza, while bailing pitcher Jeff Suppan out of a jam. However, the following playoffs marked a turning point in his career offensive output. He posted a .358 composite batting average, .424 on-base percentage (OBP), two home runs and eight RBIs in 16 games as the Cardinals reached the World Series.
In the bottom of the ninth, rookie pitcher Adam Wainwright – filling in as emergency closer – found himself in a two-out, bases-loaded situation against center fielder Carlos Beltrán, who had already homered three times in the NLCS. Molina called for a mound conference. Initially, he wanted a sinker from Wainwright but changed his mind because he suspected Wainwright would overthrow it and give Beltrán an easy pitch to hit. Molina made an unconventional choice by calling for a changeup to start the sequence against Beltrán. It was called for a strike. Had Beltrán successfully got a base hit, the scheme may have caused tension for the third-year catcher with La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan because throwing a first-pitch changeup ran contrary to Duncan's teaching. Molina then called for two curveballs. Beltrán fouled off the first, but Wainwright struck him out looking at a "bender that started up and away and bit hard to the low inside corner" for the final out of the game. The Cardinals' conquest of the NLCS gave them a return trip to the World Series after two years. They proceeded to defeat the Detroit Tigers in five games, giving Molina his first championship ring. His mask was turned in for display at the Baseball Hall of Fame.
2007–09
thumb|right|Molina interacting with his brother [[Bengie Molina|Bengie in a 2007 game, the first time they faced each other in the Major Leagues]]
Batting out of the number-five spot in the batting order for the first time in his career on Opening Day, 2007, Molina collected two hits. In a game against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 15, Molina picked Prince Fielder off first base as he leaned far off the bag, tipping off Molina and first baseman Albert Pujols to a hit and run the Brewers were planning.
From May 1 to 24, Molina strung together a then-career high 15-game hitting streak, during which he batted .373. It was the longest streak for a Cardinals catcher since Erik Pappas' 16-game streak in 1993. Molina was absent for most of June due to a fractured left wrist. In the third inning of the May 29 game against Colorado, he took a foul tip off his wrist from Rockies right fielder Brad Hawpe's bat. After missing 26 games, the Cardinals activated him from the disabled list on June 28. On Yadier Molina Bobblehead Night September 19 versus Philadelphia, he stroked three hits including the game-winning single in the tenth inning. He started the season with an Opening Day home run and seven-game hitting streak. After a home plate collision with Eric Bruntlett on June 15 against the Philadelphia Phillies in the ninth inning, Molina sustained head and neck injuries and was removed from the field on a stretcher. There were no indications of a concussion. He held on to the ball to help the Cardinals win. To that point, Molina was batting .295 with three home runs and 24 RBIs. He also had thrown out 10 of 32 baserunners (31.3%) – well below his career average of 45% – but an Associated Press reporter attributed the decline to an inexperienced pitching staff.
Molina returned to the field against Boston at Fenway Park as the designated hitter. In that game, his solo home run provided the difference in a 5–4 Cardinals victory. It was also the first game of the first of two 13-game hitting streaks for the season. His first career start at first base, also against Boston, occurred two days later. During that streak, he collected 17 hits in 47 at-bats for a .362 batting average. The second hitting streak spanned from August 16 to September 2, where he successfully hit 19 times in 50 at bats for a .380 average.
Overall, Molina enjoyed a breakout offensive season, finishing with new career highs with a .304 batting average – his first over .300 – and in hits (135), OBP (.349), SLG (.392), runs (37) and RBIs (56). Of all catchers in franchise history with at least 450 PA in a season, he became just the second ever, after Simmons, to bat over .300; it was then the fourth-best season batting average; and, his 29 strikeouts were the fewest since Simmons fanned 20 times in 1976. Molina led the team and was sixth in the NL with a .340 batting average with runners in scoring position. Starting pitcher Joel Piñeiro – struggling with his fastball command in previous starts – experimented with a sinker and shut out the New York Mets on June 24 with just two hits. Molina erased a Mets runner by throwing out Luis Castillo attempting to steal second base. Molina was batting .278 with five home runs and 25 RBIs through July 5, 2009. He was selected through fan vote to represent the Cardinals in the All-Star Game in St. Louis' Busch Stadium – his first All-Star Game. As the top vote-getter among NL catchers with 2,641,467 votes, Molina was named the NL's starting catcher. He caught eight innings and drove home a run.
Following the All-Star break on July 18, Molina's four hits and Albert Pujols' two home runs helped cap Chris Carpenter's 6–1 victory over the Diamondbacks, who pitched around nine runners on base in eight innings. On August 15, Molina picked off San Diego's Kevin Kouzmanoff at first on the way to a 7–4 victory, the 33rd of his career. At that point, Bill James Online rated that Molina saved his team fifteen total runs from pickoffs alone in his career.
A sore left knee sustained after taking a foul ball of his kneecap temporarily disabled Molina on September 26. He was back in action on October 1 against Cincinnati, although he was removed from that game due to a "tweaked" knee. He finished the season with a .293 batting average, six home runs, 54 RBIs, and a major league-leading 136 games caught, the highest franchise total since Ted Simmons' total in 1977. For the first time in his career, Molina earned Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) consideration. He finished tied for 23rd with Miguel Tejada with one percent of the vote share.
2010–11
On Opening Day, April 5, 2010, Molina connected for a grand slam, becoming just the third Cardinals player to hit an Opening Day grand slam, following Mark McGwire and Scott Rolen. On April 17, he caught all 20 innings of a game against the Mets. Molina turned in a productive April, driving in 15 runners, the most for a Cardinals catcher in the month of April since Ted Simmons drove in 20 in 1977. He also continued his productivity with the bases loaded that month, collecting four hits and 11 RBIs in five at bats.
Before the All-Star break, Molina batted just .223. However, he was voted to start his second consecutive game, and second overall, and played four innings. After the All-Star break, his hitting improved, as he stroked 63 hits in 200 at bats for .315 batting average. During a game against the Cincinnati Reds on August 10, as second baseman Brandon Phillips came to bat, he exchanged words with Molina that escalated to a bench-clearing confrontation, although no one was ejected. On September 17, he amassed a career-high five RBIs and career-tying four hits against San Diego, including two doubles.
The final batting results for Molina's 2010 season consisted of a .262 batting average, six home runs, and 62 RBIs. He ranked as the fourth toughest in the NL to strike out with 10.2 at bats per strikeout. He led all NL catchers in at-bats (465) and stolen bases (eight), and his 122 hits ranked second, just behind Brian McCann's 123. He was tops in the NL with 24 bases-loaded RBIs, collecting eight hits in 15 AB for a .533 batting average in those situations. He also was first in the Majors with a .455 batting average (10–22) on 0–2 counts. He led all MLB catchers in innings (1138), games started (130) and assists (79), Nine days later, he was awarded his third consecutive Gold Glove Award.
With increased offensive productivity in 2011, Molina continued to help anchor the middle of Cardinals lineup in addition to the pitching staff and defense. From May 15 to 18, he put together four consecutive multi-hit games. Selected to his third consecutive All-Star Game, he substituted for the starter, McCann, played four innings and doubled in his only at-bat. Molina hit safety in 14 consecutive games from July 21 to August 11, one fewer than his career high. From July 22–25, he homered in three consecutive games, the second time in his career he had done so.
On August 2, Molina was ejected from a game against the Milwaukee Brewers for arguing a called strike. He bumped umpire Rob Drake in the chest multiple times and appeared to spit upon him. Molina later apologized, stating that he did not intend to spit on the umpire and that he "was caught up in the moment. That's what happens when you're caught up in the race and trying to win. I didn't handle it the right way." He served a five-game suspension handed down by MLB for "making contact with umpire Rob Drake multiple times and spraying him with spit twice while arguing."
Although the Cardinals stayed competitive, they were, at best, on the fringes of making the playoffs through August. On August 28, with a 70–64 record, they faced a -game deficit to the Braves for the wild card playoff berth with 28 left to play. Molina provided a spark to the offense in the close of the season, batting .342 in August and .341 in September.
St. Louis won 20 of 28 games to finish the season, allowing them to tie the Braves for the wild card lead going into the final day. Molina caught Carpenter's 8–0 shutout of the Astros, the final game of the regular season. Meanwhile, the Philles defeated the Braves 4–3 in 13 innings, giving the Cardinals the wild card title and eliminating the Braves from the playoffs. The games-won deficit marked the largest lead surrendered with 28 left to play in MLB history, consummating what St. Louis Post-Dispatch sportswriter Bernie Miklasz termed an "improbable comeback," and one of the greatest sports history. It was just the first in a series of improbable comebacks for the Cardinals in 2011.
Molina compiled a .305 batting average, 32 doubles, 14 home runs and 65 RBIs during the 2011 regular season. His batting average led the Cardinals and was eighth in the NL. However, his posted a career-low 29% caught-stealing percentage. batting average, and hit totals led NL catchers, doubles placed second and RBIs third. His .337 batting average following the All-Star Break tied for seventh in the NL. He also led all NL catchers with 12 three-hit games, and collated 39 multi-hit games and 13 multi-RBI games. For the series, the Rangers attempted to steal four bases and were successful just once. In Game 3, Molina accumulated four RBI, and two more each in Games 6 and 7. becoming just the fifth catcher on a pennant-winning club to lead his position in OPS+ in his league while winning a Gold Glove. For the second time in his career, he won MVP consideration; he finished tied for 21st for the NL MVP balloting.
2012
On March 1, 2012, Molina signed a five-year extension with the Cardinals worth $75 million through 2017. The contract included a $1 million signing bonus, no-trade clause, and a mutual option for 2018 worth another $15 million. The deal made him the second-highest-paid catcher in the majors. He collected his tenth career four-hit game against the Brewers on April 29 with a two-run home run that led the Cardinals to a 7–3 win. On May 1, Molina mounted the first of two two-stolen base games of the season; the other occurred August 3.
On May 27 against the Phillies, Molina blasted his third career grand slam against Roy Halladay. His made his 1,000th career appearance in an MLB game against the Chicago White Sox on June 12. From July 25 to August 7, he maintained a season-best 11-game hitting streak in which he batted .413. In August, he batted .403 with a .453 OBP, both tied for third in the NL. On September 4, Molina collected his 1,000th career hit, an infield single against the Mets at home in the second inning.
The 2012 season was one of Molina's crowning achievements as a hitter, especially considering early professional scouting reports did not forecast his bat being much of a factor in the major leagues. He set new career highs in multiple offensive categories, including a .315 batting average, 22 home runs, 76 RBI, 65 runs scored, .373 OBP, .501 slugging percentage and 12 stolen bases. factor of 140 and 45 percent of runners caught stealing. At 143, his WRC+ was tied for eighth all-time among catchers with at 45% of base runners caught stealing. Further, those figures aligned with peak seasons of other catchers such as Johnny Bench, Elston Howard, Carlton Fisk, and Rick Wilkins.
After being the subject of much speculation for the MVP award throughout the season, Molina ultimately finished fourth. However, he did win the prestigious and oldest award given to Latino players: the LatinoMVP award given by Latino Sports and the Latino Sports Writers & Broadcasters Association (LSWBA). He and winner Buster Posey became the first pair of catchers to finish in the top four in the award's 88-year history. However, like in years past, other awards were on their way. In November, he won his fifth straight Gold Glove award, making him the first Cardinal since Jim Edmonds to win that many consecutively, which Edmonds did in 2004. On December 4, he won his first GIBBY Award for Defensive Player of the Year. The St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) named him the St. Louis Baseball Man of the Year for 2012.
2013
300px|thumb|right|Molina rounding third in St. Louis in 2013
With increased profile coming in conjunction with his offensive breakout from the year before, Molina's popularity with fans around the game also increased. Following his 2012 fourth-place MVP finish, his 2013 in-season jersey sales rose to third place, just after Posey and retiring New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, according to a July 11 report. On June 2 he was ejected by 1st base umpire Clint Fagan for throwing his helmet. Molina collected two doubles in a three-hit game on June 12, giving him 21 doubles for the season, a pre-All-Star break career high. It was also the second-highest pre-All-Star break total in franchise history following Ted Simmons' 29 thirty-five years earlier. That three-hit game also gave Molina 78 for his career, tied for 43 on the all-time list for catchers.
Through July 15, Molina led the NL with a .341 (110 hits in 323 at-bats) batting average. In the final All-Star Game balloting, Molina (6,883,258 votes) edged out Posey (6,474,088) for the role of the NL's starting catcher in the game held at Citi Field in Queens, New York City. The Cardinals placed Molina on the 15-day disabled list on July 31 due to a right knee sprain. At the time he went on the DL, Molina was batting .330 with eight homers, thirty doubles, and 54 RBIs.
The knee injury impacted his batting average, contributing to a late-season slump. On September 16, Molina collected four hits with three runs scored to help the Cardinals to a 12–2 win over the Seattle Mariners and break an 0–15 slump, raising his batting average to .317. Eight days later, Molina was behind the plate to call rookie Michael Wacha's one-hit, 8 innings of shutout work in a 2–0 victory over the Washington Nationals. It was actually a no-hitter through that point until Ryan Zimmerman broke it up with a high-bouncing ground ball that glanced off Wacha's glove for the Nationals' only hit of the game.
For the year, Molina set new career highs in batting average (.319), doubles (44), runs scored (68), and RBIs (80). He also hit .373 with runners in scoring position (RISP) in a season in which the Cardinals set the all-team team record for batting average with RISP at .330. He finished fourth in the NL in batting average, second in doubles and sixth in batting average with RISP. His 44 doubles were the most in the Major Leagues among catchers since Iván Rodríguez' 47 in 1996.
Molina was also noted for his handling of the pitching staff. The Cardinals overcame losing key pitchers Chris Carpenter, Jason Motte, and Jaime García – among others – early in the season by substituting twelve rookie pitchers en route to winning a competitive NL Central division title over the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds (each team finished with at least 90 wins). A continuously evolving core exceeded expectations by filling in for 52 games started, 36 wins, and five saves and Molina was credited with their success in a large part due to his pitch-calling skills and aptness to guide. The rookies' 36 wins were the most in franchise history since 1941.