Johnny Bench

During 17 years with the Cincinnati Reds, Johnny Bench became the greatest-one handed catcher and their premier hitter and power hitter. With two World Series rings, four pennants, and six division titles, Bench was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, his first year of eligibility.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame with the third-highest total of votes in history and was named on 431 of 447 (96.4 percent) ballots cast by baseball writers around the country. At Cincinnati, Bench caught 1,739 games, then the fourth highest total in major league history. He also caught 100 or more games for 13 consecutive years. He appeared in 2,158 games, with 7,658 at bats, 2,048 hits, 389 home runs and 1,376 runs batted in. He posted a career batting average of .267.

His first year, he was named National League Rookie of the Year by Baseball Writers' Association of America and The Sporting News. As the National League's best defensive catcher, Bench won the Gold Glove for 10 consecutive years. He was named to the National League All-Star team for 13 years in a row from 1968-1980.

In 1970, he was named Major League Player of the Year by Sporting News and in '70 and '72 he was voted the league's MVP as well as MVP of the 1976 World Series with a .533 average.

Bench led the National League in total bases with 315 in 1974. He also led the league in sacrifice flies with 11 in 1970, 12 in 1972 and tied for lead with 10 in 1973. In addition, he led the league catchers in putouts with 651, total chances with 713 and fielding percentage with .997 in 1976. He also led the league catchers in double plays with 16 in 1974.

Bench retired in 1983 after 17 years with the Reds, and is known as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history. He was born in Oklahoma City in 1947 and graduated from Binger High School as class valedictorian. He was an All-State baseball and basketball player.