Calling the shots

Of all the advice Will Salley received when he had yet to grasp the nuances of being a catcher, one piece remains stuck with him today.

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Michael Holahan/Staff

Westside catcher Will Salley has a team-best 39 RBI and nine doubles this season. He's a three-year starter.

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Michael Holahan/Staff

Westside catcher Will Salley said he goes out of his way to stay involved in a game. Players said a catcher's attitude can mimic the team's.

The most important thing to remember, his father told him, is that everyone at a baseball game is looking at the catcher. Because Salley estimates his father has missed only three of his nearly 100 high school games, he's had plenty of chances to embrace the message since his first game as a catcher in ninth grade.

"After he said it enough times," Salley said, "it really stuck in my head."

A catcher's attitude can mimic a team's attitude, coaches and players say. What's more, a catcher's success often can indicate a team's success.

Consider: Of the four Region 3-AAAA teams that qualified for the playoffs this season, three returned a catcher who is among their best players. Seven of the 10 area teams who will open the Georgia High School Association's playoffs today returned their catcher from last season.

From Lakeside's Mike Gram (maybe the region's best hitter) to Aquinas' Brandon Paul (a Division-I signee) to Salley (team-best 39 RBI and nine doubles), top catchers typically play on playoff-bound teams. In fact, outside of pitching, it could be the one position that can project the outcome of a game.

Salley, who has started for three years at Westside, said he goes out of his way to stay involved in a game. That might include, he said, maintaining demonstrative body language or constantly hollering encouragement to the pitcher and infielders.

Paul, who will play at Presbyterian College next season, compares a catcher to a quarterback. He should know, considering he passed for more than 1,000 yards this past fall as Aquinas' quarterback.

"It takes a special player to play catcher," Paul said. "Not just anyone can get back there, because it's physically demanding and you have to know what's going on all the time. All the time."

Said Aquinas coach Mike Laney, "He's a coach on the field; he sees everything, including being aware of his attitude."

Coaches trust catchers to start the outcome of each play by calling the pitch. They also count on them to protect the opposing team from advancing bases. That catchers can hit is a bonus.

"Having a good catcher, you can always hold that runner on (first base) and make the other team beat you with (multiple hits)," said Westside coach Gerald Barnes, Georgia's all-time wins leader. "That's the biggest advantage."

The more a catcher develops, the more likely a coach is to trust him with unfolding a pitch sequence. Salley said he barely called a game as a sophomore, but now does so almost every game

"As I caught more and more games, it got more easier to know what I should and shouldn't call," said Salley, a senior who will play at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., next season. "Most of the time, you can feel what you should call next."