Yadier Molina's former arch-rival gives major praise to Cardinals legend

Yadier Molina's Hall of Fame case was debated while he was a player, and those discussions haven't dissipated even two years after his retirement. According to JAWS rankings, Yadi is a borderline Hall of Famer. Other players of his era, like Russell Martin and McCann, fell off the ballot after just one year. Meanwhile, Joe Mauer was a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

A former rival of Yadi, Jonathan Lucroy, took to social media to defend the St. Louis Cardinals legend.

According to his former rival, Yadier Molina is a top-three catcher of all time. Lucroy, who would have played against Molina during the Cardinal catcher's peak from 2010-2021, sees Yadi as one of the best backstops to have ever played the game.

Former rival Jonathan Lucroy believes Yadier Molina to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

According to every available defensive metric, that opinion stands. Defensive Runs Saved ranks Yadi as the third-best defensive player in baseball history behind only Andrelton Simmons and Adrian Beltre. He grades out as the best pure defender at any position according to FanGraphs. Yadi's 18,294.2 innings behind the plate rank third among catchers all time, and his 83 errors are the 7th lowest among qualified catchers in baseball history.

At his peak, Yadi was no slouch offensively either. His 97 wRC+ during his career ranks 40th among qualified catchers who played from 2004-2022. This places him in the top third of all catchers offensively during his era.

Pitchers on the Cardinals' staff also much preferred throwing to Yadi. In his final season, Yadi caught 77 games. Cardinal pitchers had a 3.52 ERA when throwing to him. The next closest was Andrew Knizner, who had a catcher ERA of 3.90. While catcher ERA has many other complicating factors that go into it, it can still be used as a part of an argument when deciding a catcher's effectiveness.

Perhaps the greatest stat in favor of Yadier Molina would be his ability to not only catch runners stealing but also scare runners away from stealing. From 2005 through 2022, there were only 1,370 stolen base attempts against the St. Louis Cardinals. The next closest team was the Arizona Diamondbacks, with 1,883 stolen base attempts against them.

Lucroy went on to describe the admiration for Yadi within the player base, too. "Inside the game, the respect for him behind the plate is comparable to Jeter's at SS," posted Lucroy on Twitter/X. While fans of baseball outside of St. Louis may be split on Molina's tenure and his Hall of Fame candidacy, players who spent time on the diamond and other insiders throughout baseball are of the belief that he's guaranteed a spot in Cooperstown.

Having a former opponent defend Yadier Molina lends credence to what Cardinal fans have been preaching for years: Yadier Molina is a Hall of Famer. His defense was among the best in baseball history regardless of position, and he boasted a decent bat for a catcher during his era. We'll have to wait a few more years for Molina's first chance at being elected to the Hall of Fame, but his support is widespread already.