| Yadier Molina | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Molina with the St. Louis Cardinals | |||
| St. Louis Cardinals – No. 4 | |||
| Catcher | |||
| Born: July 13, 1982 Bayamón, Puerto Rico | |||
| |||
| MLB debut | |||
| June 3, 2004, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |||
| MLB statistics (through 2016 season) | |||
| Batting average | .285 | ||
| Hits | 1,593 | ||
| Home runs | 108 | ||
| Runs batted in | 703 | ||
| Teams | |||
| |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
MLB
| |||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's baseball | ||
Representing  Puerto Rico | ||
| World Baseball Classic | ||
 | 2013 San Francisco | Team |
A THEN MARLINS ROOKIE RECORD
Rookie Jose Fernandez strikes out 10 as Marlins edge Cardinals
Yadier Benjamin Molina (Spanish pronunciation: [ʝaˈdjer moˈlina]; born July 13, 1982), also known as "Yadi", is a Puerto Rican professional baseball catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). A winner of two World Series and four National League pennants, he is considered an essential figure in the Cardinals' postseason success, with nine appearances in his first twelve seasons. Considered one of the top defensive catchers of all time, his awards include seven consecutive selections to the All Star Game, eight consecutive Gold Gloves, four Platinum Gloves, and one Silver Slugger. Offensively, he has accrued more than 1,500 hits, 100 home runs, 600 runs batted in, and a .284 batting average. In international competition, he has represented Puerto Rico in all three tournaments of the World Baseball Classic (WBC), and in 2013, was the runner-up and an All-WBC Team selection.
Coming from a baseball family, Molina grew up in Vega Alta, 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, were also defensive standouts as catchers with lengthy MLB careers. Molina's pitch-handling and throwing skills originally caught the attention of scouts before being drafted. The Cardinals' fourth round selection in the 2000 MLB draft, he made his MLB debut four years later, quickly garnering a reputation for possessing one of the strongest and most accurate arms in the game. As of 2016, he had thrown out 41.69% of runners attempting a stolen base over his career, which is currently 184th all time and led active MLB catchers with 55 pickoffs.[1] Molina also formulates fielder positioning plans and complete pitching strategies to opposing hitters, earning a reputation as an on-field leader.
Initially considered a light hitter, Molina significantly improved his offense and raised his career batting average from .248 in 2007. Through 2015, he had a .286 career batting average in the postseason. In 2006, he became just the third catcher to play in two World Series before age 25, following Johnny Bench and Yogi Berra. He became the all-time Cardinals' leader in games caught with 1,439 on April 8, 2016. Molina is under contract through 2017.
| José Fernández | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Fernández with the Miami Marlins in 2016 | |||
| Pitcher | |||
| Born: July 31, 1992 Santa Clara, Cuba | |||
| Died: September 25, 2016 (aged 24) Miami Beach, Florida | |||
| |||
| MLB debut | |||
| April 7, 2013, for the Miami Marlins | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| September 20, 2016, for the Miami Marlins | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 38–17 | ||
| Earned run average | 2.58 | ||
| Strikeouts | 589 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
| |||
José D. Fernández (July 31, 1992 – September 25, 2016) was a Cuban-born American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Miami Marlins from 2013 until his death in 2016.
Fernández was born in Santa Clara, Cuba. He made three unsuccessful attempts at defecting before he was successful in 2008. He enrolled at Braulio Alonso High School in Tampa, Florida, and was selected by the Marlins in the first round of the 2011 MLB draft. Fernández made his MLB debut with the Marlins on April 7, 2013. He was named to the 2013 MLB All-Star Game and won the National League (NL) Rookie of the Month Award in July and August. After the season, he won the NL Rookie of the Year Award and finished third in Cy Young Award balloting. He underwent "Tommy John" surgery during the 2014 season, and made the MLB All-Star Game again in 2016.
Fernández died in a boating accident off Miami Beach on September 25, 2016. The Marlins announced that they will retire his uniform number to honor him.