Tony Peña

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Peña's path to the majors began in 1975 when he showed up at a Pittsburgh Pirates tryout camp in the Dominican Republic, raw and unsigned. The Pirates liked what they saw and inked him as an amateur free agent for $4,000. Originally an outfielder, he didn't strap on catcher's gear until 1977, while toiling in the minor leagues. As a catcher, Peña developed a bizarre but effective squat: with no runners on base, he'd extend his left leg straight out while squatting on his right, a contortion designed to help his pitchers keep the ball low in the zone. In 1981, his path to the big leagues was clogged behind Ed Ott and Steve Nicosia, and his English was still shaky. But the Pirates traded Ott on April 1, and Peña began platooning with Nicosia before seizing the full-time job. He hit .300 in 66 games and finished sixth in the 1981 National League Rookie of the Year voting. By 1986, a poll of major league managers declared him the best throwing catcher in the game — a reputation built on a rifle arm and a relentless work ethic.

In Their Own Story

In 1990, Peña signed a three-year, $6.4 million contract with the Boston Red Sox. That season, he led American League catchers in games played, range factor, and putouts, while finishing second in assists and fielding percentage. During a September skid that threatened to cost the Red Sox the division, Peña called his teammates quitters and hurled a folding chair across the clubhouse, hoping to jolt them awake. The gesture backfired: several players took offense, blaming his outburst on his still-evolving English. On September 18, in Game 3 of the 1990 American League Championship Series, Peña's two defensive lapses against the Oakland Athletics allowed three runs and effectively sank the Red Sox. But he bounced back in 1991, leading AL catchers in defensive games, putouts, double plays, runners caught stealing, and range factor. That performance earned him a Gold Glove, making him one of only five players ever to win the award in both the American and National Leagues.

Reader's Guide

Peña's career spanned eighteen major league seasons, during which he played in 1,988 games, accumulating 1,687 hits in 6,489 at-bats for a .260 career batting average, along with 107 home runs, 708 runs batted in, and a .309 on-base percentage. He ended his career with a .991 fielding percentage. He led his league five times in putouts and twice in fielding percentage, assists, range factor, and in baserunners caught stealing. A five-time All-Star, he won four Gold Glove Awards. Peña's 1,950 games played as a catcher rank him sixth on the all-time list, and his 156 caught-stealing percentage (career 42%) remains among the best for catchers with over 1,000 games.

Did You Know?

• Peña was originally signed as an outfielder and didn't start playing catcher until 1977.
• He adopted an unorthodox squat behind the plate, extending his left leg straight out while squatting on his right leg, to help pitchers keep their pitches low.
• In a 1986 poll of major league managers, Peña was selected as the best throwing catcher in the major leagues.
• Peña is one of only five players to win a Gold Glove Award in both the American and National Leagues.