MLB Top 5: Washington Nationals Catchers and Managers

This is the first article in a series that looks at the five best players at each position for the Washington Nationals. In this installment are catchers and manager.

Baseball began in Montreal much like it had in the United States. Variations of the game were played even before the Civil War was ravaging America, but the first minor league team in the city was transplanted from Rochester, New York, and renamed the Royals in 1897. The first two teams using that name were short-lived, but a third began play in 1928 and became a well-known farm club for the Dodgers. Throughout the 1940s and ’50s, several future stars played and managed there, with Duke Snider, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Walter Alston, Tommy Lasorda (as a pitcher) and Roberto Clemente making names for themselves north of the border.

The Montreal club was associated with its major league counterpart in Brooklyn until 1960 after the Dodgers moved to the West Coast. A group of investors from Syracuse bought the minor league team and moved it to Salt Lake City, but Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley backed the “City of Saints” for a National League expansion entry and the Expos began play along with the Padres in 1969. The ownership group of the first team outside of the United States was led by Charles Bronfman, a businessman whose major endeavor was with Seagram, a family run liquor company that grew into an industry giant and expanded to owning broadcast stations and theme parks before it was sold in 2000 for $34 billion.

Bronfman’s money and love of baseball kept the team afloat for the first few years. The first goal was to get a new stadium, with expanding Jarry Park from a 3,000-seat home for amateur teams to one suitable for major league play. The expansion club won its first game and became the fastest team to throw a no-hitter when Bill Stoneman accomplished the feat in Montreal’s ninth game. However, the Expos did not have a winning record over their first decade, but they did get their new home. Montreal hosted the Summer Olympics in 1976, and the team moved into the $500 million Olympic Stadium the following year. A retractable roof was added in 1988 but was replaced after a decade due to issues with the tower and cable system used to open and close the roof.

The Expos had their first winning season in 1979, when they won 95 games and began a run of five straight years above .500. Fans in Montreal got their first taste of the postseason in 1981, when their club won the East Division in the second half of the strike-shortened season. The Expos defeated the Phillies in the Division Series before falling to the eventual champion Dodgers in the NLCS. The final game against Los Angeles was dubbed “Blue Monday” thanks to a ninth-inning home run by outfielder Rick Monday. Despite posting a record of .500 or better 16 times, this was the team’s only playoff appearance during its 38-year run in Canada.

Beginning in the late 1980s, Bronfman began to tire of running a professional baseball team. The Expos were fighting the Blue Jays for broadcasting rights and advertising money, and the owner was starting to sell off parts of his business empire. With escalating costs and an inability to get a new ballpark, Bronfman sold the team in 1991 to a group that included Claude Brochu, a fellow Seagram’s executive who had been team president for five years. Also in that group were the City of Montreal, the Province of Quebec and 11 local businesses, whose contributions kept the Expos in Canada despite potential buyers from Miami, Arizona and Buffalo inquiring about the team.

The Expos responded on the field, winning 87 games in 1992 and 94 the following year. However, arguably the team’s greatest season during their time north of the border was derailed, not by injury or roster dismantling, but by labor strife. In 1994, Montreal had a 74-40 record, which was the best in baseball, when the season ended on August 12 thanks to a player’s strike that canceled the rest of the league’s games as well as the playoffs and World Series. When the league returned, Montreal fell back to the pack, getting within 10 games of first place in their division only once in their final decade.

As the new century began, attendance and revenue continued to plummet, and baseball looked for other options for the team. American art dealer, entrepreneur and author Jeffrey Loria began buying up shares of the Expos until he owned more than 90 percent of the team in 1999. However, he damaged his own credibility by failing to improve media coverage of the team and asking for public money for a new ballpark. Loria became public enemy number one when he sold the Expos to the other 29 owners for $120 million, then purchased the Marlins from John Henry (and being given an additional $38.5 million by Major League Baseball). The club (as well as the Twins) survived a contraction attempt, but no help was coming from the other owners, and relocation talks were ongoing.

In an attempt to boost revenue, commissioner Bud Selig had the Expos play 22 games in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 2004, but the experiment did not go well, and the following year, the team was moved to Washington, D.C., which had been without a major league team since 1971. The newly named Nationals finished at 81-81 in their first season, and the team got a new owner when real estate developer Ted Lerner bought the club for $450 million. The Nationals fell to the bottom of the league before winning its first official division title and setting a franchise record with 98 wins in 2012. Although Washington fell to St. Louis in the Division Series, the season was the first of eight straight with a winning record for the club.

The Nationals boasted a potent offense led by 2015 MVP Bryce Harper and a pitching staff headed by two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer. After four division titles that ended with NLDS losses, Washington finally broke through in 2019. The Nationals won 93 games in the regular season, then beat the Brewers in the Wild Card game, upset the Dodgers in the Division Series, swept the Cardinals in the NLCS and edged the Astros in a World Series in which the road team won all seven games to take home their first championship. Despite a youth movement that has once again seen the team drop to the bottom of the standings, Dave Martinez is still at the helm, with 2025 being his eighth season as Nationals’ manager.

The Best Catchers and Managers in Washington Nationals History

Catchers

Honorable Mentions – John Bateman started his career with the Houston Colt .45s in their second season in 1963 and, after six years in the Lone Star State, he was Montreal’s third overall pick in the expansion draft. Bateman was behind the plate in the team’s ninth game when Bill Stoneman threw the first no-hitter in franchise history. His best offensive season for Montreal came in 1970, when he posted a .237-15-68 stat line and set career highs with 51 runs and 123 hits. Bateman was known for his signal calling and led all National League catchers in double plays twice while he was with Montreal. He was traded to the Phillies in 1972 and retired after the season.

Mike Fitzgerald was a Mets draft pick who won the fielding title in 1984 and then was sent to Montreal as part of the deal for the top player on this list after the season. Not only did he continue his solid defensive play, but he put together his best offensive seasons. Overall, Fitzgerald totaled 180 runs, 416 hits and 241 RBIs in 633 games. He played one season with the Angels before retiring in 1992.

5. Keibert Ruiz – The team’s current starting catcher was signed by the Dodgers out of his native Venezuela in 2014. Ruiz appeared in the 2018 MLB All-Star Futures Game but played just eight games with Los Angeles before he was traded to the Nationals as part of the deal for Max Scherzer and Trea Turner in 2021. He has proven to be solid on both offense and defense throughout his time in Washington. Ruiz had his best season at the plate in 2023, batting .260 and setting career highs with 55 runs, 136 hits, 18 home runs and 67 RBIs. His average dropped the following year, but he won the fielding title, led the league in double plays by a catcher and finished third in assists. Ruiz signed an eight-year, $50 million extension with the Nationals in 2023.

4. Darrin Fletcher – Another Dodgers draft pick, he played sparingly for both Los Angeles and Philadelphia before being traded to Montreal before the 1992 season. Fletcher was a solid pitch caller for an Expos team on the rise in the early 1990s, and he also had some offensive punch, driving in at least 50 runs four times in six seasons with Montreal (1992-97). He was an All-Star in 1994 and was part of a team with the best record in baseball before the player’s strike ended the season in August. Fletcher signed with the other Canadian team, the Blue Jays, in 1998, finishing his Expos tenure with a .266 average, 196 runs, 520 hits, 111 doubles and 61 home runs in 643 games. He finished his playing career in 2002 and was an occasional analyst for the Expos and Blue Jays.

3. Brian Schneider – He was a stalwart for the team during a rough transition from Montreal to Washington. He Jacksonville native was a reserve his first three years before moving into the starting lineup in 2003. The following year, he had arguably his best offensive season, batting .257 with 49 RBIs and setting career highs with 135 games, 112 hits and 12 home runs. Schneider was also stellar on defense, leading the league in caught stealing percentage twice and topping all National League catchers in double plays in 2004. In addition to his work with the Expos/Nationals franchise, he also was on Team USA during the first World Baseball Classic in 2006. The following year, Schneider was behind the plate when Barry Bonds became the all-time major league home run leader during an early August game. He finished his eight-year run for the franchise (2000-07) with 206 runs, 586 hits, 133 doubles and 294 RBIs in 757 games, then played for the Mets and Phillies before retiring in 2012. Schneider worked as a coach for the Marlins and Mets following his playing days.

2. Wilson Ramos – The Native of Venezuela signed with the Twins in 2007 and was traded to the Nationals three years later. Ramos proved to be an excellent run producer with Washington, earning Rookie of the Year consideration in 2011. However, he missed considerable time in each of the next three seasons thanks to a torn ACL, a hamstring injury and a broken left hand. Ramos struggled in his return to the lineup in 2015 but earned his first All-Star selection and silver slugger the following year after setting career highs with a .307 average, 58 runs, 148 hits, 22 home runs and 80 RBIs. However, his season, as well as his Nationals tenure, ended prematurely thanks to a second torn ACL.

Ramos finished his seven-year run in Washington (2010-16) with a .268 average, 222 runs, 566 hits, 83 homers, 320 RBIs and 907 total bases in 578 games. He also has the distinction of catching the franchise’s only three no-hitters since moving to Washington (one by Jordan Zimmermann in 2014, as well as a pair of gems by Max Scherzer the following year). Ramos spent time with five teams over his final five seasons before suffering a season-ending torn ACL and MCL with the Indians in 2021. He also played for an independent team in the U.S. as well as in the Mexican League before retiring in 2025. Following his rookie season, Ramos was kidnapped from his family home and held for two days in a mountain hideout before he was rescued by police.

1. Gary Carter – The Southern California native gave up a chance to play football for UCLA and instead signed with the Expos after they selected him in the third round in 1972. Carter converted from infielder to outfielder and later catcher in the minor leagues and was soon called up to Montreal. He started his career strong, batting .269 with 17 home runs and 68 RBIs in 1975 while earning his first All-Star selection and finished as the runner-up in the Rookie of the Year voting. Carter soon developed into one of the best backstops in the game, both at the plate and behind it. He topped 20 home runs and 70 runs six times each during his time in Montreal and drove in at least 80 runs on four occasions. Beginning in 1979, Carter earned six straight All-Star selection and added three gold gloves and three silver sluggers to his trophy case. Arguably his best season with the Expos was 1984, his last during his first run. He hit 27 homers, scored 75 runs, set career highs with a .294 average and 175 hits and led the league with 106 RBIs.

“Kid” gave fans in Montreal more than his share of memories. In addition to seven All-Star Game selections, he earned MVP honors in 1981 and ’84 and was behind the plate when Charlie Lea threw a no-hitter against the Giants in Game 2 of a May doubleheader. Following his 12 seasons with the Expos (1974-84 and ’92), Carter ranks third in franchise history in games (1,503), fourth in home runs (220), RBIs (823), total bases (2,409) and walks (582), fifth in runs (707) and hits (1,427), sixth in doubles (274), ninth in strikeouts (691) and tied for tenth in triples (24). He also was stellar in Montreal’s only postseason action in 1981, totaling six runs, 15 hits, four doubles, two homers and six RBIs in 10 games.

Carter was traded to the Mets following the 1984 season, and he was an integral part of two division winners, including a dominant club that won 108 games and had a memorable run to the title in 1986. He also spent time with the Giants and Dodgers before returning to the Expos for one final season in 1992. Carter’s numbers would get the envy of almost every other catcher in baseball history. Over a stellar 19-year career, he totaled 11 All-Star selections, five silver sluggers, three gold gloves and the 1989 Roberto Clemente Award. Offensively, he produced 324 home runs, 1,225 RBIs, 1,025 runs and 2,092 hits. On defense, he won two fielding titles and led all National League catchers in putouts eight times, games six times, assists and double plays five times each.

Following his playing career, Carter was a television analyst for the Marlins in the first four years of their existence. Despite all the accolades, his hot-and-cold relationship with the media led to him having to wait until his sixth year on the ballot in 2003 to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Carter was also a coach and manager in the minor leagues, independent leagues and in college. Following the college baseball season in 2011, doctors found four tumors in his brain which soon multiplied despite aggressive treatment attempts. Carter passed away early the following year at age 57.

Managers

Honorable Mentions – Gene Mauch was born in Kansas, grew up in Southern California and spent more than a decade as a player in the major leagues. Although he was a reserve infielder during his playing days, he was influenced by Leo Durocher, one of the great managers of the 1940s and ’50s, as a rookie with the Dodgers. Mauch spent his first nine seasons with the Phillies, where he had the team in the driver’s seat for a National League pennant in 1964 only for Philadelphia to collapse in the final month. He became Montreal’s first manager in 1969 and used his clever and hard-nosed style to lead the young team to mostly respectable finishes. Mauch went 499-627 in seven seasons with the Expos (1969-75), then spent five years with the Twins and five more in two stints with the Angels. Although he led California to a pair of division titles, he retired in 1987 with 1,902 wins, the most ever by a manager that never won a pennant (despite being one strike away in 1986). Mauch came back for one season as bench coach of the Angels in 1995 and passed away from lung cancer in 2005 at age 79.

Jim Fanning grew up in Iowa and played in 64 games with the Cubs as a catcher in the mid-1950s before focusing on the front office. He spent most of the next decade in the Braves organization and was named the first general manager of the Expos in 1968. One of Fanning’s first moves was to make a trade with the Astros to bring in Rusty Staub, an outfielder who would become a fan-favorite and a stalwart on the fledgling franchise. Fanning and Mauch worked well together, but when the team started to flounder, he was moved to positions working with scouting and player development and the manager was fired. He was a surprise choice to replace another skipper on this list with about a month to play in the strike-shortened 1981 season and went 16-11 to lead the team to its only playoff appearance while in Montreal. The Expos went 86-76 the following year, but dealt with injuries and unrest, leading to Fanning resigning at the end of the season and becoming the team’s farm director. He returned for one more managerial stint late in 1984. He also worked as a community relations director and broadcaster for the Expos before becoming a scout for the expansion Rockies in the early 1990s. Fanning was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000 and passed away in 2015 at age 87.

Davey Johnson was the son of a lieutenant colonel in the U. S. Army during World War II, and he earned four All-Star selections, snagged three gold gloves and won two titles during a 13-year playing career as a second baseman spent primarily with the Orioles (although he hit 43 home runs with the Braves in 1973). He began his coaching days with the Mets and was named the team’s manager in 1984. Johnson led the Mets to a World Series championship in 1986 and later had a playoff run with the Reds and two more with the Orioles in the late 1990s. Johnson also managed the Dodgers for two years and managed Team USA to bronze medal finishes in both the 2008 Summer Olympics and the World Baseball Classic the following year. He worked as an advisor with the Nationals and took over managing the team in 2011. The next season, he led the team to a league-best 98 wins and took home his second Manager of the Year Award (his first came in 1997 with the Orioles). After one more season, Johnson retired with a 224-83 managerial record in three years with Washington and 1,372 wins in 17 seasons overall. He is still awaiting his call to Cooperstown, having failed to make the Hall of Fame in four tries on committee ballots.

Matt Williams was a stellar third baseman who had a playing career that included 10 straight seasons with at least 20 home runs to go with five All-Star selections, four gold gloves, four silver sluggers and a championship in 2001 with the Diamondbacks. Following 17 seasons at the “hot corner,” he was a special assistant and television analyst with Arizona before Washington tabbed him to replace Johnson as manager in 2014. Williams led the Nationals to 96 wins and a division title, and he won the Manager of the Year Award for his efforts. However, preseason title aspirations led to his firing the following year, which ended with an 83-79 record but no playoff berth. Since his time with the Nationals, Williams has been the third base coach with the Athletics, Padres and Giants, and he also managed in Korea for two seasons.

5. Dick Williams – The native of St. Louis was known for his competitive nature and ability to turn around franchises almost wherever he landed. Williams played all three outfield positions and both corner infield spots during his 13-year playing career then became a coach in the Red Sox organization in 1965. Two years later, he was managing the big-league club (which had finished in ninth place the previous year) to Game 7 of the World Series before losing to the Cardinals. After a stint as a coach with the Expos, Williams led the Athletics to 288 wins, three division titles and two titles in the early 1970s before clashing with owner Charlie Finley. He spent parts of three seasons with California then returned to Montreal, leading the Expos to back-to-back campaigns with at least 90 wins and putting them on the brink of their first playoff appearance in the strike-shortened 1981 season before he clashed with management again and was fired in the final month, ending his five-year stint in Montreal with a 380-347 record. Three years later, Williams led the Padres to the National League pennant, and he ended his career with the Mariners in 1988, totaling 1,571 wins in 21 seasons. Williams spent one season as a consultant with the Yankees, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 2008 and passed away due to a ruptured brain aneurysm in 2011 at age 82.

4. Robert “Buck” Rodgers – The switch-hitting catcher enjoyed a nine-year major league career spent entirely with the Angels. During that time, he finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting in 1962 and led all American League catchers in games, assists and runners caught stealing three times each. Following his time behind the plate, Rodgers spent time as a coach with the Twins, Giants, Angels and Brewers before Milwaukee made him their manager in 1980. The following year, he led the team to the playoffs in the strike-shortened season before falling to the Yankees in the Division Series. Rodgers was fired during the next campaign and didn’t resurface until he latched on with the Expos in 1985.

Although Montreal could not make the playoffs during his tenure with the club (1985-91), Rodgers led the team to a .500 or better record five times in six full seasons. In 1987, the Expos had their best year during the stretch, winning 91 games and helping their skipper take home the Manager of the Year Award. Rodgers finished his time in Montreal with a 520-499 record, which was a franchise best at the time. He was fired early in the 1991 season but returned to the Angels to spend parts of the next four seasons. Rodgers amassed 784 wins over 13 seasons as a manager then worked as a scout for the Phillies and independent league skipper before retiring in 1998.

3. Johnnie “Dusty” Baker – Another of the many fine players who later became managers for the Expos/Nationals franchise, the two-time All-Star outfielder spent 19 seasons in the major leagues primarily with the Braves and Dodgers. Following his retirement as a player in 1986, Baker spent one year as first base coach and four more on the third base side in San Francisco before he was named Giants manager in 1993. During his tenure in the Bay Area, he was a three-time Manager of the Year, won two division titles and reached the postseason three times, including 2002, when the Giants fell to the Angels in a seven-game World Series. Baker took over the Cubs the following year and led almost helped Chicago break the curse before falling in the NLCS.

Baker led the Reds to three playoff appearances in six seasons before replacing Williams as manager of the Nationals in 2016. He led Washington to division titles in both his seasons at the helm. However, despite going 192-132, Baker’s teams fell in in the Division Series twice and he was let go and returned to the Giants as a special advisor. At age 71, he began managing the Astros, leading the club to four straits playoff appearances, three division titles and a championship in 2022 following a season in which Houston won 106 games. Baker returned to his advisor role in 2024, likely ending his managerial career with a 2,183-1,62 record in 26 seasons.

2. Felipe Alou – He became one of the first players born in the Dominican Republic to reach the big leagues and joined his brothers, Jesus and Matty, to form the first all-sibling starting outfield in major league history when he did so with the Giants in 1963. Felipe was a three-time All-Star during a 17-year career spent with six clubs, one of which was the Expos. He joined Montreal in 1976, spending more than 15 years as a minor league manager and major league coach before taking over as skipper in 1992. Alou led the Expos to four winning records in his first five seasons, and he was at the helm when Montreal had the best record in baseball before the player’s strike ended the season prematurely in 1994, a result which netted him the Manager of the Year Award.

Alou spent a decade managing north of the border (including five years managing his son, Moises) before he was fired early in the 2001 season. His 691-717 overall record with Montreal is still the most wins in franchise history. After working as Tigers bench coach the following year, he took over for Baker in San Francisco. The Giants won 100 games but lost in the Division Series in his first campaign and fell below .500 by the time he was let go as skipper in 2006. Alou won 1,033 games in 14 seasons in big-league dugouts. He has been a special assistant to the general manager with the Giants since 2007 and was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015.

1. Dave Martinez – He was born in Brooklyn, was drafted by the Cubs in 1983 and spent 17 seasons as an outfielder and first baseman with nine teams. Knee issues forced him to retire following the 2002 campaign. Martinez spent two seasons as an instructor with the Rays and seven more as the team’s bench coach, gaining notoriety after Tampa Bay reached the World Series in 2008. Throughout his time with the Rays, he interviewed for several managerial openings (including Washington in 2014 before the Nationals hired Matt Williams). Martinez rejoined former Rays skipper Joe Maddon and became bench coach with the Cubs for three seasons, including 2016, when the North Siders broke their 108-year curse and won the World Series.

Following his time in Chicago, Martinez finally got a chance to manage, taking over in Washington in 2018 and extending the club’s streak of winning seasons to eight. Following an 82-80 campaign his first year, the skipper led the Nationals to a 93-69 record in 2019. Despite finishing four games behind the Atlanta in the National League East, Washington topped Milwaukee in the Wild Card Game and edged Los Angeles in the Division Series (thanks to a 10th-inning grand slam by Howie Kendrick in the deciding contest). The Nationals swept the Phillies in the NLCS and won all four games on the road to edge the Astros in the World Series for their only championship to date, with the skipper making waves in Game 6 by getting ejected for arguing a controversial runner interference call.

Martinez and the Nationals have not come close to recreating the magic of 2019 in the years following the title run. Washington has failed to win more than 71 games in any of the subsequent seasons and has finished no higher than four in any campaign. Although he was part of the National League coaching staff at the 2022 All-Star Game, he missed out on managing in the game following the championship when the Midsummer Classic was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Martinez is currently under contract with the Nationals for this current season and has a club option for 2026.

Upcoming Stories

Washington Nationals Catchers and Managers
Washington Nationals First and Third Basemen
Washington Nationals Second Basemen and Shortstops
Washington Nationals Outfielders
Washington Nationals Pitchers