Paul Naguit: Blocking home plate

In the military, every platoon has a lieutenant; the man who will lead his troops into the battlefield in order to conduct dangerous operations. He makes all the decisions, comes up with the strategy and makes split second decisions to get his men out of harm’s way. This is similar to quite arguably baseball’s toughest position to play, the catcher.

Who or what is a catcher? A myriad of baseball players have made themselves known to the world by playing this position. Brian McCann, Yadier Molina, and Buster Posey are just some of the players currently making a living playing catcher in the major leagues, while greats like Yogi Berra and Mike Piazza already have their names etched in Baseball’s Hall of Fame.

In the simplest explanation, a catcher is the man on the team who crouches behind home plate and, as the name of the position dictates, catches pitches thrown by the pitcher. He dons armor to protect him from anything, from the ball to other players rushing to home plate. Whenever men are on base, he remains vigilant, looking for signs of a steal and throw them out with his cannon arm when necessary. He has a good build to block home plate from anyone or anything that want to pass through it. He calls the flow of the game and is equivalent to basketball’s floor general. This is the catcher and to the DLSU Green Batters, that man is rookie Paul Naguit.

Hailing from De La Salle Zobel, Naguit shares how he got interested in the sport, “I don’t know, I just tried a lot of sports. You’re a kid and you just tried sports”. A highlight of Naguit’s playing career in Zobel was when his team won the Juniors’ Baseball tournament during UAAP Season 74. Naguit was in his third year of high school at that time.

The catcher’s job is very important as well as multifaceted. “My part to be a catcher is to remind them about the outs, to remind them about the plays. If the pitcher is having a hard time, I just go up to the mound and talk to him and just say relax and just do your thing,” shares Naguit on his role on the team.

This position is not only difficult but it is also dangerous. Last year’s Major League Baseball season saw ten catchers enter the disabled list because of concussions and head injuries. Buster Posey, the man Naguit looks up to, had his season end early due to multiple injuries because of a home plate collision back in 2011. Home plate collisions, as well as balls hitting armor or vulnerable body parts, are an unavoidable part of a catcher’s life. A home plate collision happens when a batter is running to home plate with a catcher blocking it and that runner hits the blocking catcher.

“Not naman every game but there are times talaga if there [are] close games like against UST,” says Naguit, who has had his share of collisions at the plate.

Naguit and his teammates often train five days a week. Practices are scheduled on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays while trips to the gym are scheduled on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Apart from this, Naguit receives special training during practices in order to improve his abilities as a catcher. “Every training I go outside with the coaches and throw some balls and block”.

Indeed, the position of catcher is no walk in the park. One needs a variety of things in order to qualify as one, from a specific build or body type to a variety of qualities. Speeding balls, wild pitches, and charging players just add to the difficulty of playing the sport, not counting possible pain in the future. Naguit keeps at it simply because he wants to be prepared.

Naguit, who was supposed to go to rival school Ateneo de Manila Univesity, was glad he chose to remain a member of the Green-and-White in college. “I actually love it now cause we’ve been winning. Good thing I chose La Salle,” he shares.