Minnesota Twins: The Top 5 Catchers in Franchise History
By Otto Johnson
No. 5: Butch Wynegar
Years: 1976-1982 (7 Seasons)
Butch Wynegar burst onto the team in 1976, making the All-Star game in his first season with the Minnesota Twins. He hit .260 with 10 homers and 69 RBI, finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting and even received an MVP vote. The next year, he continued to hit.
Wynegar’s 1977 numbers were actually even better than his rookie numbers. He hit .261 with 10 homers and 79 RBI, amounting to another really solid season. He was also named to his second All-Star team, and it appeared like the Twins had finally found a reliable catcher for the first time in ten years.
Butch’s production began to slip in 1978, as every single stat decreased, with his batting average dropping 22 points, and his runs, homers, and RBI all being cut in half. His batting average improved a lot in 1979, but his other stats didn’t improve.
A quarter of the way into the 1982 season, Wynegar was hitting .209 and had hit one home run in 24 games. The team decided that they would rather go with Tim Laudner and Dave Engle behind the plate so they traded Butch to the New York Yankees for what amounted to spare parts, ending his run with the team.
His final stat line with the Twins over 794 games included a .254 batting average, 325 RBI, a 15.3 WAR, and a 9.0 dWAR, showcasing his offensive and defensive skills, as well as how much better he was compared to the other catchers then. His 9.0 dWAR ranks him as the sixth best defensive player in team history.
Despite how his tenure ended with the Twins, very few catchers start as hot as Butch Wynegar did. He looked like he would be a franchise cornerstone, but couldn’t meet the high expectations. He makes the list because he made two all-star games and was one of the Twins’ best defensive catchers ever.