Jose Molina

Full Name: Jose Benjamin (Matta) Molina	Primary Position: C
Height/Weight: 6' 2"/245	First Game: September 6, 1999
Birthdate: June 3, 1975	MLB Experience: 8 years
Birthplace: Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Bat/Throw: Right/Right

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(26 votes)

1 Biography
2 Scouting Report
3 Statistics
- 3.1 Batting Stats
- 3.2 Fielding Stats
4 Awards
5 Transactions
6 Trivia
7 Video Gallery
8 Picture Gallery
9 See Also
- 9.1 Recent Jose Molina ArmchairGM Stories
10 Categories

[edit] Biography

Jose Molina (Jose Benjamin (Matta) Molina) was born on June 3, 1975 in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. He made his Major League debut on September 6, 1999 for the Chicago Cubs. In 2004, his rookie year, he hit .261 with 3 home runs and 25 RBI. Molina played for the Chicago Cubs and Anaheim Angels over the course of his 7 year career.

]]. At 6' 2" and weighing 220 pounds, Molina is taller and more slender than his older brother Bengie Molina, who now plays for the Toronto Blue Jays. Their younger brother, Yadier Molina, is also a catcher, playing for the 2006 World Series champions, the St. Louis Cardinals. The three brothers are the only in MLB history to win World Series championship rings.

José Molina's first major league team was the Chicago Cubs, for whom he played 10 games in 1999. He joined the then-Anaheim Angels in 2001, but played only a handful of games before establishing himself during the 2002 season as the Angels backup catcher for his brother, Bengie.

Following Bengie's departure from the Angels, José Molina entered the 2006 season as the Angels' new starting catcher, though it was generally expected that rookie Jeff Mathis would also see substantial time handling the team's catching duties over the course of the season. However, Mathis struggled during the first month of the season and was demoted to the minor leagues. Molina's own offensive struggles, however, cast doubt on whether that move will result in increased playing time for him. The promising offensive performance of Mathis' replacement on the roster, rookie Mike Napoli, has once again relegated Molina to the role of a backup catcher; that was until he was traded to the New York Yankees during the 2008 MLB season.

[edit] Scouting Report

[edit] Statistics

[edit] Batting Stats

Year	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
1999	CHC	10	19	3	5	1	0	0	1	2	4	0	0	.263	.333	.316	.649
2001	ANA	15	37	8	10	3	0	2	4	3	8	0	0	.270	.325	.514	.839
2002	ANA	29	70	5	19	3	0	0	5	5	15	0	2	.271	.312	.314	.626
2003	ANA	53	114	12	21	4	0	0	6	1	26	0	0	.184	.210	.219	.429
2004	ANA	73	203	26	53	10	2	3	25	10	52	4	1	.261	.296	.374	.670
2005	LAA	75	184	14	42	4	0	6	25	13	41	2	0	.228	.286	.348	.634
2006	LAA	78	225	18	54	17	0	4	22	9	49	1	0	.240	.273	.369	.642
2007	LAA	40	125	9	28	8	0	0	10	3	30	2	1	.224	.242	.288	.530
2007	NYY	29	66	9	21	5	0	1	9	2	13	0	0	.318	.333	.439	.773
Career		402	1043	104	253	55	2	16	107	48	238	9	4	.243	.279	.345	.624

[edit] Fielding Stats

Year	Team	POS	G	GS	INN	PO	TC	A	E	DP	FPCT
1999	CHC	C	10	7	57	44	49	5	0	1	1.000
2001	ANA	C	15	12	103	78	84	6	0	1	1.000
2002	ANA	C	29	24	210	155	174	16	3	3	.983
2003	ANA	C	53	39	332	221	239	17	1	0	.996
2004	ANA	1B	2	0	6	5	6	1	0	2	1.000
2004	ANA	C	70	57	524	441	481	37	3	4	.994
2005	LAA	C	65	53	480	408	452	41	3	6	.993
2005	LAA	1B	4	1	10	10	10	0	0	2	1.000
2006	LAA	1B	3	0	5	4	4	0	0	2	1.000
2006	LAA	C	76	71	603	502	560	50	8	4	.986
2007	LAA	C	40	37	323	283	304	17	4	2	.987
2007	NYY	C	29	16	169	153	166	13	0	1	1.000
Total			412	320	2853	2329	2555	204	22	28	.991

[edit] Awards

[edit] Transactions

Selected by Chicago Cubs in the 14th round of the free-agent draft (June 3, 1993 - signed June 7, 1993).
Released by Chicago Cubs (November 27, 2000).
Signed by Anaheim Angels (January 15, 2001).
Traded by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to the New York Yankees for Jeff Kennard (July 21, 2007)