O'Toole defies common expectations about catchers
By CHRIS FEDERICO
Sports Writer
Paul O'Toole isn't your average player.
In a sport that often characterizes catchers as unproductive offensive contributors, O'Toole breaks the mold.
In fact, the junior backstop is one of the real driving forces of the Irish, especially on the offensive side of production. Having played in just about every game since the start of his freshman season, O'Toole has shown very impressive offensive skills, batting for a .301 career average.
In his first three years, he has often looked more like a speedy utility player than a catcher. His career .382 on-base percentage and 33 stolen bases are numbers that are expected of a leadoff hitter. With just four more stolen bases, O'Toole can move into the top 10 list at Notre Dame for stolen bases — and he would be the only catcher on that list.
"I think it's great that I don't fit the regular mold of a catcher," O'Toole proudly claims. "It's kind of intriguing for people to see a left-handed hitting catcher who can run fairly well, because it hasn't been that common in baseball."
Notre Dame baseball coach Paul Mainieri likes the fact that O'Toole is not like just any other catcher.
"When [Paul] was in high school, he played the infield and the outfield — he is a very talented athlete," said Mainieri. "Right now, he is one of the biggest base-stealing threats on our team because he runs so well."
But once O'Toole puts the mask on and crouches down behind the plate, he becomes everything the prototypical catcher is supposed to be. He is a smart, solid defender with the confidence and fire to be a leader on the field.
"He's a fiery guy," says Mainieri. "And there's no one who has more spirit than Paul. He really goes after it on the field because he holds so much enthusiasm for the game. He plays it at full-tilt all the time."
It only seems natural that the tough-minded junior would have to be this way. In just his first year at Notre Dame, O'Toole demonstrated exactly what he could do as an all-around player when he was thrust right into a full-time job at catcher.
He caught 90 percent of the innings that year while still batting .318 and leading the team in runs scored. At the plate, he showed his power with a .552 slugging percentage. On the bases he showed speed with 12 steals in seventeen attempts. Behind the plate, he showed dependability, recording 410 outs while committing only thirteen errors — a .972 fielding percentage.
But most importantly, he demonstrated the leadership abilities that make a catcher "the quarterback" of the baseball diamond.
"When I first came in, I felt I had to gain the respect of the upperclassmen," said O'Toole. "But I think throughout the course of the year, just by working hard and by showing that I only cared about winning as a team, I really gained their respect."
O'Toole spent this past summer playing in the Cape Cod League, the nation's premier wooden bat league for college players, along with teammates Steve Stanley and Brian Stavisky. Through this league, O'Toole made a bit of a name for himself in professional circles by displaying great power and hitting ability, and by being named to the league all-star team along with Stanley and Stavisky. The modest O'Toole, however, does not like to look to the future too often.
"I try not to think about it too much because I wouldn't want it to affect what I'm doing now," he says. "If you start thinking about what you could be doing, you could begin to change what you have been doing, and you'll just mess yourself up. I just want to go out there right now every day and keep doing what I've been doing these past few years."
All Sports Stories for Thursday, March 29, 2001
