Braves Talk - May 28 - Remembering Biff

Bill Shanks talks about the late Biff Pocoroba, who died earlier this week.

Former Atlanta Braves catcher Biff Pocoroba has died at the age of 66. 

Pocoroba was a fan favorite because of his name and his baseball cards also drew attention. Many who grew up in that era had some of Pocoroba’s cards. As a matter of fact, the first ever baseball card I ever got was Pocoroba’s 1978 Topps card.

Pocoroba spent parts of 10 seasons with the Braves, from 1975 through 1984. He was originally drafted out of Canoga Park High School in California in the 17 round of the 1971 amateur draft by the Braves.

Blessed with one of the best names in Braves and baseball history, Pocoroba made is MLB debut on April 25, 1975 at the age of 21. Pocoroba hit .255 in his rookie season, with one home runs and 22 RBI.

Two years later, Pocoroba became the main catcher for the Braves. He hit .290 with a .394 on base percentage, eight home runs and 44 RBI. The next season, Pocoroba started off as the main catcher for the Braves and made the All-Star team, but then he got hurt in early August and missed the rest of the season.

Pocoroba’s shoulder injury was severe, and he never got his starting job back. He played in only 28 games in 1979 and then only had 96 plate appearances in 1980. In 1981, the Braves actually had Pocoroba start 20 games at third base when Bob Horner was injured.

After his injury in 1978, Pocoroba caught in only 96 games from 1979 through 1984. The Braves released him in April 1984 when they traded for Alex Trevino.

Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.