Brian McCann

Seven-time All-Star catcher, five-time Silver Slugger with the Braves, 2017 World Series champion, and the only catcher to win Silver Slugger awards in both leagues.

Brian Michael McCann (born February 20, 1984) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, and Houston Astros. A seven-time All-Star and a six-time Silver Slugger Award winner, he won the 2017 World Series with the Astros. He is one of only four catchers to win the Silver Slugger Award six times and the only catcher to win the award in both the National League and American League.

Quick Facts

Position: Catcher
Born: 20 February 1984
Birthplace: Athens, Georgia, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Debut league: MLB
Debut date: June 10
Debut year: 2005

Lore & Background

McCann was born to Howard and Sherry McCann in Athens, Georgia. His father worked as an assistant baseball coach for the Georgia Bulldogs Baseball under Steve Webber and his mother worked at Athens Regional Hospital. Both parents attended Oswego High School in Oswego, New York, and were later inducted into the school's athletics hall of fame. McCann's father played college baseball at Mississippi State and eventually became an assistant coach at Georgia and later a scout.

McCann's older brother, Brad, played at Clemson and was selected in the sixth round of the 2004 MLB draft by the Florida Marlins but was out of professional baseball by 2007. McCann attended Duluth High School in Duluth, Georgia, was ranked the 26th best high school prospect by Baseball America, and initially committed to play college baseball for Alabama. The Atlanta Braves selected him in the second round of the 2002 MLB draft. McCann made his MLB debut on June 10, 2005, after playing in the minor leagues for the Rome Braves.

He was a personal catcher for John Smoltz for most of the 2005 season, hit his first home run in his second regular-season game, and hit a home run in his first playoff at-bat on October 6, 2005—though he was not the first Braves player to do so. He took over as the everyday starter during the 2005 season after Johnny Estrada's injury, before Estrada was later traded. In 2006, McCann hit .333 with 24 homers and 94 RBI, leading all Major League catchers in homers; his RBI total was matched only by Jorge Posada and Victor Martinez.

The Braves bought out his arbitration years with a six-year, $27.8 million contract during spring training in 2007. McCann was selected to the 2006 All-Star Game in his first full season, and again in 2007 and 2008, making him the first Braves catcher to earn All-Star nods in his first two full seasons—though not the first to do so in his first three seasons overall. In 2008, he allowed more stolen bases than any other NL catcher, with 93. Beginning in April 2009, he was bothered by blurry vision in his left eye due to a slight vision change following 2007 LASIK surgery; he opted for glasses, and Oakley, Inc. made special glasses for him.

In 2009, he had more errors at catcher than any other major leaguer, with 12, and the lowest fielding percentage among them (.988).