Javy López

Javier Lopez Torres

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 185-248 lb.
• High School Academia Cristo Rey (Ponce)
• Debut September 18, 1992
• Final Game September 2, 2006
• Born November 5, 1970 in Ponce, P.R.

BR page

Biographical Information

Javy Lopez played 15 years in the big leagues, hitting 260 home runs. Primarily a catcher, his best year was 2003 when he hit 43 home runs and was fifth in the MVP voting, but he slumped in 2006 and his career was over. His 43 homers in 2003 included 42 hit when he was his team's catcher (the other one came as a pinch-hitter) giving him the all-time record for homers in a season at the position. That record is somewhat obscured because a couple other players, who were primarily catchers, namely Johnny Bench and Salvador Perez, have hit more homers in a season, but fewer of them as a catcher.

As of January 2009, there were two Hall of Famers on the list of the ten most similar players to Lopez, according to the similarity scores method: Joe Gordon and Roy Campanella. However, in his only year of eligibility for Cooperstown in 2012, he received only one vote and was dropped from the ballot.

Lopez slugged over .500 in the minors in 1992 and 1993, getting cups of coffee each year in the majors. In 1994 he became a regular and spent most of his career with the Atlanta Braves, who were frequently in post-season play during the years he was with them. He slugged over .500 in both Division Series and League Championship Series.

With the Braves, he was three years younger than teammate Deion Sanders (they were teammates from 1992 to 1994). He was briefly the brother-in-law of Juan González when his sister Elaine married the slugger in 1994; the marriage was over by 1996.

In the 1996 World Series, he usually batted fifth in the lineup, behind Chipper Jones and Fred McGriff and ahead of Andruw Jones. He was a year older than Chipper Jones.

As a free agent, he signed with the Baltimore Orioles and had a good year with them in 2004 but dropped off somewhat in 2005 and more so in 2006, getting traded to the Boston Red Sox in August to finish out his major league career. On the Red Sox, he was one year older than Manny Ramirez.

He was cut by the Colorado Rockies during spring training in 2007 and cut by the Braves during spring training in 2008, after which he decided to retire.

Notable Achievements

• 1992 Player of the Year Southern League Greenville Braves
• 1994 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
• 3-time NL All-Star (1997, 1998 & 2003)
• 1996 NLCS MVP
• NL Silver Slugger Award Winner (2003)
• 2003 NL Comeback Player of the Year Award
• 20-Home Run Seasons: 6 (1996-1998, 2000, 2003 & 2004)
• 30-Home Run Seasons: 2 (1998 & 2003)
• 40-Home Run Seasons: 1 (2003)
• 100 RBI Seasons: 2 (1998 & 2003)
• Won a World Series with the Atlanta Braves in 1995

Records Held

• Home runs, catcher, season, 42, 2003

Further Reading

• Javy Lopez and Gary Caruso: Behind the Plate: A Catcher's View of the Braves Dynasty, Independent Publishers Group, Chicago, IL, 2012.

Related Sites

• Javy Lopez at the SABR Bio Project