John Wathan

John David Wathan (pronounced /ˈwɑːθən/; born October 4, 1949 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa) is a former Major League Baseball catcher and manager for the Kansas City Royals. He was considered one of the rare catchers with speed, having 105 stolen bases during his career, including 36 in 1982 which broke the single-season record for catchers set by Ray Schalk in 1916 even after missing four weeks with a broken ankle earlier in the season. In 2006-07, Wat... more

John David Wathan (pronounced /ˈwɑːθən/; born October 4, 1949 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa) is a former Major League Baseball catcher and manager for the Kansas City Royals. He was considered one of the rare catchers with speed, having 105 stolen bases during his career, including 36 in 1982 which broke the single-season record for catchers set by Ray Schalk in 1916 even after missing four weeks with a broken ankle earlier in the season. In 2006-07, Wathan was a roving baserunning and bunting instructor in Kansas City's farm system and in 2008 he served the Royals as a special assistant to the director of player development. Wathan — nicknamed "Duke" for his dead-on impersonations of John Wayne — was drafted in the first round, fourth overall in the 1971 MLB Draft from the University of San Diego. Wathan played ten seasons with the Royals from 1976 to 1985 where he played in 860 games, averaging a career .261 batting average with 21 home runs and 261 RBIs. Wathan has his best season in 1980... less