Todays baseball catcher stolidly goes about his duty without attracting much attention. But it wasnt always that way as Peter Morris shows in this lively and original study. In baseballs early days catchers stood a safe distance back of the batter without protective gear. Then the introduction of the curveball in the 1870s led them to move up directly behind home plate even though they still wore no gloves or other protection. Extraordinary courage became the catchers most notable requirement but the new positioning also demanded that the catcher have lightningfast reflexes great hands and a throwing arm with the power of a cannon. With so great a range of required skills a special mystique came to surround the position and it began to seem that a good catcher could singlehandedly make the difference between a winning and losing team.