The position of the catcher, who is represented by "C" in this picture

Catcher is also a general term for a fielder who catches the ball in cricket.

Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to field his position well. The role of the catcher is similar to that of the wicket-keeper in cricket.

Positioned behind home plate, the catcher can see the whole field; therefore, he is in the best position to direct and lead the other players in a defensive play. The catcher typically calls for pitches by means of hand signals; therefore, he/she must be aware of the pitcher's mechanics and strengths, as well as the batter's tendencies and weaknesses. Foul tips, bouncing balls in the dirt, and contact with runners during plays at the plate are all part of the catcher's job, so protective equipment must be worn. This includes a mask, chest and throat protectors, shin guards, and an extra-thick glove.

Because the position requires a comprehensive understanding of the game's strategies, the pool of former catchers yields a disproportionate number of Major and Minor-League managers, including such prominent examples as Connie Mack, Steve O'Neill, Al Lopez, Yogi Berra, Mike Scioscia, and Joe Torre.^[1] The physical and mental strain of being involved on every defensive play can wear catchers down over a long season, and can have a negative effect on their offensive output.^[2]

Due to catching's strategic defensive importance, if a catcher has exceptional defensive skills, teams are often willing to overlook their relative offensive weaknesses.^[2] A knowledgeable catcher's ability to work with the pitcher, via pitch selection and location, can diminish the effectiveness of the opposing team's offense.^[3] Many great defensive catchers toiled in relative anonymity, because they did not produce large offensive numbers. Notable examples of light-hitting, defensive specialists were; Ray Schalk, Jim Hegan, Jim Sundberg and Brad Ausmus. Schalk's career batting average of .253 is the lowest of any position player in the Baseball Hall of Fame.^[4] That he was selected for enshrinement in 1955 was largely a tribute to his outstanding defensive skills.^[4] Catchers are often able to play first base and less commonly third base.

In the numbering system used to record baseball plays, the catcher is assigned the number '2'. (See Baseball scorekeeping.)

Catching pitches[link]

Baltimore Orioles catcher Craig Tatum preparing for a game

The catcher is usually the first to notice the tendencies, quirks, and peculiarities of each home-plate umpire. Some umpires favor high strikes, pitched balls that are technically above the strike zone but appear, to the umpire, to be good. Conversely, some umpires will call low pitches strikes even when they are slightly below the knees. Other umpires have an inside bias or an outside bias; some umpires have more than one bias; some are uniformly lenient; some have very restricted notions of the strike zone, and the pitcher will constantly feel that his pitches are unfairly judged. The catcher can exploit an umpire's tendencies by taking him into account in how he chooses to receive the ball.

The catcher can help his pitcher get more strike calls from the umpire by using a technique called "framing" . This practice is a matter of a catcher keeping his mitt inside the strike zone, or as close to it as possible, when receiving the pitch, thereby giving the plate umpire the impression that the pitch is in the strike zone, even if it is not. When framing, a catcher will also hold his mitt still for a second or two so that the umpire has an opportunity to thoroughly consider his call (and, hopefully, let his innate biases influence his decision in a direction favorable to the catcher's team.)

The catcher, when receiving a borderline pitch, usually has several options in how he makes the catch. He can catch the pitch in the webbing of his mitt or in the heel; he can catch the pitch on his forehand or backhand, as necessary; he can catch a low pitch with the mitt pointed upward or downward. These choices help the catcher to create a favorable presentation (or frame) for the umpire.

A variation on "framing" is called "pulling pitches". The general approach is to catch the half of the ball that is outside the strike zone and show the umpire only the half of the ball, lodged in the mitt, that is closer to the zone. The illusion is often enhanced with a slight 'tug' of the mitt (of an inch or two) toward the strike zone.

By rule the catcher must station directly back of the plate (generally in the catcher's box) the moment a pitch is thrown but may leave at any time to catch a pitch or make a play. The moment an intentional ball leaves a pitcher's hand, the catcher must have both feet in the catcher's box. ^[5] The catcher is the only defensive player who is allowed to be in foul territory when a pitch is thrown.^[6]

Calling the game[link]

Calling the game refers to the act of catchers to decide the type of pitch delivered to home plate.^[1] Catchers comprise a high percentage of baseball managers. As of April 2011^[update] 15 of 30 Major League Baseball managers were former catchers.^[7] Because the catcher is considered a captain on the field (and some, such as Thurman Munson and Jason Varitek are in fact team captains), he is often in charge of planning defensive plays. The catcher will give signs to the pitcher for what pitch is to be thrown.^[1] The majority of the time it is done through a number system. Each number will represent a different pitch, and then the pitcher can either agree or disagree with a shake of his or her head.^[1] These signals get more complicated when a runner is on second base, because the runner's vantage point when he takes his lead gives him a direct view of the catcher's hand and a simple signal can be relayed by the runner to the batter. Signals are not always done by the number system. Jason Varitek of the Boston Red Sox was known for giving signals by touching certain parts of his chest protector.

The selection of which pitch to use can depend on a wide variety of situations such as; the type of hitter that is being faced, whether there are any base runners, how many outs have been made in the inning, or the current score, among others. The responsibility for selecting the type of pitch was traditionally made by the catcher.^[1] However, current form is to have the manager or a coach relay the pitch selection to the catcher, via secret hand signals to prevent the opposing team from having the advantage of knowing what the next pitch will be.

Throwing[link]

A catcher nearly always throws with his right hand. Since most hitters are right-handed and stand to the left side of the plate when batting, a catcher who throws left-handed is forced to take some time to sidestep (or otherwise avoid) the right-handed hitter when he throws from behind the plate. In addition, a lefty's throw would tend to come in on the shortstop side of the bag, while a righty's throw would be on the second base side of the bag, which is where the runner is coming in. Consequently, players who are left-handed rarely play catcher. Left-handed catchers have only caught eleven big-league games since 1902,^[8] and Jack Clements, who played for 17 years at the end of the nineteenth century, is the only man in the history of baseball to play more than three hundred games as a left-handed catcher.^[9] However, some observers, including the famed statistician Bill James and ESPN writer Rob Neyer,^[10] have suggested that the real reason that there are no left-handed catchers is because left-handed players with strong throwing arms are almost always encouraged, at an early age, to become pitchers. Benny Distefano, the last lefty thrower to catch a big-league game (in 1989), noted that lefty catchers have difficulty on bunts up the third base line and on fielding throws home for plays at the plate.^[11]

Blocking wild pitches[link]

To block balls that a pitcher accidentally throws on a bounce toward home plate (pitches that are said to be "in the dirt"), the catcher will slide his body to the left or right, as necessary, to place himself directly in the path of the ball. Once in position, he drops to his knees, places his mitt between his legs to prevent the ball from passing through, and leans forward to deaden the rebound when, and if, the ball bounces off his thigh or torso. Although many an inexperienced catcher may try to catch the errant pitch with his mitt, a more-seasoned catcher knows that it is more important to prevent the ball from getting behind him. Ideally, the catcher will be able to knock the ball to the ground where it will stop within arm's reach. To perform this properly, without the ball being deflected in an undesirable direction, the catcher must angle his body so that his chest is always leaning forward, toward home plate. This maneuver is often difficult, and its difficulty depends largely on how fast the ball is traveling, where it first hits the ground, the firmness of the ground it hits, and the manner in which it is spinning.

Defensive plays[link]

Catcher Matt Wieters blocks runner Derek Jeter from tagging home plate.

The defensive plays expected of catchers, aside from managing the pitcher by calling for pitches and catching them, include:

1. Preventing wild pitches and avoiding passed balls. Although the pitcher has a responsibility to throw with reasonable accuracy, catchers must be mobile enough to catch (or block) errant pitches. By doing so, a catcher prevents baserunners from advancing while the loose ball is retrieved. An errant pitch that eludes the catcher and allows a baserunner to take one or more additional bases is called a wild pitch. (Techniques for blocking wild pitches are described in the previous section.) A pitched ball which would require only ordinary effort to be caught or blocked by the catcher — but is nonetheless misplayed, allowing a base runner to advance — is called a "passed ball".
2. Fielding high pop flies, often hit at unusual angles.
3. Fielding weakly hit fair ground balls (including bunts) in front of home plate in order to throw to a base to complete a groundout or a fielder's choice play. The catcher must avoid hitting the batter-runner with the thrown ball, implying that he must move to a position in which he has a clear throw to the infielder at first base.
4. Guarding home plate on plays in which a baserunner attempts to score a run. The catcher is often obliged to catch a ball thrown from a fielder and to tag out a runner arriving from third base. Naturally, the runner's objective, in this situation, is to elude the catcher's tag and touch the plate. The catcher's best strategy is to block the runner's path so as to prevent the runner from reaching the plate at all. A catcher may only obstruct a runner's path to home plate when he, the catcher, is in possession of the ball. Collisions between runners and catchers are common. Note that, without the ball in hand, the catcher must allow the runner to score uncontested. If he drops it the runner is safe. Although contact between a runner and a catcher is allowed in the major leagues, often little league, high school, and college runners are required to slide into home plate.
5. Preventing stolen bases by throwing to second base or third base to allow an infielder to tag a baserunner attempting to reach the base. A catcher who is very good at preventing stolen bases is said to have a low stolen-base percentage; a poor one has many bases stolen while he catches. (A pitcher who is slow to deliver is often more at fault for stolen bases than the catcher is.) Ideally, a catcher should be able to get the ball from his glove to that of the player covering second base in under two seconds. This is referred to as a catcher's "pop time", the time elapsing between the popping sound of the pitch striking the catcher's mitt and the similar pop when the ball arrives at the glove of the fielder covering second base.
6. Rarely, a catcher can make a successful pick-off throw to a base to surprise an inattentive or incautious baserunner. Especially at the higher levels of baseball (where this play almost never results in an out), the catcher's snap throws are mainly for psychological effect. If the runner knows that the catcher often attempts snap throws, the runner is likely to take a smaller lead from his base before each pitch, which will allow the infielders an extra fraction of a second to throw the runner out at the next base if he attempts to advance (as, for example, when a ground ball is hit). Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals is known for using pickoffs with success, particularly at first base.^[12]
7. Rarely, a catcher will run to first base or third base to participate in rundown plays at those bases.
8. In certain game situations, typically a ball batted to the shortstop or third baseman with no runners on base, the catcher may be expected to back-up first base in case the first baseman misses or mishandles a throw.
9. In certain game situations, when a runner is on first and the batter bunts the ball or hits the ball softly in which causing the third baseman to rush in to get the ball and throw to first base, the catcher must cover third base so that the runner from first base does not advance to third base on the play and this then forces the third baseman to cover home plate.

Any failure by the catcher can have dire consequences for his team. Passed balls are possible whenever one or more runners are on base. A failure to catch a ball thrown from the outfield on a play at home plate, or a failure to tag a runner, means that the defensive team fails to record an all-important out and, instead, it allows a run. On an attempt to prevent a stolen base, a catcher's bad throw might careen past the infielder and skip into the outfield, allowing an additional advance by the baserunner.

Personal catcher[link]

Because of the close mental relationship and trust that a successful pitcher must have with his catcher, a number of catchers throughout history have become preferred by pitchers on their teams, to the point of that catcher almost always (especially during the regular season) playing on the same days the pitcher is. Since this personal catcher will usually have inferior offensive numbers to the team's regular catcher, this is a luxury usually only afforded to the team's best (or second-best) pitcher. ^[13] Personal catchers are also used for pitchers that specialize in throwing knuckleballs, due to the difficulty of catching such an inconsistent and erratic pitch.

Another reason for having a personal catcher is that catcher is a very demanding position, and thus starting catchers often need a day off from their catching duties.

Injury[link]

The catcher is the most physically demanding position in baseball, more so than the pitcher. Despite being heavily padded, catchers routinely suffer some of the worst physical abuse in baseball. The catcher has the physically risky job of blocking the plate to prevent base runners from reaching home and scoring runs. Catchers also constantly get bruised and battered by pitches, foul tips, and occasionally the bat in an undisciplined follow-through of the batter's swing.

Catchers also are prone to knee ailments stemming from the awkward crouching stance they assume. Because of this, catchers have a reputation of being slow baserunners; even if they have speed at the beginning of their careers, the eventual toll taken on their knees slows them down, although there are some exceptions, such as Manny Sanguillén. Some players who begin their career as catchers are moved to other positions in order to preserve their running speed, increase their availability for games, and take advantage of their prowess with the bat. Prominent examples of catchers switching position in mid-career include Craig Biggio, B.J. Surhoff, and Dale Murphy (although Murphy was also known as a poor thrower to the pitcher and to second base, nearly hitting pitchers in the process).^[14][15]

Catchers often have shorter careers than players at other positions; consequently, few catchers hold batting records that require many seasons of play to compile. Mike Piazza is the only catcher in history with more than four hundred career home runs, and no catcher has amassed three thousand career hits. (Although 3000-hit-club member Craig Biggio played his first three full seasons as a catcher, he played his remaining sixteen seasons at second base and in the outfield.)

The larger or heavier the catcher, the greater the health risks associated with repeatedly assuming a crouching or squatting position; knees and backs are especially vulnerable to "wear-and-tear" injuries. Catchers also have an increased risk of circulatory abnormalities in the catching hand. A study of minor-league ballplayers showed that, of 36 players in various positions, all nine of the catchers had hand pain during a game, and several had chronic pain in the catching hand. Catching high-speed pitches can, in some cases, cause the index finger on the gloved hand to swell to twice the size of the other fingers. Ultrasound and blood-pressure tests showed altered blood flow in the gloved hand of five of the catchers, a far higher incidence than in the hands of players at other baseball positions.^[16]

Equipment[link]

A baseball catcher prepares to receive the pitch

Catchers in baseball use the following equipment to help prevent injury while behind the plate:

• Catcher's mask: To protect the face, much of the side of the head, and, often, part of the throat. In recent years, catchers have begun wearing masks similar to those worn by ice-hockey goaltenders. The hockey-style mask typically includes a section which protects the top of the head; older-style masks are usually worn over a flap-less helmet (worn backwards and often with a trimmed bill) to provide similar protection to the skull. Some helmets also are somewhat like the hockey style helmets. They have a helmet without a bill and a facemask.
• Mitt: Catchers use mitts with extra padding to lower the impact of the ball on their hand. The catcher is the only player on the field who is allowed to use this type of mitt. (The first baseman also wears a mitt instead of a glove, but it is longer and not as heavily padded as a catcher's mitt.) See Catcher's mitt.
• Shin guards: To protect the knees and legs from the impact of a ball that the catcher is unable to play cleanly. Less commonly called 'spike protectors', they are used to prevent injury caused by base-runners advancing home with 'spikes up', that is, with the intention of injuring or intimidating the catcher with their metal cleats. Most modern styles of shin guard also incorporate a flap that covers the top of the foot.
• Chest protector: A piece of equipment, padded with rubber, plastic foam, or gel, that protects the catcher's body from the impact of a pitch if he fails to catch it. Many modern chest protectors also have an extension to cover the shoulder of the non-throwing or "glove" hand.
• Cup: Worn by a catcher under his uniform to mitigate the risk of serious injury when a batted or thrown ball strikes the groin area.

A player wearing an old-fashioned catcher's mask.

Additionally, some catchers choose to use the following optional equipment:

• Knee savers: Special pads filled with air that attach to the straps of the shin guards, allowing cushion for the catcher when they are in the squatting position; they provide support for the knee ligaments which can, over time, stretch and tear.
• Inner protective glove: A glove, similar to a golf glove, that is worn inside of the mitt to help absorb the shock of the pitched ball striking the hand.
• Throat protector: A hard-plastic plate which hangs from the bottom of the catcher's mask to protect the throat. Because a ball striking the throat may cave-in the windpipe, throat protectors are required in almost all youth-baseball games, even at the high-school level.

In addition to his protective equipment, a catcher usually also adopts practices that minimize his risk of injury. For instance, unlike fielders elsewhere on the field, a catcher tries, to the extent possible, to catch the ball with his gloved hand alone. An outfielder may catch a fly ball by covering the ball, once it strikes the pocket of his glove, with his bare hand in order to secure it. The catcher, however, tries to keep his bare hand, which is highly vulnerable to injury, out of harm's way by presenting the pitcher with a target (the large round glove) while hiding his unprotected throwing hand behind his back. By doing so, the bare hand cannot be struck by a foul tip. Many broken fingers, split fingernails, and grotesque dislocations are avoided by adherence to this simple expedient.

Given the physical punishment suffered by catchers, the pieces of equipment associated with the position are often referred to as "the tools of ignorance". This is an ironic expression; the catcher typically has the most thorough understanding of baseball tactics and strategies of any player on his team.^{[citation needed]}

Catchers often experience knee tendinitis because of the constant squatting and bending of the knees while catching.

Hall-of-fame catchers[link]

Fifteen men who played primarily as catchers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame:

See also[link]

Baseball portal

• List of Gold Glove Award winners at catcher
• List of Silver Slugger Award winners at catcher

References[link]

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Andriesen, David (November 2003). Catchers Are Baseball's Least Appreciated Players. Books.Google.com. http://books.google.com/books?id=pC0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA24&lpg=PA24&dq=catchers+least+appreciated+players+baseball+digest&source=bl&ots=7YSTJQ1cP3&sig=f1gb-PHYnyvh9LVZeHBGNVYe9lk&hl=en&ei=rAQ7TJX2H4P7lwfY-OjSBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CCIQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=catchers%20least%20appreciated%20players%20baseball%20digest&f=false. Retrieved 9 March 2012. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Doyle, Al (June 1997). Never Underestimate A Good Defensive Catcher. Books.Google.com. http://books.google.com/books?id=VSsDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38&dq=baseball+digest+defensive+catchers&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved 9 March 2012. 
3. ^ Vass, George (May 2005). For Catchers, The Name of the Game is Defense. Books.Google.com. http://books.google.com/books?id=9S0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA26&dq=baseball+digest+defensive+catchers#v=onepage&q=baseball%20digest%20defensive%20catchers&f=false. Retrieved 9 March 2012. 
4. ^ ^{a b} howstuffworks.com
5. ^ "MLB Rules". http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/y2011/Official_Baseball_Rules.pdf. 
6. ^ The Official Site of Major League Baseball: Official Rules
7. ^ Neel, Eric (2011-04-11). "Could One of These Guys be Your Team's Next Manager?". ESPN. http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3448382. Retrieved March 11, 2012. 
8. ^ Top 10 Left-Handed Catchers for 2006 – The Hardball Times
9. ^ Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers – Left-Handed Throwing Catchers
10. ^ Where are the lefty catchers?
11. ^ Left-handed catchers
12. ^ Bernie Bytes: Molina needs help St. Louis Post-Dispatch (September 24, 2010)
13. ^ http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Personal_Catcher
14. ^ http://profiles.incredible-people.com/dale-murphy/
15. ^ http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=dale_murphy_1956
16. ^ Ginn, et al., 2005)

• Ginn TA, Smith AM, Snyder JR, Koman LA, Smith BP, Rushing J (2005). "Vascular changes of the hand in professional baseball players with emphasis on digital ischemia in catchers". Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery 87 (7): 1464–9. DOI:10.2106/JBJS.D.02047. PMID 15995112. 

External links[link]

• Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers
• Stats, awards, photos and trivia related to catchers
• Website on the history and evolution of catchers' equipment
• Catcher Mask Research
• The Baseball Catcher – Learn to Catch

v t e Baseball positions Pitchers by role Ace pitcher Starting pitcher Relief pitcher Middle relief pitcher Long reliever Setup pitcher Closer Left-handed specialist by style Fireballer Power pitcher Control pitcher Groundball pitcher Flyball pitcher Switch pitcher Defensive players by number Pitcher (1 / P) Catcher (2 / C) First baseman (3 / 1B) Second baseman (4 / 2B) Third baseman (5 / 3B) Shortstop (6 / SS) Left fielder (7 / LF) Center fielder (8 / CF) Right fielder (9 / RF) by type Infielder Outfielder Utility player Utility infielder Position player Battery Fourth outfielder Corner outfielder Offensive players by role Batter Runner Batting order (1–9) Designated hitter Pinch hitter Pinch runner Lead off Leadoff hitter Cleanup hitter by style Clutch hitter Contact hitter Switch hitter Non-players Official scorer Umpire Manager Coaches General manager Related Disabled list Phantom ballplayer

Holden Caulfield is the 17-year-old^[1] protagonist of author J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. He is universally recognized for his resistance to growing older and desire to protect childhood innocence. Since the book's 1951 publication, Holden has become an icon for teenage rebellion and angst, and now stands among the most important characters of 20th-century American literature. The name Holden Caulfield, as shown below, was used in an unpublished short story written in 1942 and first appeared in print in 1945.

Although it is thought by some that J.D. Salinger got the name for Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye when he saw a marquee for Dear Ruth (1947), starring William Holden and Joan Caulfield, Salinger's first Holden Caulfield story, "I'm Crazy," appeared in Collier's on December 22, 1945, a year and a half before this movie came out.^[2]

Appearance and personality[link]

One of Holden's most striking and quintessential qualities is his powerful revulsion for "phony" qualities, a catch all term for all the hypocrisy that infuriates Holden. It is this cynicism that consequently causes him to distance himself from other people. Despite Holden's strong disdain for phony qualities, he exhibits some of the qualities that he abhors, thereby making him a somewhat tragic character. Holden is very much a character of contradiction; At six feet, two-and-a-half inches, he is tall for his age and already has some gray hair, though he himself admits that he acts more like a 13-year-old than an adult. He continually fails classes and calls himself "dumb", yet he shows intelligence through his reasonably articulate narration.

[edit] In The Catcher in the Rye

Holden Caulfield is the narrator and main character of The Catcher in the Rye. The novel recounts the days following Caulfield's expulsion from Pencey Prep, a university preparatory school based loosely on Valley Forge Military Academy, Salinger's alma mater. Caulfield tells his story in cynical and jaded language, often using disparaging language and profanity. He appears as an unstable character that changes his mind easily and very often.

In other works[link]

The character, as Holden Morrisey Caulfield, also appears in Salinger's "Slight Rebellion off Madison", published in the December 21, 1946 issue of The New Yorker. An earlier version of this story, titled "Are You Banging Your Head Against a Wall?" was accepted for publication by The New Yorker in October 1941, but was not published then because editors found the tone to be too desolate for its readership. An edited version of this short story later became the basis of several chapters in the middle-late section of The Catcher in the Rye dealing with Caulfield's date with Sally Hayes, during which he confesses his desire to run away with her, he meets Carl Luce for drinks, and he makes a drunken phone call to the Hayes home. Unlike the similar sequence in the novel, Caulfield is on a Christmas break from school, and, in the story, the interlude with Sally is split into two occurrences. Also, the meeting with Carl Luce is considerably briefer in the story than in the novel.

Caulfield also figures as a character in the short story "I'm Crazy", published in Colliers (December 22, 1945), and other members of the Caulfield family are featured in "Last Day of the Last Furlough", published in The Saturday Evening Post (July 15, 1944) and the unpublished short stories "The Last and Best of the Peter Pans" (c. 1942) and "The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls" (c. 1945).

"I'm Crazy" is closely related to what would become the first chapter of The Catcher in the Rye. It begins with Caulfield standing on a hill at "Pencey Prep" watching a football game below, and develops as Holden visits with his history teacher, Mr. Spencer, for a talk about his expulsion from school and his future. Several other details match those found in the first chapter of Catcher, including a reference to the mother of one of Caulfield's schoolmates and to his own mother sending him a gift of ice skates, but the story ends with his returning home instead of running away from school. Once home, he is not shown confronting his parents, who, according to the maid, are playing bridge. Instead, he goes to speak to Phoebe. Their dialogue is similar to what appears in the later chapters of The Catcher in the Rye. Also notable is that sister Viola gets her first, and only, mention in the Caulfield saga.

Caulfield family in other works[link]

"Last Day /tm/of the Last Furlough" relates the final day of Babe Gladwaller before he leaves to fight in World War II. Gladwaller spends part of the day with his little sister before Vincent Caulfield (later renamed D.B. in the novel) arrives. At that point Vincent is a fellow soldier about to leave for the war. Vincent announces that his brother, Holden, has been declared missing in action. Gladwaller's relationship with his younger sister can be seen as a parallel to Caulfield's relationship with Phoebe.

"The Last and Best of the Peter Pans" relates the story of Vincent's (D.B.) draft questionnaire being hidden by his mother. The events occur just after the death of Kenneth (later renamed Allie) and reveal the anxiety of Mary Moriarity, an actress and Caulfield's mother. The story is notable for the appearance of Phoebe and Vincent's statements about a child crawling off a cliff.

In "The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls," Vincent (D.B.) recalls the day his brother Kenneth (Allie) died. The story is set at the Caulfield summer home on Cape Cod. Several details make their way from this story into Catcher, including the characterization of Allie; Allie's poetry-inscribed left-handed baseball mitt; Vincent's girlfriend, Helen, who keeps her kings in the back row (like Jane Gallagher); and Caulfield's critical view of others. While the cause of death in "Catcher" is leukemia, here it is due to an unspecified heart condition. Toward the end of the story, Kenneth and Vincent are on the beach. Kenneth decides to go swimming and is knocked out by a wave. Holden, just home from camp, is waiting on the porch with his suitcases as Vincent comes back with Kenneth's unconscious body. Kenneth passes away later the same night. The story was reportedly sold to a magazine, only to be taken back by Salinger before publication.

Another short story of note with relationship to Caulfield is "The Boy in the People Shooting Hat," which was submitted to The New Yorker sometime between 1948 and 1949 but was never published. It focuses on a fight between two characters named Bobby and Stradlater over Bobby's feelings about Jane Gallagher. This story likely forms the basis for several key scenes in the first several chapters of The Catcher in the Rye.

Cultural impact[link]

Holden Caulfield is one of the most enduring characters in 20th century American fiction.

• The Catcher in the Rye is required reading in many high school English courses today, although it has been banned from some school libraries by parent and teacher groups opposed to its use of profanity and perceived glorification of rebellion.
• Holden was influential in the lives of, among others, Mark David Chapman,^[3] the former mental patient who murdered John Lennon in 1980.
• In the episode "The Return" of the TV show Dilbert, a tech support agent calls himself 'Holdem Callfielder'.
• In an episode of the TV show Family Guy, primary character Brian is remarked upon as being fond of Caulfield as proof of his pretentious and immature personality by Quagmire, who describes Caulfield as "a spoiled brat". A red haired, unnamed character obsessed with "phoniness" also appears on the show, spray-painting "PHONY" on Peter's car after seeing him pretending to play a keyboard in a toy store.
• In The Offspring's album Ignition (1992), the song 'Get it Right' has lyrics that says "Like Holden Caulfield".
• In Green Day's album Kerplunk (1992), there is a song called 'Who Wrote Holden Caulfield?'
• In Screeching Weasel's album How to Make Enemies and Irritate People, there is a song called "I Wrote Holden Caulfield".
• The first draft of the Star Wars novel Red Harvest by Joe Schreiber contained a character named Middish Sunblade, modeled after Holden Caulfield, but was removed from the rewrite.^[4]
• In the comic strip Frazz, Frazz's best friend is an 8-year-old named Caulfield, apparently after Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye. He is an emulation of Holden, as he is always reading books that are above his grade level, such as Catch-22, The Old Man and the Sea, and Tourist Season. He also speaks out in class, asking odd questions (i.e. "If horses don't really like spurs, why do barbed wires keep them in?") when his teacher asks if anyone has any questions about the lessons.
• In the 2002 black comedy-drama film "The Good Girl," the film's protagonist, Thomas "Holden" Worther (portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal), constantly has his nose in “The Catcher in the Rye” and claims that his own life parallels that of Holden Caulfield.
• Streetlight Manifesto's song "Here's to Life," mentions Holden Caulfield as one of the several suicidal people included in the song.
• Ben Affleck's character in Kevin Smith's Chasing Amy is named Holden after Holden Caulfield.
• In Mr. Motherfucking eXquire's verse on the remix of his song Huzzah! (featuring Despot, Das Racist, Danny Brown, and El-P), he raps, "Still lost as Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye."
• In Grow Up, the Protagonist, Jasper, says "I am Holden Caulfield, only less reckless, and more attractive" ^[5]

Quotations[link]

"The boy himself is too simple and too complex for us to make any final comment about him or his story. Perhaps the safest thing we can say about Holden is that he was born in the world not just strongly attracted to beauty but, almost, hopelessly impaled on it." — Original jacket copy (J.D. Salinger?)^[6]

External links[link]

Salinger's uncollected short stories

• Slight Rebellion off Madison.
• In Japan, most of the short stories are already translated into Japanese (compiled in two volumes) and still commercially available with the approval of Salinger's agents (ISBN 4-7521-0001-0 / ISBN 4-7521-0002-9). Even Hapworth 16, 1924 is available (ISBN 4-7521-0004-5).

Fan sites

• Dead Caulfields, A fan site with information on Salinger's works, including details about the uncollected and/or unpublished shorts stories.
• The Catcher in the Rye - and related matters

References[link]