ST. LOUIS — At 38 years old, Yadier Molina has seen it all. That includes a lot of opening days.
On Friday, Molina will make some opening day history.
With his presumptive start in the Cardinals' opener against the Pirates, Molina will set the record for most consecutive opening day starts by a catcher.
Molina will start in his 16th consecutive opening day for the Cardinals on Friday. He'll break a streak held by Ray Schalk and Bill Dickey. (Although the current record holder seems to be a point of some debate)
The last time Molina didn't start behind the plate for the Cardinals on an opening day was in 2004. The catcher who did start? Why it was none other than Molina's former manager, Mike Matheny.
The nine-time gold glover is currently in games started in Cardinals history. He's just seven behind Ozzie Smith, so he'll likely move into third in a week or so.
Molina's streak of 16 straight opening days is the longest by any player in the Majors. Reds first baseman Joey Votto is second with 12 straight opening day starts.
Molina is currently 13th all-time in games caught for a career and should move into tenth place by the time the 2020 season is over.
The Cardinals' opening day iron man's contract is set to expire at the end of the 2020 season, but he has expressed interest in playing longer, whether it's in St. Louis, or somewhere else if he has to.
