Catcher - Javy Lopez (1992- )

One of the most-popular players on the current Braves roster, Javy Lopez has been the team's regular catcher every year since 1994 except 1999 when his season was cut short by a knee injury.

The Most Valuable Player of the 1996 NLCS when he batted .542 to lead an improbable comeback win over St. Louis, Lopez alrady ranks seventh on the all-time Atlanta home run (143) and RBI (467) lists. Regarded as one of baseball's best clutch hitters, he is a two-time NL All-Star who holds the unusual distinction of hitting a home run in his first All-Star Game at-bat (1997).

Lopez was hitting a career-high .317 when injury curtailed his '99 season after 65 games. He had career-highs of 34 home runs and 106 RBIs in 1998 -- both franchise records for a catcher. That season, he also led major league catchers with a .995 fielding percentage and NL catchers by throwing out 33.8 percent of attempted basestealers.