 In 1996 , Rodríguez set an MLB record for most doubles by a catcher , amassing 44 over the course of the season . This broke the previous mark of 42 , set by Mickey Cochrane in 1930 . He also set the major league record for at @-@ bats by a catcher in a single season , with 639 , which surpassed Johnny Bench 's record of 621 in 1970 . He led the Texas Rangers in doubles , at bats , hits , and runs scored . He was selected to the Major League Baseball All @-@ Star team that played a series in Japan against the Japanese all @-@ stars after the season was over . He again played in the Puerto Rican Winter League this season . In the 1997 season , Rodríguez also placed first among catchers in many categories in Major League Baseball . These categories were hits , runs , runs batted in , and doubles . He placed second in home runs among catchers , below only Sandy Alomar , Jr. of the Cleveland Indians , who had 20 home runs . He appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated on the week of August 4 . This marked the fourth time a player from the Texas Rangers had been on the cover of Sports Illustrated . Rodríguez played in the Puerto Rican Winter League yet again , where he had a .285 batting average , 4 home runs , and <unk> batted in over the course of 32 games playing for Caguas . 
