He also had another strong defensive season, ranking among the league's leading catchers with 103 assists (third), 11 double plays turned (third), a .979 fielding percentage (fourth), and 402 putouts (fifth). In the voting for the 1924 American League MVP, he finished fifth behind pitchers Walter Johnson and Herb Pennock, second baseman Eddie Collins, and outfielder Charlie Jamieson. Bassler later credited his improved batting in 1924 to his teammate Bobby Veach. Bassler recalled:"I was a dead left-field hitter and all a good pitcher had to do was shoot me a fast high ball, inside, and I'd pop up. I found Veach used a little fuller swing than I against this delivery, always keeping his wrist behind the point of contact with the ball. About the middle of 1924, after experimenting, I landed upon the combination of a big-handled bat of light Cuban wood and a full swing patterned after Veach. Then suddenly they began to line into right and center for me." In 1925, Bassler remained the Tigers' primary catcher, but his batting average dropped 67 points from .346 to .279. In 1926, he shared the catcher position with Clyde Manion and Larry Woodall, with Bassler and Manion each starting 57 games and Woodall 41. He again shared the job with Woodall starting 70 games at catcher and Bassler starting 59 games. Bassler compiled batting averages of .305 and .285 in 1926 and 1927. He appeared in his final major league game on September 30, 1927, at age 32. Bassler was a capable player both on offense and defense. His notable career accomplishments include the following: In "The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract", released in 2001, baseball analyst Bill James rated Bassler as the 47th best catcher of all time. James wrote that, "if his major league career wasn't so short he would rank among the top 20 catchers of all time." Bassler was also a solid defensive catcher in his years with the Detroit Tigers. In 1923, his .988 fielding percentage (eight errors in 128 games) was twelve points higher than the league average of .975. Bassler was known for his strong throwing arm. In his prime years from 1921 to 1925, Bassler had 462 assists in 482 games. In 1923, he had 133 assists in 128 games as a catcher. He also had 14 double plays in 118 games in 1925. The weakest area of Bassler's game was power.