Frank Catalanotto signs with Rangers

Three years for $13 million.  Not crazy in this market, not crazy at all.  The key to Catalanotto is that he is just about worthless versus lefties.  He managed a great .300/.376/.439 in 432 ABs last year for Toronto, but he was savagely platooned: only 38 of those ABs were against lefties.  That's smart of John Gibbons: only about 10% of Cat's ABs in the last six years have been against southpaws, and he's scratched out a .243/.327/.346 line vs. LHP in that time.

With those splits, Catalanotto would be a nice platoon partner for Nelson Cruz, but that still leaves the Rangers two outfielders short.  Brian Anderson would be a nice fit in center, but that still leaves the outfield rather thin; a recovered Brad Wilkerson, Victor Diaz, and Freddy Guzman are other in-house options.  Only Wilkerson even has a shot at providing league-average offense, and that assume his skills come back with his health.  Then again, if any team can manage a weak offensive outfield, it's the one with Mark Teixiera, Hank Blalock, and Michael Young in the infield.

By Jeff Sackmann

Comments

[start_wearing_purple]

Any other Sox fan ecstatic about this? He HAMMERED the Sox?

[eeleye99]

Sad Blue Jay fan here. He'll be missed, he was a fan favorite and a great guy. I read that elsewhere that he was a "Red Sox killer." Let's see:

Career .320 hitter with .890 OPS versus the Red Sox. He's a career .327 with RISP, and a .909 OPS with RISP with 2 outs. Last year he had 52 walks, 37 strikeotus and still hit .300. He's truly an underrated hitter and this was a great deal!

[buddha]

This was a better deal than resigning Mattews since he was in a contract year and had his best season, coincidence??? As a Sox fan I won't miss Cat at all. He's always been an underrated hitter but when Delgado and Wells are there you get overshadowed. There's no limelight. I wish him the best of luck in Texas. I'm just glad he's out of Toronto. Now if we could figure out how to beat the Rays every year. We always seem to beat the great teams and lose to the crappy teams.

[eeleye99]

Thats what we feel too. Maybe thats what every team feels? Even the D-Rays!

[bsox21]

Very solid pick up by the Rangers.

Forget Wilkerson. That guy is the worst player in baseball.

[Droptop]

Solid pick up by the Rangers. My question is, how soon is the Rangers GM going to figure things out? The guy traded Soriano for, well nothing. He trades for Carlos Lee and then, doesn't re-sign him. Could he have honestly thought the Rangers had a shot at catching the A's for the Division last yaer? I hope not....
Their are many clueless organizations in Baseball and the Rangers are one of them still. I feel sorry for Ron Washington...

[Marivamalisha91]

great pickup by the Rangers, Cattalanato is a perfect hitter there, not a huge power hitter although his numbers should increase in Texas, but the guy just kills AL teams, agreed, Catt will be a big upgrade over Wilkerson, nice deal by Hart

[nrmax88]

maybe they should get some pitching so they can actually compete one of these years

[Redsoxtalk.com]

Thank god he is out of the AL east.

[Droptop]

Maybe someday the Rangers could learn a thing or two from the Angels and A's, that is to DEVELOP and sign QUALITY pitching....

The Rangers have had the best offense of the AL West for how many years now? It's gotten them no where.

[gadamer]

He's definitely an underrated player, but my concern, as a White Sox fan, is how this sets up a potential big trade between the Rangers and the Sox...Brian Anderson and Javier Vasquez for two top-of-the-line pitching prospects?

[jd]

gadamer- i like the signing for texas too, even though unless they get someone else this will have to be the weakest hitting outfield ever, lol. i seriously hope daniels doesn't trade danks or hurley or any of the other top pitching prospects for anderson and esp vasquez. that would be one hell of an exercise in futility. everyone wants texas to get pitching, well vasquez isn't the answer and neither is trading away your best prospects for two guys that a good team obviously don't care about.

[jd]

btw i'm totally against bringing back gmj unless it's like a sick hometown discount. i think they should (just like every other team) go hard after V. Wells, to get that guy i don't care what prospects daniels gives up. of course only if they can lock wells up so they don't have another C. Lee episode......

[gadamer]

jd
That deal might not be too bad for Texas. Vazquez is a major innings eater, and for five innings, his stuff is generally unhittable. It's after the fifth that he hits a wall. With the right pitching coach, maybe he could overcome that problem. And Anderson hit very well in the second half of last season, and he's an excellent fielder. In all, he might be a very cheap replacement for Matthews. You're right, the Sox's are looking to dump Vasquez to get younger and to get some salary room for a CF. But Texas MUST do something to improve pitching, and they're running out of time to wait on unproven rookies. They're fan base is crumbling and I fear they may hit that point of no return (like the Sox after the '97 fire sale), where fans just don't come around anymore.

[jd]

"Vazquez is a major innings eater, and for five innings, his stuff is generally unhittable. It's after the fifth that he hits a wall. With the right pitching coach, maybe he could overcome that problem."

gadamer- that's kind of a contradiction, not to mention vasquez would be on like his 5th team in as many years (i think), players worth top prospects don't get passed around like easy girls in high school. It's just my opinion they see these young guys a little longer and hope at least a couple pan out.