Posada Leads Free Agent Catcher Class

If you're looking for a catcher this winter - and many teams will be - you probably have to put Jorge Posada at the top of the list.  His incredible season couldn't have come at a better time.  Here's the list of possible free agent starting catchers, with their 2008 age in parentheses:

Jorge Posada (36)
Ivan Rodriguez (36) - $13MM club option for '08
Paul Lo Duca (36)
Michael Barrett (31)
Jason Kendall (34)

When we last checked in on Pudge's option, Ken Rosenthal said the Tigers were "almost certain" to exercise it.  For the sake of argument, let's say Kendall's recent resurgence is for real and allows teams to consider him as a starter.  That means four available catchers: Posada, Lo Duca, Barrett, and Kendall.

Barrett is the youngster of the group, and before this season began I would've ranked him first.  But even a biased Barrett fan such as myself must admit that his stock is falling rapidly with the altercations, mental gaffes, and subpar offensive performance.      

Despite the power outage, Lo Duca should be a respectable choice for some team not planning to spend $10MM+ a year on a backstop.  Posada, though, is where it's at.  He's showing no signs of age and is the type of player GMs love.  And a catcher who can easily post an OPS over .800 is a major asset.

Contract talks with the Yankees from last spring have been tabled as Posada prefers to focus on playing.  It seems like both sides want him to finish his career as a Yankee, though there is some uncertainty in Posada's comments.  He's keeping his options open.  I think it will require four years and maybe $48MM. 

Plenty of teams would line up for Posada - the Angels, Mets, Phillies, and Astros come to mind.

Comments

[statnut]

I suspect Posada would just use the Mets as leverage against the Yankees.

[steveh]

I dont think the Phillies would be a player... Barajas, Ruiz and Jaramillo - not to mention Coste..ONe of them is more likely to be traded...

I think they better spend dough on pitching first...

[vegasneedsbaseball]

It seems like the Cubs will let Barrett walk or trade him. I'm curious who the Cubs would likely go after as a replacement. It doesn't seem like Koyie Hill or Henry Blanco are full-time candidates.

[themonkeypirate]

I think the Braves could trade Bryan Pena to the Cubs...but who would they want from the cubs? They won't take back Marquis. Pie maybe?

[nrmax88]

Pena lol. Then while their at it why dont they just trade Matt Diaz and Scott Thorman for Derrek Lee and Soriano. Seems fair no?

[WestCoastBias]

Without a doubt, the Astros will be the most aggressive in finding a catcher this off-season to replace Ausmus. Barrett seems like a strong choice for them given their need for someone who isn't in the twilight years of his career.

Speaking of the Astros, their offense has the potential to go off next year:

Without Biggio dragging them down, they can use the under-utilized Burke in a full-time role at 2B with the solid Loretta spelling him from time to time.

After a year under their belts as Astros, Carlos Lee & Hunter Pence will continue to pace the offense along with Lance Berkman at 1B who has to get out of his slump sooner or later. That's a nasty 3-4-5 right there.

Ideally, a more offensively-minded catcher like Barrett can come on and allow them to keep Everett in the 8 hole as his glove merits full-time work.

The only holes are at 3B and RF but Ensberg and Scott splitting time with backups, the lineup should still produce a high scoring offense.

Assuming Ensberg stays around, this could be a solid lineup, given the chance.

Chris Burke
Morgan Ensberg
Lance Berkman
Carlos Lee
Hunter Pence
Michael Barrett
Luke Scott
Adam Everett

If they brough on Lowell too, they could move Pence to the #2 spot, allowing Lowell to hit behind cleanup.

[boomshwa12]

barret sounds like a clubhouse cancer though. the stros can do better than him. they do have last year's first rounder max sapp hitting pretty well in low A. they could nab posada or pudge for about 3 years until sapp is ready to go. if he turns out to be a bust then maybe the free agent crop would look better in a few years

[JerseyMetFan]

I have a feeling LoDuca signs a two year extension or something. I wouldn't be opposed to that.

If he walks, I haven't the slightest clue who Omar would bring in.

[lekman]

Given the sparse field of catchers, and given Posada is a homegrown Yankee success story, do any of you seriously believe the Yankees will let Jorge Posada sign elsewhere??

[DentalPlan]

I think you've overestimated the market for Posada. Look at how old he is. Who's going to give a catcher his age 4 years? Maybe if somebody wants a 1st baseman. I wouldn't mess around with a catcher that old who currently has a career high OPS. All of these guys in their early to mid 30s and their career years, forget them. Furthermore, considering you can't expect him to keep catching, I don't think any of those teams you listed would be interested. So I disagree, "plenty" of teams won't be lining up, I think.

[miltie]

"barret sounds like a clubhouse cancer though"

?????

He's anything but a clubhouse cancer. There was the one incident with Z, which was initiated by Z not Barrett. That's it. He does not have the reputation of being a clubhouse cancer. He's actually one of the better guys in baseball. Just ask D-Lee.

[boomshwa12]

there's that, there's the incident with pierzenski (sp) a year or two ago, i think i remember him getting into it with roy oswalt a while back over getting hit or something. i don't think clubhouse cancer was the phrase i was looking for...more like he has a track record of losing it every now and then

[yanksfan]

One thing to keep in mind about Posada's age - he was drafted as a 2nd baseman and moved to catcher later on. Most catchers start catching in their early teens. Posada has a lot less time spent catching than most catchers his age, so he shouldn't wear down as quickly.

Not sure 4 years is a great idea, but a 3 year deal probably wouldn't be bad.

[JitteryMcFrog]

"Not sure 4 years is a great idea, but a 3 year deal probably wouldn't be bad."

It probably depends on the team. I think it would be advantageous for someone like the Mets or Angels (or, of course, the Yanks) to risk stomaching a pricey subpar year in exchange for a few very good ones. Absorbing something like $12 million for a season in the 2011 market doesn't seem such a high risk for one of the richer teams.

Also, Roto, an old bone to pick:

"And I would laugh at anyone who would rather have Varitek on their team than Barrett, defense included.

Posted by: RotoAuthority | April 30, 2007 at 11:34 PM"

Granted that there is a lot more baseball to be played this season, but given the results so far (Varitek: .275/.364/.455, solid reputation for defense and leadership; Barrett: .247/.303/.424, plus "altercations, mental gaffes"), can we at least say that a preference for 'Tek is better than laughable? I wouldn't laugh at you, but I think I would choose Varitek this year.