The Indians have signed catcher Mike Redmond, according to Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. The 38-year-old has backed up Joe Mauer since 2005 and he figures to do the same for Lou Marson in Cleveland. As Castrovince notes, it's the first major league free agent signing the Indians have made this offseason.
Redmond hit .237/.299/.289 in 147 plate appearances last year. He has a career OBP of .345, but very little power. He hit just two homers in his five-year stint with the Twins. The Padres, who are also looking for catching depth,had been linked to Redmond earlier in the month.
Two homeruns in five years? That’s crazy.
1,997 PA in the minors…27 HR. I will take Santana, thought he was supposed to be the possible starter. They are the same age (23).
Almost as bad as Jason Tyner.
I thought Santana would be trying to break camp as the starter? He is the same age as Marson and MILES better. I guess he will be starting the season at AAA.
Congrats to Redmond. We loved the guy as a player and as a clubhouse presence. He’s a good mentor for a young catcher. We wish him well (except when we play against him, of course).
SMELL ‘EM!
As much as I loved Reddog, and his huge contributions in 2006, it’s hard to characterize him as a MLB-calibre player anymore. He should have just let it go and moved into a minor-league coaching position.
I hope he tears it up this year, just to spite you.
Can you name another 38-yr old catcher who’s had a renaissance season, either offensively or defensively? They’re few and far between.
We dont need a renaissance season- he’s there to teach the position to Marson, Santana, Toregas.
So you need a coach. Precisely what I said redmond should have moved into…
Between 05-08 with the Twins, Redmond hit between .341 and .287. Last year he hit .237. All he needs is a slight rebound to a bad year and he’ll be a serviceable backup with great intangibles. You think Cleveland wouldn’t take a veteran backup/mentor that hits .270? That’s totally within the realm of possibility.
Sure. But he was in age 33-36 seasons then. At age 37 the decline started. There’s little reason to think he’ll rebound at age 38. What you’re seeing is the natural decline of a catch as he knees give out and his back bothers him more and more.
It’s possible, sure, but it’s also possible a 44-year old Bonds rebounds to his 33-36 year-old seasons as well. Probability and possibility are two different things…