Rod Barajas hopes to play the rest of his career with the Dodgers, the catcher told Steve Dilbeck of the L.A. Times. However, Dilbeck says the Dodgers are considering going cheap behind the plate next year with a tandem of Tim Federowicz and A.J. Ellis.
Federowicz will be a 24-year-old rookie next year, while Ellis will be a 31-year-old with less than a hundred games in the Majors. Typically teams prefer someone more seasoned as the backup, although Ellis did catch 515 games across nine minor league seasons.
Barajas, 36, has played to expectations after signing for $3.25MM in December. His standard good power/low on-base line comes to .236/.289/.445 in 289 plate appearances this year. Barajas noted that his comfort level is playing four or five times a week, which probably leaves more than 60 starts for the other catcher. Barajas has earned approximately $12.5MM in his career, and one way to increase his chances of staying with the Dodgers would be to drop his asking price by a few million dollars.
As Dilbeck notes, letting Barajas leave could be a way for the Dodgers to save $3MM this offseason. The Icon Sports Group client projects as a Type B free agent, but I wouldn't expect the Dodgers to offer unless they want Barajas around next year.
