Just hours after announcing that Joe Mauer will be transitioning to first base full-time in 2014, the Twins have already started looking into out-of-house options at catcher. Minnesota is showing preliminary interest in free agent Jarrod Saltalamacchia, a baseball source tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN.
The 28-year-old Saltalamacchia enjoyed his best season in 2013, batting .273/.338/.466 with 14 home runs in a career-high 470 plate appearances. Not only is he one of the best catchers available, but he is one of the youngest free agents on the market this offseason.
A separate source indicated to Wolfson that A.J. Pierzynski would be a good one-year stopgap to keep the seat warm until Josmil Pinto is ready to take over. The 36-year-old has been incredibly durable, averaging over 130 games per season for more than a decade.
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