The Padres announced that they’ve claimed catcher Josmil Pinto off waivers from the Twins.
Pinto, 27, was once viewed as Minnesota’s possible catcher of the future due to his outstanding bat in the minors and in his first September call-up back in 2013. Pinto raked at Double-A and Triple-A in ’13, hitting a combined .309/.400/.482 with 15 homers before earning a September promotion and announcing his presence with a .342/.398/.566 performance in that month-long audition.
Pinto, however, was always viewed as a poor defender behind the plate, so when his bat began to slip in 2014 and 2015, his future was called into question. He hit just .219/.315/.391 in 57 games with the Twins in 2014, and his 2015 season was marred by concussions and poor performance at the Triple-A level, where he batted just .228/.304/.354 in 68 games. If Pinto can return to health, he has the upside of being an above-average bat for a catcher, but it’s unlikely that he’ll demonstrate dramatic defensive improvement moving forward.
Sigh…
Is Norris on the move?
Pinto was a buy low opp. I don’t think this claim has anything to do with DNorris but yes…DNorris could be traded..hell, anyone could go.
I see a fire sale for all our players. Ross and Kemp are gone.
Ok, so what will the Pads get in return?
At this point, anyone could be on the move.
if the Padres feel the need to move a catching i do prefer Norris going and Hedges staying with Club Fed’s lefty bat and knowledge of the NL West backing him up – Pinto can spend atleast a half a year on the farm hitting the cover off the ball
Thinking this means Preller is shopping Derek Norris. Pinto was protected from the Rule 5 draft three years ago and has spent at least 20 days in the minors in each of the last 3 seasons so that means he is out of options unless he is eligible for a fourth option year like Rymer Liriano (I still have no idea how this is determined).
4th option year happens when a player has 5 seasons or less of experience and has burned 3 options. In Rymer Liriano’s case, he spent a few years in short season ball (SS ball is less than 90 days which doesn’t count as a season) and was injured for most of a season.
On Pinto, who appears to be out of options, it seems like a good pickup. The Padres had an open roster spot and were thin at catcher behind Hedges and Norris. While I wouldn’t eliminate the possibility of trading Hedges or Norris (especially since Preller traded several catchers last winter), the Pinto pickup may just be a depth pick up ahead of the Rule V draft.
agree that Norris being moved over is Hedges is best for the team, think Norris would return slightly more than Hedges at this point – Preller knows Hedges could be a top 3 defensive catcher in MLB as soon as 2016, so does Pat Murphy in Milwaukee
Pads went all in (except they really didn’t up the middle where it’s vital) last off season and produced less wins in 2015 than 2014 so EVERYBODY is a trade option. Just hate the thought of another fire sale.
All in? Maybe, regardless of the 2015 W/L record the attendance was up enough to show that San Diego can be a fun/profitable city for winning baseball – All Star coming in 2016, new uni’s in December, this team will compete for a wild card in 2016
The All Star game is nice, but there’s going to need to be a lot of things that must go right if they are to contend for a wild card spot next season.
yes starts with this offseason, so far so good – Wil Myers 550 plus at bats will make the Padres much improved
Good luck with Pinto. He always looked to have a good bat, moderate XBH type power potential. Not a very good catcher, though.
athletic enough to play first? or a DH kinda guy?
Pinto can’t throw out the trash! Concussion issues. Probably a position change in the near future because of his bat
I see Pinto being given a shot at first base by the Padres. Alonso & Wallace have shown limited upsides offensively. Despite the last two year, Pinto’s shown he can hit. His first stint in the majors was impressive and his minor league numbers show a lot of potential. If he can get the footwork down to play 1B he can be a valuable pick up for the Padres