The Nationals were one of eight teams whose catchers posted a sub-replacement fWAR in 2018, which led general manager Mike Rizzo to make over the position entering this season. Rizzo said goodbye to Matt Wieters and Pedro Severino, the Nationals’ primary catchers last year, and brought in Kurt Suzuki in free agency and Yan Gomes in a trade with the Indians. Both pickups looked fine on paper, and Suzuki has played pretty well through the first four months into the season. Gomes, on the other hand, has been stunningly bad.
Set to turn 32 this Friday, Gomes was a valuable backstop in Cleveland, where he totaled 13.7 fWAR from 2013-18. But Gomes has taken massive steps back in D.C., where he has accounted for minus-0.2 fWAR and mustered an unsightly .202/.298/.290 batting line with three home runs in 208 plate appearances. Gomes’ 54 wRC+ is barely more than half the 101 he managed last year with the Tribe, and his .087 ISO ranks ninth worst in the majors among 262 hitters who have amassed at least 200 trips to the plate.
To make matters worse, Gomes hasn’t been the same caliber of defender he was just a year ago, when he ranked as one of Baseball Prospectus’ premier catchers (including in the pitch-framing department). Although Gomes has thrown out a strong 36 percent of would-be base stealers – up from 29 percent in 2018 – BP regards the Washington version as a below-average backstop and a subpar framer. Meanwhile, Statcast only puts Gomes’ in the majors’ 36th percentile when it comes to stealing strikes.
Statcast also thinks little of Gomes’ offense, placing him in the 26th percentile or worse in hard-hit rate, average exit velocity, expected slugging percentage, expected batting average and expected weighted-on base average. There isn’t a huge difference between Gomes’ xwOBA (.276) and real wOBA (.261), which suggests a major rebound isn’t coming at the plate. FanGraphs offers even more bad news, noting Gomes’ hard-hit percentage (25.2) has dropped exactly 18 points since 2018 and ranks third last in the majors. Gomes is hitting far more ground balls and far fewer line drives than he did a year ago, which predictably hasn’t been a recipe for success.
If you’re holding out for encouraging signs, there are a few, starting with Gomes’ K/BB ratio. He has struck out in 23.1 percent of plate appearances, down from 25.8 percent or more in each of the previous four seasons. Moreover, Gomes’ walk rate, 10.1 percent, is a career best and almost doubles his lifetime mark (5.4). He’s also swinging and missing less than he has in recent years and making much more out-of-zone contact than ever. And Gomes’ .258 batting average on balls in play, a 37-point decrease from his lifetime figure (.295), indicates he has dealt with some poor fortune this year.
Even if Gomes’ BABIP does normalize as the season goes on, odds are the Nationals aren’t going to get the 2018 All-Star version they wanted. To this point, Gomes has surprisingly been a less valuable player than right-hander Jefry Rodriguez, whom the Nationals traded to the Indians for him and who hasn’t exactly been a world-beater in his own right. The Nats also parted with outfield prospect Daniel Johnson, a 24-year-old who has notched quality numbers in his first Triple-A action this season, and young infielder Andruw Monasterio.
Waving goodbye to Rodriguez, Johnson and Monasterio to acquire Gomes was an understandable decision for Washington at the time, but the move hasn’t yielded dividends thus far for the playoff hopefuls. Unless Gomes revisits his prior form during the final couple months of the campaign, the Nationals may buy him out in the offseason in lieu of exercising a $9MM club option for 2020.
Gomes offense has never been good to begin with. His career ops is barely over 700 lol
Which is a little above league average for a catcher
Well yes but his CURRENT OPS is 588. I mean come on. At this point I dont think his bat would fly in AA.
First you said career now it’s just this year. Way to change the goalposts
He was comparing his OPS from this year to his career mark.
I’m not debating that . Gomes has been a total bust in washington.
All I said was a .700 ops is above league average for a catcher which was mocked by the OP
Does anyone actually read entire responses or is everyone just out to read what they want to see ?
thats an ironic remark considering the career OPs and current Ops remarks were made by two different people and yet you responded as if it were the same person. unless im missing something and the 2 accounts belong to the same guy
Wow. 54 wRC+
It’s cuz he can’t get any playing time duh
Why give the 9th worst batter in the league more playing time when he already has 200 plate appearances
Vogt is available. Has been excellent with the Giants this year.
Another winner move from Rizzo ! He has shown his poor criteria and end results on 2 areas consistently over the years @ Catcher and with Relievers/closer. The Buffalo was a mistake to not keep around, and Giolitto OMG. So we all know how many blown leads and list games the bullpen has accounted for over the last years!
Rizzo – get some smarts and listen to others- results might improve. So what’s gonna happen this year before July trade deadline? Nada
Are you kidding? Giolito deal was fine. He is just now blossoming, and Adam Eaton is still producing for the Nats.
And Reynaldo Lopez still can’t find home plate.
Eh give me a number 2 starter over an above a average corner outfielder anyday . You can get one of those for very little in free agency
Ramos? HA NO please god no. I will take no offense over that clown coming back! Mets pitching has tanked any everyone who knows anything about Ramos saw that coming from a million miles away! He’s terrible at calling games and handling pitchers.
Rusell MArtin/Austin Barnes seem like a very good fit. This way we can call up the Fresh Prince.
Will Smith got hurt!
Guess he got too jiggy with it
He was available to pinch hit for OKC today. He just has a bruise that is all.
Alex Colome, James McCann and $5mil for Tim Cate and Jeremy De La Rosa.
I think everyone but the nats saw this coming. Gomes isn’t good
Another piece of evidence that pitch framing is nonsense. I am sure that Gomes did not just suddenly forget how to catch a baseball. Balls and strikes are on the Umpire.
Great point. And perhaps some umpires pay closer attention to catchers who are known as good framers.
I’ve been an umpire at the HS level for almost 10 years now, and I’ve always felt the concept of pitch framing was nonsense. The vast majority of umpires make the ball/strike decision before the ball hits the catchers mitt, and they should. I don’t ever remember basing a call on where the catchers mitt was located after the fact, and if I ever start doing that, it’s time to hang it up.
I think it has more to do with familiarity with the pitching staff. Gomes was in Cleveland a long time and helped develop most of their pitchers. Now he has a new unfamiliar staff. Takes a while to adjust.
At the time, I hated the idea of the Indians trading Gomes.. Glad we let the professionals run the team, ha. Great move by the Tribe FO. Roberto Perez has been far better, at a fraction of the price, and two prospects in DJ and Jefry.
3 prospects in return. Andruw Monasterio (injured most of the yr in AA Akron) was also part of the trade compensation going to Cleveland
What happens to that Statcast stealing strikes metric when the robot umpires take over?
Catching becomes about hitting and blocking.
Gomes moving from American League to national league may hurt him also. Let’s check second half.
This post seems out of the blue. I couldn’t tell….was there something that triggered this particular posting – like rumors of a trade?
Can write the same piece for half the acquisitions out there…
Nothing gets you walked like batting 8th in the N.L.
It is certainly surprising to many Indians fans that Gomes has failed so miserably while Roberto Perez is having a very good year.
The Tribe’s front office took a lot of grief for just dumping Gomes and his salary,
It’s turned out to be a case of selling high.
Exactly! You expressed it more accurately than I did. I tip my cap to you, themaven.
Turned out to be a great move by the Tribe front office. Ownership is the problem in CLE, front office is having a good year.
Daniel Johnson is now #22 on the Indians’ prospect list.
Those are a lot of numbers showing his decline but not a word of why.
“Isn’t working out”…. compared to what better alternative???
To have bet on Wieters or Severino was just not going to happen due to the ineptitude of both in the previous two seasons they were given to prove themselves in WAS.
Kieboom seemed like he might be ready, but now it appears he probably wasn’t, at least given his year thus far.
And how was any of the three sent to the Indians going to help us this year??? Moreover, it remains to be seen if any of those are going to help CLE at any point in their future. No one knows.
Sorry, Connor Byrne, that you spent that much time on the topic, but Gomes only needs to be pretty average for the Nats to win that trade where 2019 is concerned.
And that he has been.
Agreed with all except Spencer keiboom. He was horrendous last year. He ruined season for Gio and Roark. I hope they have other plans was not impressed with that kid one little bit. I hope he’s not part of the now future or really ever.
Yes and no. Spencer came on at the end of last season in a way that hinted he might be a factor.