As usual, this winter’s free agent catching market was pretty thin on viable everyday options, but there has been a fair amount of activity in general for teams looking to add new backstops.
Jacob Stallings and Tucker Barnhart were two of the more prominent trade candidates available, and both have already landed elsewhere, as the Pirates dealt Stallings to the Marlins and the Reds sent Barnhart to the Tigers. On the free agent side, Manny Pina and Yan Gomes each respectively found two-year contracts with the Braves and Cubs, while Roberto Perez signed with the Pirates, Pedro Severino signed with the Brewers, and Sandy Leon signed a minor league deal with the Guardians. In addition, Buster Posey’s retirement was the biggest catching story of them all, as the longtime Giants star decided to end his playing career in the wake of an All-Star season.
If the lockout marks the end of the offseason’s first round of catcher musical chairs, let’s look at which teams and free agents still have needs to fill, and which other clubs could step forward with more trade possibilities.
Teams With Catching Needs
- Guardians: As much as Cleveland prioritizes defense over offense from the catcher position, it’s possible the team might stand pat with the combo of Leon and Austin Hedges. Prospects Bo Naylor or Bryan Lavastida also might factor into the picture during the season. But, for a team that needs hitting upgrades in general, catcher is an obvious area for improvement, given how little Hedges and Leon have traditionally offered at the plate.
- Orioles: Superstar prospect Adley Rutschman is slated to make his MLB debut in 2022, and the O’s will certainly slide Rutschman right into everyday work. However, Baltimore doesn’t have a single catcher in the organization with any Major League experience, so some type of veteran help will be required to handle the catching duties until Rutschman arrives, and then work as a backup the rest of the season.
- Angels: Max Stassi is set to start, though the Halos are in need of a backup catcher. Since Stassi is only controlled through 2022, the Angels could surely explore extension talks post-lockout if they feel Stassi is their long-term choice, or they might look to obtain such a controllable backstop now as a hedge against Stassi leaving in free agency.
- Yankees: Gary Sanchez was tendered a contract, so the former All-Star will be given another chance to rediscover himself at the plate, and also take a long-awaited step forward with his glovework. It seems clear by this point, though, that Sanchez is running short on rope with the Yankees, and backup Kyle Higashioka is a fine defender but might be a platoon option at best at the MLB level.
- Rangers: This is something of a speculative addition, as Texas has the defensively-adept duo of Jonah Heim and Jose Trevino on hand, and top prospect Sam Huff is expected to get another crack at the majors after his 2021 season was hampered by knee surgery. Even with all of this depth, the Rangers have already been so aggressive this winter that it wouldn’t be surprising to see them make another bold win-now move for catching help.
- Red Sox: While Christian Vazquez is signed through 2022, Boston has reportedly already started looking ahead to the future, as the Sox made a strong bid to obtain Stallings before the Pirates eventually took the Marlins’ offer. It remains to be seen if the Sox were enamored with Stallings specifically, or if they might be searching in general for another long-term catcher. If the Red Sox did obtain such a catcher who ready to contribute immediately, that could make Vazquez expendable, and thus slide Boston into the next section of…
Teams With Catchers Available (Or Maybe Available)
- Blue Jays: With Gabriel Moreno close to a big league debut, any of Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen, or Reese McGuire could be expendable at the right price. McGuire is out of minor league options and might be more of a trade candidate for teams looking for a backup, but Jansen or Kirk could be a starter on another club. Until Moreno actually arrives in the Show, it’s possible the Blue Jays could hold onto all of their catchers, as last year’s injuries to Jansen and Kirk evidenced how quickly depth can evaporate.
- Twins: Like the Jays, Minnesota also entered the winter as a natural trade target for catcher-needy teams, given the presence of both Mitch Garver and Ryan Jeffers. And, also like the Jays’ incumbent starters, Garver spent a big chunk of 2021 on the injured list, so the Twins might prefer to stick with their current duo and Ben Rortvedt at Triple-A. The Twins already removed one depth option from the roster when they released La Tortuga himself, Willians Astudillo, in late November.
- Cubs: Questions have been swirling about Willson Contreras’ future in Wrigleyville ever since he was one of the few veterans remaining after Chicago’s trade deadline fire sale. Contreras is only under control through 2022, and in signing Gomes to a two-year deal, the Cubs may already be signaling that Contreras is still available. The Cubs have a promising minor league backstop in Miguel Amaya, though Amaya will miss a good chunk of the 2022 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
- Braves: Atlanta didn’t necessarily have a catching surplus entering the winter, but after signing Pina, the depth chart now sits as Pina and Travis d’Arnaud as the top two backstops on the active roster, and noted prospects Shea Langeliers and William Contreras left waiting at Triple-A. Despite all this depth, d’Arnaud has such a long injury history that the Braves might not be comfortable moving one of their catchers of the future, even though d’Arnaud and Pina are now both on guaranteed deals through 2023. Neither of the veterans is earning enough that they couldn’t themselves perhaps be trade candidates next winter should the Braves want to make room for Langeliers or Contreras.
- Padres: Another team that added to an already deep list of catchers, San Diego picked up Jorge Alfaro from the Marlins in the aftermath of the Stallings trade, putting Alfaro in a mix that already includes Austin Nola, Victor Caratini, and top prospect Luis Campusano. A.J. Preller is familiar with Alfaro from their shared time together in the Rangers organization, so this trade could amount to Preller wanting a closer look at a known quantity during Spring Training, and to see if the Padres could help Alfaro get his big league career on track. Assuming Alfaro isn’t cut loose at a fraction of his arbitration salary prior to Opening Day, another trade involving Nola, Caratini, or (maybe most likely?) Campusano can’t be ruled out, given Preller’s track record for major swaps.
- Royals: Last March, Salvador Perez was locked up to an $82MM contract extension that will keep the longtime catcher in K.C. through at least the 2025 season. Prospect MJ Melendez roared back into top-100 prospect lists after posting big numbers at both Double-A and Triple-A in 2021, and the 23-year-old Melendez seems like he is just about ready for the majors. With Perez blocking Melendez’s way, the Royals have a very intriguing trade chip on their hands.
- Athletics: Sean Murphy is under team control through the 2025 season, and yet for an A’s team looking to cut payroll, they are even reportedly open to moving a player that seems like a building block. Hypothetically, the A’s could look to trade Murphy as part of a larger deal, such as if another team also agreed to take an unfavorable contract (Elvis Andrus? Stephen Piscotty?) off of Oakland’s books. The Athletics have several other high-profile players who are both more expensive and much closer to free agency than Murphy, so while he is surely far from the top of Oakland’s list of players it would want to trade, the possibility of a move is certainly higher than zero. The A’s could certainly ask for a lot more than Pittsburgh got for Stallings, for instance, since Murphy is almost five years younger, a better hitter, and he comes with an extra year of control.
Free Agents
- Robinson Chirinos, Kurt Suzuki, Austin Romine, Wilson Ramos, Grayson Greiner, Austin Wynns, Chance Sisco, Jeff Mathis
This group is generally long on experience but short on recent success, as Chirinos’ 108 wRC+ ( from a .227/.324/.454 slash line in 112 PA with the Cubs) was far and away the best of a group that otherwise posted sub-replacement level hitting numbers. Also, Ramos’ recovery timeline is unclear after undergoing a third ACL surgery, and Mathis didn’t play in the majors or minors after being outrighted off the Braves’ roster back in May, so the 17-year veteran might be on the verge of retirement.
Chirinos probably offers the most upside for a team looking for a true regular or platoon candidate, considering his above-average .232/.327/.438 slash line and 90 home runs over 2147 PA since the start of the 2014 season. While Chirinos hasn’t been known for his glovework, he’d make a lot of sense for a team like the Guardians, with Hedges providing a defensive complement.
There is always a fair amount of fluidity in the catching market, as teams are forever tinkering with adding veterans as minor league depth options. As such, we’ll probably see most or all of the available free agents catch on somewhere during Spring Training, and the deck could certainly be shuffled based on a major injury to a catcher whose team isn’t listed here, or if any further trades open up other roster holes. If the Athletics did deal Murphy, for instance, that could send them pivoting towards adding a low-cost veteran to pair with Austin Allen. Or, speculatively, the A’s perhaps explore some trade possibilities with the Royals involving Melendez in order to replace Murphy with another highly-touted young backstop, since Oakland prospect Tyler Soderstrom is at least a couple of years away and might not be a long-term fit to remain at catcher.
It makes for an interesting set of storylines to watch once the transactions freeze ends and teams can once again start plotting their next moves for the catcher position, whether it be one of the clubs mentioned in these lists or perhaps a dark-horse team that was seemingly set behind the plate.
Wilson Ramos is looking like the new and unimproved Victor Martinez. Multiple knee surgeries ends a catcher’s career behind the dish. His hit tool hasn’t been sufficient since 2018 to employ as a DH or 1B.
hello
Orioles will sign Matt Wieters
Between Wieters and Chance Sisco, I hesitate calling Adley a superstar. Wieters was touted as the next Johnny Bench and Sisco was supposed to be at least as good as Molina or Posada.
Do you mean Jose Molina? I never heard anyone say Chance was going to be anything more than a bat first everyday catcher, definitely not a future hall of famer.
Yeah maybe as good as Benji, but Yadi? LOL
:))))
Bob Geren
Orioles seem like the perfect destination for Chirinos. He is the only free agent backstop who should any offensive capability last year, and will be a great compliment and veteran presence for Rutschman. I can’t see the Orioles trading for someone, nor should they. So Chirinos is the move they should make.
Plus Chirinos is a former Ranger, which means the O’s should have automatic interest
Or padres
O’s should sign Chirinos and re-sign Wynns to bridge the gap to Rutschman. If not Chirinos then Kurt Suzuki would make a good mentor/backup when Rutschman does arrive
Angels lack of catching depth has been an issue for far too long despite spending two first round picks (Ward, Thaiss) on catchers.
Hopefully Stassi gets extended. I’d love to trade for McGruire to have him under control for a few years. Give the farm time to hopefully produce a capable MLB player in 3 years.
Angels are moving Thaiss to Catcher. With Stassi being fairly injury prone i don’t see how the Angels don’t add another Catcher
Speaking of transitioning from position back to catcher…. I wonder if Dalton Varsho would be available and/or decent as a C for a team in need. Obviously, he likely couldn’t start, but possibly as a backup?
Varsho did play 41 games behind the plate for the Diamondbacks last year and as things stand right now he probably would be Carson Kelly’s backup on the opening day roster
The D-backs like Varsho’s flexibility playing OF and back-up catcher. Sounds like the plan is to rebuild around Varsho, Pavin Smith, Ketel Marte, Carson Kelly, Josh Rojas and Zac Gallen.
This is why the Diamondbacks will lose 100 games again this year. Varsho is severely challenged behind the plate; terrible arm, bad blocker, and indifferent pitcher caller. He is an emergency #3 at best. The Snakes continue to stick him behind the plate in hopes he can improve there, but are probably hurting his development as an outfielder – and he’s a good little hitter.
Hopefully Stassi can maintain some kind of offensive output.. I realize that’s not always the best thing from a catcher position, especially when it comes to the Angels, but it would be helpful.
The last good offensive/defensive Catcher the Angels had was Lance Parrish…
Bengie Molina
But that’s also heavily influenced by Mike insisting on using Mathis for what seemed like a decade plus. Couldve had better
No sure what Braves really see in Travis.
An average hitter and an average defender. In a era of weak catching, that’s definitely valuable.
era of weak catching, yes, average hitter, meh, average fielder, Travis D’Arnaud? no, below average fielder. But still valuable. Manny Pina is an avg defender. D’Arnaud+Pina = ok Ranks right up there with Biff Pocoroba & Vic Correll…..
.
Like Vasquez with Boston, D’Arnaud has had big hits which show both are not intimidated by the moment and probably worth more than saberstats suggest.
It shows no such thing. All players get big hits, little hits, K in big spots, K in little spots. There’s nothing there.
The pitchers must like him. IIRC, the young guys said he was a solid mentor. Not an automatic out at the plate but can’t throw out anybody. Mixed bag, that’s for sure.
Very good hitter (for a catcher), competent fielder… what’s not to see? Even before the days when the standards dropped, he’d be a viable backup.
He can hit. Finally doing what the Mets hoped for. But yes,, he was always hurt..
His D is ok. His arm sucks. But steals are slowly drifting into oblivion (though it shouldnt)
He showed improvement at the plate in 2019/20. 21 banged up. But used him exclusively in the playoff run. Stats aside, the young Brave starters must be comfortable with him.
I really want the royals to trade mj Melendez while his stock is at its highest. I think a trade for Matt Olsen centering around mj would be the best move. Especially if the A’s are considering moving Sean Murphy. We could use Olsen in right field, first base, and DH, which allows nick Pratto and Kyle Isbel to get playing times at first and right respectively.
Olson won’t be playing any OF. Wherever he goes, he’ll play 1B. And it’ll take a lot to persuade Oakland because so many want Olson.
Royals have Pratto and are at best fringe contenders. Salvy will be DH’ing more and more in the next few seasons. Melendez will get his chance
Why would you want to take a Gold Glove first baseman like Olson and play him in the outfield?
That is what GM’s who outsmart themselves do. Like AJ Preller.
Olson in RF? You gotta be nuts! Dudes an absolute stud gold glove first baseman. Top 3 in the league and you’d think about putting him in RF. Lol
mets article after this in 3 .. 2…1..
Don’t know why Sox looked to give up valuable kids to replace Vazquez when other places (relief) needs to be addressed. Vazquez is good with the glove, calls a good game and hits decent enough to be worth 7m, not to mention seems to want to hang around as long as they will let him, a rarity these days.
My post below was posted 1min after yours. Vazquez is good with glove, but this body is just blowing up. But, he’s certainly good for another year.
The way Bloom thinks is one to two trades ahead. If he negotiates on a catcher, he likely knows not only what he costs but also what can be gotten for Vasquez.
I like Vazquez too. Especially considering what’s out there to replace him. Red Sox have too many other problems to be worrying about a catching upgrade.
Christian Vazquez is looking rotund these days. But, I see no reason Plaweski, Wong and Hernandez can’t take the reigns if Vazquez continues to slide. He only has one more year left, then find a replacement. If the other 3 don’t work out.
Yup. Vazquez has legit talent, but he needs to take better care of himself. I can see him struggling to turn on inside fastballs. That said, I’ve seen him take off weight in the past. Hopefully his free agent year will inspire him.
Joe – I know like most people, you don’t like Vazquez playing with the Red Sox. I agree he is way overpaid, but if he came back in 2023 as a backup catcher I think he’d be adequate. He just can’t come back with the Red Sox because Cora would never use him as a backup, Cora would insist on starting Vazquez nearly every day. We saw that this year when Vazquez led MLB in Innings Caught despite his poor defense and mediocre hitting.
“Vazquez is overpaid”
Based on what? He signed a $13.55mil, 3yr contract in 2019. It had a 2022 option for a net $6.75mil.
During his 3 year contract, he produced 4.2 WAR. That works out to $3.2mil per WAR. Thats is valuable production versus cost.
If you don’t like the ’22 option, you would’ve had to decline it. You can’t pick parts of contracts you like.
denny – Based on the fact that if the Pirates hadn’t backed out of a deal with the Red Sox for Stallings, the Red Sox next year would be paying $2.6M for an excellent catcher instead of $7M for a below average one.
I agree with JoeBrady, we could have had a GG catcher and that $4.4M in savings could have been useful elsewhere.
Vazquez being “overpaid” has nothing to do with who they may have acquired. Why do you pollute the conversation?
To get Stallings it would have cost multiple quality prospects, that situation has nothing to do with how much Vazquez is getting paid.
Also, hes only being paid 6.75M. The $250,000 buyout was already in his pocket from the earlier portion of the contract.
denny – Do you know why, despite all the bad things you’ve done to me, I haven’t muted you? Because you do make me laugh with nearly every totally wrong comment that you make! LOL!!
spotrac.com/mlb/boston-red-sox//payroll
It would be nice if just ONCE you’d man up and acknowledge you are wrong, but you haven’t the first 147 times you were wrong so I’m not holding my breath now. LOL
denny – Before your time there was a catcher you probably never heard of who played for the Red Sox. He was overweight too, so much so that we called him “Pudge”.. He was still a great catcher, because catchers are supposed to be on the obese side. Look at all the great ones like Rodriguez and Engelberg, the best are always overweight. So don’t use that as an excuse for Vazquez, he was not that great even before he started wearing the glittery belt.
“before my time”. Since my nickname is for Carlton Fisk’s teammate Denny Doyle. I think its you that doesn’t know too much about the past.
“best are always overweight” Joke right, I hope? The best catchers, are those that are big and strong, not beer bellied. ‘Pudge’ is just a nickname, it is not a body description, Ivan Rodriguez stole 25 bases one year. Thats 2 less than Vazquez’s entire career. Take a good look at any photo of Rodriguez and Vazquez from this year and tell me how in the world do you think those to have the same body type.
Wait a minute … I was told your “nickname” is because you work at Denny’s.
Regardless, it’s fine that you looked up Fisk’s name to learn who I was talking about but you should have spent more time learning. Both Fisk and IRod were called Pudge because they were pudgy early on.
I’ll leave it at this:
I think Christian Vazquez is a decent catcher, who has been putting too much weight on, around the waist, and needs to be careful, before he blows up.
You think Ivan Rodriguez and Christian Vazquez have the same body type. You’ve been scooled.
“He wasnt a pudgy guy at all. It just seemed to fit”
– Chino Cadahia, the person who gave Ivan the nickname
So no, he was not called that because he was pudgy
And Fisk was called it when he was in grade school, not because he was pudgy coming up as a pro. By high school he was already fit, according to his HS coach
google.com/amp/s/www.dallasnews.com/sports/rangers…
Literal link to that. Vasquez is fat. “pudge” never was. Stop the nonsense now. Youre completely wrong.
Seems very weird that you’d think a position that is so strenuous on the knees would be great for a guy w more belly fat.
I said “early on” for both Pudges.
Direct quote from IRod himself, it’s ridiculous to think anyone would be called “Pudge” if they weren’t at some point. Stocky is a polite alternative to pudgy, I’m fully expecting an argument about how it’s not. LOL
theplayerstribune.com/articles/ivan-rodriguez-stor…
“I got my nickname on the very first day of camp. Chino Cadahia, who was a Rangers coach at the time, gave me that name. He saw that I was short and stocky, so, from Day One, he started calling me “Pudge.” It caught on, and the rest is history.”
Johhny – Where did I say having more belly fat helps?
It’s an absolute fact that heavy baseball players often become catchers at an early age because they can’t move or run as fast. You think someone like Varitek could have been a middle infielder or outfielder? Seriously?
This is seriously one of the dumbest hills I’ve ever seen a fool decide to die on…
The guy who gave him the nickname said he wasn’t pudgy. That’s not good for your odd and pitifully incorrect argument though, so you try to change the intended meaning of words to say what you wish they meant instead?
So the biggest question begging to be asked is do you even realize there is a difference between muscle and fat?
Btw, why do you upvote all your own comments? Is that how insecure you truly are? I had happened to refresh the page in between your comments, so I watched you do it in real time to each new one you left. It was pathetic
“It’s an absolute fact that heavy baseball players often become catchers at an early age because they can’t move or run as fast. You think someone like Varitek could have been a middle infielder or outfielder? Seriously?”
Carlton “Pudge” Fisk – 128 SB, 14th most in MLB among Catchers
Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez – 127 SB, 15th most in MLB among Catchers
Jason Varitek – 25 SB
The things you say are honestly hysterical
Do bigger guys play catcher growing up?
Yeah, sure I played Rec baseball and that’s probably accurate. I would imagine there’s no real study on that but, OK.
Completely meaningless to your argument about Vasquez. Fisk wasn’t fat in the bigs and neither was Pudge.
“ He was overweight too, so much so that we called him “Pudge”.
That was just Flat out wrong. I don’t think you had a point at all. You wanted to pull that Pudge comment out which was simply not true and now you won’t concede that you were wrong. Denny pointed out that Vasquez needed to take better care of himself. You provided absolutely no evidence to suggest he wasn’t right.
darkstar – You think all the personal attacks, childish namecalling, and stalker behaviour directed towards me makes you look superior?
Maybe you’re new here, so I’ll give you some advice. Discuss baseball if you want to interact with me, because I won’t respond to your puerile antics. I don’t have the time or desire to get down to your level.
And if you really think anybody would earn the nickname “Pudge” at a time when they are muscular and in shape, then I’ll exit this discussion really quick because trying to talk logic into you would be pointless.
darkstar – The one fantastic takeaway from what has become an idiotic time-wasting conversation is that you’ve just proven what most of us have been saying all along – people like you have no idea how to properly use stats and you clearly don’t understand the game.
So in a conversation in which everyone acknowledges Vazquez is overweight and out of shape, you “BRILLIANTLY” try to prove that certain catchers must have been in good shape because ….. wait for it …. they had some success stealing bases! So in your stats-obsessed mind, you actually believe that all SB’s are a product of speed and therefore any catcher who has stolen a few bases absolutely MUST be fast and therefore in shape.
Pity you don’t follow what happens on the field as much as you bury your nose in numbers. Because if you actually DID follow what happens on the field, you’d know that the unanimously-viewed-as-overweight-and-out-of-shape catcher known as Christian Vazquez LED THE RED SOX IN STOLEN BASES.
So in your stats-obsessed narrow mind, you actually think Vazquez was the fastest guy on the Red Sox this year because he stole more bases than anyone. That is ab-so-lute-ly priceless!
You have absolutely no idea that Vazquez, despite being one of the slowest runners on the team (as most catchers are), is also one of the smartest baserunners who knows exactly when there’s a good opportunity to steal.
And Fisk was the same way.
And Tek was the same way.
And IRod was the same way.
Like most catchers, not very fast … but also like most catchers, very smart.
If you spend more time on the game, and less time looking up numbers, you too can understand how the game is really played.
I would think that Jason Castro would be available for trade as well. He rarely played this past season with Maldonado healthy, and the Astros have a highly touted catcher who could easily be the backup in 2022 if needed.
Astros traded Stubbs and have no other Catchers on the 40 man roster. Maldonado started 119 games and 120-125 starts aren’t bad for a starting Catcher
The White Sox may have some catching depth available to trade from among their three backup catchers who all have some semblance of MLB experience. Zack Collins is their most likely #2 as things stand now but would certainly be available for trade in the right package. Seby Zavala is a more adept defensive catcher but did flash some good power in his limited time with the White Sox this past season when starter Yasmani Grandal went down with a mid-season injury. The ChiSox also still have Yermin Mercedes on their 40-man roster who wouldn’t provide much defensively other than as an emergency #3 but does possess the best bat among the three backups. Mercedes would also be a more intriguing candidate if the DH becomes universal in 2022 which is likely once the CBA dust settles.
Not sure the White Sox won’t be in the “needs” column, to be honest… Collins is okay, but neither he nor Seby were ideal backups last year, and it showed. Hopefully both improve, but I know that over at Sox Machine pretty much everyone thinks they’re signing someone as backup (or trading)… perhaps that’s just wishful thinking, though (and being spoiled by James McCann a few years ago…)
Campusano will be drawing social security before the Padres give him a shot.
It seems that after the weed bust in Georgia last October that Campusano may have seen his star fall within the organization. Acquiring Alfaro from the Marlins puts a 3rd Catcher in front of him on the ML roster unless Preller trades one before the season starts
The Tigers might have some depth. They have Dingler as a prospect, Haase on the bench and if they cant extend Barnhart, he could be dealt.
Especially when Rogers gets back in the second half. Catching is so thin around the league that even Garneau seems decent by comparison, lol. For depth, of course.
And Haase will play against lefties. Especially considering that he’s played in the OF recently. Barnhart is a lefty so it’s about as good a platoon as anyone else will have, imho. Not including the stars like Perez, Grandal, maybe Will Smith in LA, Contreras & Realmuto, etc.
Barnhart will not be dealt. They traded for him to play him and to nurture their young stud starters and relievers. Dillion Dingler is a converted CF in college so he can probably play anywhere as long as he continues to hit well., Jake Rogers will be back next year after surgery rehab. Haase can also play OF and hit. Good problem to have when everyone is healthy, then someone could be dealt. I doubt if it is Barnhart since they are raving about him in the Tigers Front office
But Barnhart is a free agent at the end of the year. If he isn’t extended, I could see a trade to a contender at the end of the year. Everyone wants a lefty catcher. Especially a gold glove winner.
I was shocked the yankees didnt try and get him. Lefty hitting defensive catcher and it only cost a mediocre prospect. It was a salary dump. Yankees needed him.
Agree, curious why the Yanks didn’t go hard after Tucker. He will be a great fit in Detroit, can see him staying in the organization after his playing career is done.
Yankees are not spending on Catching while they have Sanchez and Higashioka. That is why they didn’t go after Barnhart or any other Catcher
They should have. Yankees missed a good chance to solidify a definite weakness. I wonder if they get a shortstop. Or a 1B that can stay healthy. Or a CF that doesnt need a walker.
$200 million dollar payroll and so many holes.
Most likely the Yankees will sign Simmons to play SS. Role with Voit at 1B. And re-sign Gardner to backup Hicks.
LOL
The Seattle Mariners have 30-year-old Tom Murphy, 25-year-old Luis Torrens and 25-year-old Cal Raleigh.
This year Murphy posted 1.0 fWAR and a wRC+ of 87 in 97 games after posting 3.2 fWAR and a wRC+ of 126 in 76 games in 2019. A knee injury sidelined Murphy in 2020.
This year Torrens posted 0.3 fWAR and a wRC+ of 101 in 108 games, but only 35 games at catcher.
This year Raleigh posted a wRC+ of 136 in 44 games at Triple A Tacoma but slumped to a wRC+ of 47 and 0.1 fWAR in his 47-game MLB debut.
With that trio, should the Mariners be buyers or sellers?
Considering that they’re going for it, they should go for Contreras. It’ll cost a lot, but that’s a massive upgrade over those guys.
Steamer projects 2022 WAR of 2.1 in 107 games for Willson Contreras, 1.5 in 66 games for Cal Raleigh and 0.9 in 62 games for Tom Murphy.
Then that tells me that stat isn’t the one to measure players by because Contreras is way better than those two. At least so far.
Willson Contreras has been more consistent than Tom Murphy but has never topped the 3.2 fWAR that Murphy posted in only 76 games in 2019.
Contrasting stats are welcome.
Muskie- you beat me to it. I was going to share this idea:
Its a bit of a long shot but if Luis Torrens shows he can improve upon his absymal Catching skills in this year’s ST that could make Murphy (or possibly Torrens) expendable.
The current plan is to give Torrens another one week to get
Woops! One more try to become a Catcher who can share the role with Murphy and/or Raleigh.
Cards need to address a back-up catcher to Yadi. Knizne, while a great teammate, who runs well was supposed to be an offensive first backstop, but he has been anything but so far in the Bugs. A left-handed good defender behind the dish, sure would help the Red Bird bench.
Austin Romine will be this year’s “diamond in the rough “ . He’s a perfect match for STL for SFG.
“Left-handed, good defender” is like finding a super model in a rural bar.
Knizner is a decent backup, especially considering how much Yadi plays.
Teams should identify the top catchers that are major-league-ready and dump prospect hauls for them (as opposed to the ubiquitous Olson trade scenario) because of how valuable and rare the dual-threat catcher is.
For example, IF Cumpansano or Melendez is that good and mlb-ready, or nearly ready, teams should give up whatever the ask is. Finding that type of talent is so rare nowadays, but it’s worth the risk imo.
The Blue Jays will someday field 11 catchers at this rate.
The Need to Sign Willians Astudillo… He is a hitting coach away from being a good offensive force..
The problem is defensively he’s a good DH…
If anyone else felt that way about Austudillo, he’d be on a team right now.
Preller with three catchers, all acquired via trade. Plus, Campusano. and he traded away a catcher, but in exchange for one of his current catchers. Is this another repeat of the Frazier debacle, where he discovered that he didn’t really need 4 2Bs?
Of course, Alfaro didn’t cost anything, but at $2.9M, what or how is he going to contribute?
Nola’s defensive versatility almost makes him a 3rd Catcher/Utility player. So at least there is that
Padres are stocking up on below average utility players.
Orioles should sign Suzuki to help out behind the plate and work with Rutschman.
The Twins are ” retooling”.. apparently their tools aren’t any good for their intended purpose… Garver could bring pitching… the Twins desperately need pitching..
Blue Jays send a C prospect+ to Oakland for a SP (Bassitt, Manaea, or Montas). Then Oakland can trade Murphy for prospects.
Oakland should send one of their SP (Montas, Bassitt, or Manaea) to Toronto for a C prospect (Kirk or McGuire). Then they can send C Murphy out and either grab more prospects or insist on Andrus or Piscotty going with him.
Still waiting for some team to offer Yankees a couple of baseballs and a bag of sunflower seeds for Sanchez.
Sanchez isn’t too bad, all things considered. The only reason Sanchez exists is because the catching classes have been so weak for so long. IF what Cashman says is true [of Wells] and Wells can remain behind the plate, no need to worry.
But, if Wells can remain like Torres can play SS, or like Sanchez can catch because of his offense, we have major problems and should sell the farm for a good catching prospect now.
With the state of catching in MLB right now (weak!) I don’t think Cash would have a terribly hard time trading Sanchez. @mlbnyyfan is consistent as hell at least. Gotta give him that. Stubborn as I am, too. However, I’m done trying to explain why Gary won’t be Revenge-DFA’d/traded to appease him personally. Was never going to happen. & it was rather naive to think as such.
He is – however – not interested in hearing it.
Anyway.
Keep coming back to upgrading Higashioka. That is a much clearer & easier spot to improve. Wanted Gomes for that exact reason. Looking at this list…man, Chirinos?
He is kind of an old(er) Phat Sancho. So, he may actually be the type of catcher that could mentor Gary. Pretty similar player, & he’s been on MLB rosters for 13 years. So he’s gotta be doing *something* right. Cashman did sign him to a MiLB deal last winter. So there is a real history of interest anyway.
Not sure what else could be done inexpensively & – more importantly – realistically. Bat them out of the bottom third of the lineup, take the 35+ jacks, & live with some sketchy defense. Otherwise: it’ll probably just be running the same tandem back.
Much to mlbnyyfan’s consternation.
Yeah, I’d prefer differently, but the reality is the catching just isn’t there. I pegged Gomes for NYY because I thought for sure Cash was going to make a move.
I’d love a trade, but there’s nobody to acquire outside of Garver/Contreras/S. Murphy, and that’s IF they’re even available.
Nonetheless, I do think the Yankees need to closely monitor some good catching talent at the lower levels. They have some excess talent, so to trade for a catching prospect would be plausible, and there seems to be a few highly touted ones.
As an aside, Dunham looks pretty good. Maybe they actually allow Dunham & Florial a real shot this year in CF? Can’t be worse than Hicks, who’s currently batting Mendoza with a sub-3 OBP in the Dominican League. Ugh, painful bro.
Man, I do wonder about Florial.
LH bat with power & speed. Plays – by all accounts I’ve seen + his cameos – a good CF. The Yanks don’t seem all that enamored with him, however. Hence the Davis/Allen/Locastro stuff from ’21. Still only 23. But the old RAB days of “Florial is coming” seem to be fading rarher quickly.
Hicks ability has never really been a question for me. Saw him play out here for the Twins a number of times. Yanks too. Was there for one of the best plays I have ever seen a CF make. But: his health – or lack of – has become a Real Problem.
I was all about Marte for that reason.
Alas. He will play in Queens next year.
CF is at least as barren as C in the free agent market. The only guy that interests me at all is Pham. & I don’t think he’s much of a center fielder anymore. Guess you could maybe try to mix & match Judge, Gallo, & him out there? Trade for Kiermaier? Or…I just don’t know, man.
All – or any of that – seems a lot less than ideal, though.
Exactly on point. There simply isn’t anyone available, or so it seems. But, we have seen Cashman pull through with some pretty wild trade acquisitions, so there’s that.
I think Hicks is on the downhill slope for CF capability even when healthy now. It’s just taken too much a toll on him. His once 99th percentile arm is now much closer to average.
I’m all about Florial – by all accounts he seems like a quality defender, and that’s what we need. That bat will come around – or it won’t- but give it a chance and let the defense work for itself out there.
One of the most crucial criticisms I have of the Yankees is their constant rotation through their farm guys. I really believe consistency reflects better performance for the obvious reason; for example, look at how Austin Riley came around when the Braves stuck with him – even Wade with consistent at bats wasn’t completely horrible on offense.
Kirk is not a C prospect btw…i think he holds a lot of value in the trade market…
Kirk is a back up catcher that can hit and DH. Jansen is still the starter. McGuire is out of options and should be part of a package deal for a team that needs a good controllable back up catcher.
Only because Kirk had an ill timed injury last year. Had Kirk had a healthy year, especially when Jano went down I’m positive he wouldn’t have come back to a starting position. Kirk can actually hit and neither of them can be deemed glove first
McGuire isn’t bringing back any of those pitchers.
Kirk is a start to grab 1 of them not named Montas.
Actually Kirk and a prospect in the Jays 20-25 range would get one of Bassitt or Manaea . Montas with the extra year of control would cost significantly more.
Not specifically mentioned in the piece, but at what point do the Giants plan for the post-Posey future, since their lone ML catcher is only on the roster through this season? And yes, we know about Bart, but are you really willing to bank your post-2022 future on Joey Bart?
Why not?
Because unless he shows significant growth this season in hitting and handling ML-level catching duties, he won’t be ready to be a #1 catcher for ’23, and in fact is far from it.
Shouldn’t be too hard to sign Casali to a low cost extension to stay on as Bart’s backup for another couple of seasons.
Patrick Bailey could be the future catcher post-2022 if Bart doesn’t stake a good claim. But for 2022 Bart and Casali should be fine. Giants would need to squeeze out more offensive production from other positions though.
Also don’t forget about Rene Rivera really good defensive player
Not sure why the Cubs didn’t just resign Chirinos and keep on truckin. Good enough D, decent part-time bat, cheaper, loved being a Cub. Unless they’re all-in on trading Contreas and are planning on Gomes being the full-time catcher.
And we have a winner!
I think Gomes is a step up from Chirinos. And just cause they signed him doesn’t mean they’re gonna move Contreras. This buys them time to field offers in a very catcher needy climate and if they aren’t blown away, they can sign him. And btw, with the DH coming, Gomes allows them to have Wilson split time between spots. I hope they sign him, but there’s no rush..
I wonder what Sanchez’ bat could have developed into if he hadn’t been playing out of position all these years. It’s really not his fault that some moron who looks like Peewee Herman keeps penciling him in as his #1 catcher.
Pray tell, exactly what position was “his position” if not catcher ….for all these years?
All through the minors he’s never played any other position…..
lolol…Pee Wee Herman? Lol. Man, that’s funny.
Sanchez wants to play at C though. It’s his desired position and one that he’s played his entire life.
Hey, only 18 more catchers and the Padres will be in a catch-22 situation…
Jose Ramirez to the Blue Jays for Gabriel Moreno and Jordan Groshans. Who says no? Ramirez gives the Jays the 3B they need. Gabriel Moreno gives Cleveland their catcher of the future, and Jordan Groshans gives them their 3B of the future. I can see both teams saying yes, but I can also envision them both saying no. Maybe that’s indicative of a fair trade?
If the Jays are happy with Jansen/Kirk then they should take it.
Pretty good start for CLE. Ramirez only has 2 years left.
That is an overpay for the Jays. Moreno is untouchable in my book, Groshans+ Gurriel Jr + Kirk but Moreno has the upside of an All star /MVP type. Would you have traded Vlad in 2018?
Looks like Tim Federowicz is out.
Kurt Suzuki is still playing….dang good for him
Tony Wolters is another FA who should get a chance with somebody to compete for a backup job. Good glove, AAA-quality bat at best.
Seeing the names of all these backup-catcher types reminds me of Johnny Blanchard, who, along with Yogi Berra and Elston Howard, was one of three catchers to hit more than 20 homers for the 1961 Yankees (though Berra was mainly an outfielder that year). Blanchard primarily served as Howard’s backup and was still in that role when the 1965 season began.
After a game in May 1965, Blanchard found out the Yankees had traded to the Kansas City Athletics. He took the news hard, crying uncontrollably in the clubhouse. Mickey Mantle sat down next to Blanchard and attempted to cheer him up. “Don’t take it so hard, John. Just think, in Kansas City, you’re going to get a chance to play.” “Aw hell, Mickey. I can’t play. That’s why I’m crying.”
Blanchard wasn’t lying. In 74 games that year with the Yankees, Athletics and Braves, he slashed .183/.258.274 with just four home runs and an OPS+ of 52. It was his last season in Major League Baseball.
Judging by the list of available backstops, there are plenty of Johnny Blanchards to go around. Moral of the story: If you have a couple of excellent catchers, hang on to them with all your might.
Casey Stengel, explaining why the Mets chose journeyman catcher Hobie Landrith with the first pick in the expansion draft: “You have to have a catcher because if you don’t you’re likely to have a lot of passed balls.”
Casey Stengel, if he was alive today, discussing Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez: “If Sanchez is your catcher, you’re likely to have a lot of passed balls. In fact, I guarantee it.”
Sanchez will be traded after the lockout. He’ll be a DH in the National League provided there’s a universal DH.
He can hit. Finally doing what the Mets hoped for. But yes,, he was always hurt..
His D is ok. His arm sucks. But steals are slowly drifting into oblivion (though it shouldnt)
He showed improvement at the plate in 2019/20. 21 banged up. But used him exclusively in the playoff run. Stats aside, the young Brave starters must be comfortable with him.
MLB GM’S will be circling AJ Preller and the Padres like Vultures
when the lock out ends.
Other teams are ready to hose AJ Preller and send them an overpriced utility player
or washed up veteran pitcher (preferably a former Rangers player)
for highly rated top catching prospect Luis Campusano.
Watch Preller get taken, again.
Glad they mentioned the Braves in this article. We have a surplus of decent options. Keep in mind, there is a crisis in just how bad catching is in baseball right now. Never, has it been so poor at that position. So the fact that the Braves likely have a squad that puts them in top 10 ish in baseball isn’t exactly saying much, but is extremely valuable when you look at how bad catching is as a whole. Even beyond the 4 mentioned, we have 2 or 3 other minor leaguers that teams might be interested in simply to add depth, as they might be more valuable on their team versus ours giving the catching problem across baseball
Guardians & Os might want to take on Suzuki. Rangers look good with their backstops, Twins could trade Garver for pitching and take on Greiner to team with Jeffers.