3:50pm: The Astros also have interest in Barnhart, reports Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. They missed out on their top catching target when Willson Contreras agreed to terms on a five-year deal with the Cardinals this afternoon. It seems they’re still looking for a veteran to pair with incumbent Martín Maldonado, even if Barnhart’s a significantly less imposing offensive threat than Contreras would have been. According to Rome, the longtime Red backstop is looking for a multi-year contract.
1:07pm: The Pirates have expressed an interest in catcher Tucker Barnhart, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Barnhart, 32 in January, has spent the vast majority of his career across the division in the Reds’ organization, having been drafted by them back in 2009. He made it to the big leagues in 2014 and stayed with the team through the end of the 2021 campaign. The club had a $7.75MM club option to keep him around for 2022 but flipped him to the Tigers instead, the lone season he’s spent in a different organization so far.
Barnhart’s never been a huge threat at the plate, having put up a career batting line of .245/.320/.360. That’s 20% below league average production, as indicated by his 80 wRC+, but it’s not disastrous for a catcher since they typically produce less than other hitters, on average. Barnhart generally is graded well on defense, however, posting 14 Defensive Runs Saved in his career. FanGraphs’ framing metric didn’t like his work earlier in his career but has given him a positive mark in three of the last four seasons.
For the Pirates, they planned on Roberto Pérez being their primary backstop in 2022 but he required season-ending hamstring surgery in May. From that point on, they cycled through various options behind the plate, with most of them having already been jettisoned from the roster. As of this moment, the only catcher on the 40-man is prospect Endy Rodriguez, who only has 37 games played above High-A.
The Bucs are rebuilding but have nonetheless been active this winter, grabbing veterans to supplement their young core. They traded for Ji-Man Choi and signed Carlos Santana to help out at first base and designated hitter, then signed Vince Velasquez to help in the rotation and Jarlín García for the bullpen. Those players are stopgaps, with all four slated for free agency at the end of the upcoming season. Since the Pirates have Rodriguez coming up and catching prospect Henry Davis behind him, it’s likely they’ll find another one-year deal for a veteran catcher. Barnhart makes plenty of sense for that job, but it’s also possible they bring back Pérez.
One more year of crap catchers until Henry Davis is elevated. Davis can really mash but I wonder if the team might be better served if he plays 1b or DH.
Everything I’ve read recently says Pérez isn’t healing as hoped and wouldn’t be ready for spring training next year
Barnhart makes the most sense now
Endy will be coming up this year. Endy is the real deal as well. Endy can play in the field as well. Both will be in most games with Davis is up too. Can mix and match at C, 1B Both(I think Endy has had time there in the minors) , 2B for Endy and DH for both. A veteran to work with pitchers and work Endy in. At least Barnhart would be better than who they had last year after R Perez
The list of available free agent catchers isn’t exciting, but the Pirates need two of them since they aren’t going to start the season with Endy. They may have to take whoever is willing to sign with them. Likely a last resort given the Pirates plans at the position. The group includes Barnhart, Sanchez, Perez, Narvaez, Vasquez, Hedges, Zunino, Alfaro, Casali, Torrens, Heineman, Knapp, Romine, and Plawecki. Maybe a few others that have a shot if everyone else is already signed or refuses to sign with the Pirates.
I know Endy will be mid season at the earliest. I was talking him up as he is actually ahead of Davis now due to the injury bug that Davis had and of course put his eta behind schedule. As you say they need a place holder more than a long term piece at the moment.
Jorge Alfaro makes a lot of sense. His defensive skills are average, but he had a pretty decent year at the plate for SD last year.
Agreed. Unfortunately, there are about 10-12 teams looking for an additional catcher. Probably a bad scenario for the Pirates.
Sounds good to me!
One thing in the Bucs favor is that whoever they sign should get to play a lot. Someone looking to make an impression on the league my we’ll be willing to sign a 1 year deal to play and parlay that into a better contract next year
No doubt
are the pirates interested in signing him for baseball reasons or do the pirates just want pat mcafee to stop roasting them for a little bit?
well this got out of hand in a completely unnecessary way.
just for clarification to the one man who was confused by this – pat mcafee is a former NFL punter (ball kicker) who now has a relatively successful sports show and he did roast the bucs today for having a low payroll.
john mcafee is a deceased tech executive with a litany of criminal charges.
they are not the same person.
its ok if you got confused, not everyone here’s a sports guy.
Not a bad stopgap if he can rework his hitting a bit.
Always loved the term “stop gap” Clip but unfortunately I’ve never really understood what it was and hence been unable to use it =(
I find it works best between two words when I don’t know another word to use…haha!
Hahahahahah Sounds precisely like what my Grandpa would used to tell me Clip…I would ask him WHY someone (a baseball announcer most of the time) was saying something in particular and he would say to me: “Because they don’t know what else to say!!!!”
Stopgap is actually a good word to use in this context, as Barnhart “stops” the “gap” that the Pirates have at catcher…
Gotta respond to the Contreras signing to keep pace in the division.
Yeah I’m just glad they had a backup plan after losing out on their #1 catching target.
If Barnhart is willing to work for $2-$3M/yr, he’ll have a place on the Bucs roster
what Pérez lacks in offensive ability he more than makes up for in defensive skills and handling pitching
Did not enjoy watching Barnhart during his tenure with Detroit. You might as well have had a traffic cone hitting instead of him – absolutely abysmal. His calling has always been his defense but even most of his defensive metrics were down.
Have you seen Pirates catchers? Barnhart’s an upgrade. A drunk elephant is an upgrade over what’s behind the plate for the Pirates. Until Henry Davis gets called up, the Pirates just need to sign somebody decent and keep them healthy.
I wonder if Stallings is available. Better catching options have emerged in Miami
Exactly. We didn’t win much in the trade that sent him to Miami (or my memory is going bad) but his value has dropped and it would be easier to bring him in now than it would have been two years ago. Plus, he knows our system.
He’s not savvy with the bat, but with a 3”rebuilding team that has as much young pitching as Pittsburgh has, I think he could be a great help for the young pitchers
Go grab him as 1yr stopgap WSox for decent D. You can dump part of Grandal’s salary later if that is keeping you up at night.
Tucker B-Argh-nhart
It’s a Pirate joke.
Conversation overheard between Tucker Barnhardt and Bob Nutting:
“Mr. Barnhart, we’d like you to come play with the Pirates. Will you accept seven and three quarters?”
“$7.75 million?”
“No, $775,000.. We’re the Pirates.”
conversations would never happen between an owner and player
ever hear of agents?
Ever have a sense of humor?
He’s an educated liberal but apparently sarcasm goes over his head
I’m a retired Environmental Scientist, we don’t have senses of humor
Neither does the FBI that we know of.
From 2015 (when he became a full time player) to 2021 he carried an OPS+ of 85 (good for a catcher) while being praised for his work behind the dish.
Last year he was just bad.
Either he’s over 30 and is toast or last year was just a bad year.
For a team like the Pirates, he’s a good gamble. Actually, for most teams he’s a decent gamble.
Excellent defensive catcher. Hitting is streaky. He was much better after abandoning switch hitting and staying left handed.
Bucs could do much worse.
To be fair, last year everyone was bad on Detroit. I don’t think we have ever seen an entire roster go through career worst seasons all at the same time like the Tigers did
Definitely true.
I was shocked at how bad they were last year.
Lol, reds didn’t have enough money. Even Pittsburgh has that much. Mlb sayings reds we’re going to sign a hitter. Must have been talking about a AAA guy. Tuck don’t hit much but is a very good defense catcher. Also a great guy, BOB C. Has made the reds a joke. AAA team
Pirates are just accumulating “bodies” at positions….not looking like they want to win anything
Datashark;
What do you think they need to do to become contenders in 2023?
Find an alternate universe…the only thing the Pirates are winning any time soon is the Draft Lottery
He sucks. Should fit in well. They just need to steal a few months out of him though
He has won two gold gloves. He doesn’t suck.
I think most observers are missing the point that Endy Rodriguez is way ahead of Henry Davis due to both his amazing numbers last season and the fact that he’s now on the 40-man roster.
No doubt a place keeper or two like Barnhart /Perez will be signed this winter, but I think there’s a very good chance Endy is the main backstop come July 2023.
The best outcome for the Pirates would be that Davis also pans out as a catcher and debuts late next season, allowing Rodriguez to play some games at DH/2B/CF as he did last year in the minors.
Best outcome for the Pirates would be that both Davis and Rodriguez can play C and other positions, allowing them to save wear and tear on each but still get them AB’s and always have an elite C in the lineup.
Any current big-leaguers nightmare headline!
The Pirates could do worse than Tucker Barnhart
Cat! Long time no see! I’ve been suffering almost alone here!
Sadly, that’s true….and has been for about five years. Gotta love when Elias Diaz was our everyday starter.
Bring back the “Cheetah” for a year. Gold glove, clutch hitter and a coach on the field.
I still don’t know for the life of me WHY Jacob Stallings is called “the Cheetah”, but I agree with you that he played well for the Buccos and should come back.
In 2021, he legged out a triple, his first and only. One of the Pirates announcers went nuts and began calling him “the cheetah”. A joke as Stallings is not fast.
Oh I watched that game…I remember the play and how it was coined. I think it’s funny that the name stuck.
Hm, Pirates or Astros, who to choose…?
The Astros have the deep pockets to sign Barnhart that the cheap owner of the Pirates won’t
Sean Murphy
Let the Pirates have him. Do not want him in Houston. Not someone want as a regular
Not sure how much Maldy has left. Barnhart OR Perez would be appropriate fill-ins
Astros might as well roll with Maldy and Lee if they arent going to get Murphy. Dont want Barnhart.
As an Astros fan I think Barnhart is a much more sensible signing than Contreras, and he would pair well with Maldonado. Stros have 2 young catchers who may take another year or two to become starting material but Maldonado paired with a veteran would be ideal for 2023.
I agree. Lee and Diaz aren’t ready for 50 games or so and that’s assuming Machete stays healthy.
Barnhart on a 2 year deal gives them veteran coverage in ‘24 too.
Was wondering whether Dusty Baker previously managed Barnhart with the Reds. But looks like Barnhart came up in 2014, right after Dusty left Cincinnati.
would be a great pick up for the Pirates. Tucker has a .787 OPS over 321 PAs over his career playing at PNC
Yes, but that’s hitting *against* Pirates pitching, of course
haha true
How is Davis behind Endy when Davis has seen AAA and Endy has seen 37 games at AA? Davis was injuries his first season of pro ball. His second season had its ups and downs. I still think Davis is their number 1 until someone takes it from him. This is no knock on Endy, but Davis will be number 1 catching option until proven otherwise. They didn’t draft him in the first round to be a backup to Endy.
I think you might have them backwards. Davis hasn’t been to AAA yet. He killed it in A ball but in AA he stunk it up quite a bit but yeah injuries.
Endy saw some AAA last year was rocking the bat and is better defensively than Davis.
You can see why some will say Henry is trailing Edny.
That said IMO it is Henry’s job to lose and so far it is looking like that might happen.. still early yet.
Regardless it is a good problem for the pirates to have.
Boy… that’s gotta be a tough decision for Tucker.
Astros, defending World Series champions. Pirates, newly crowned No. 1 pick in draft. Who do you think will pay more, and offer more?
he probably also knows that if he swings and misses with the Astros the pirates are a good landing spot as there is a fair chance he would be on a contender at the end of July.
Depends on what he wants at this point in his career. In Pittsburgh, he would probably get to play more. In Houston, he has a better chance of going to the WS. Don’t know what is important to him.
Good God! They let elephants get drunk?
Andrew Knapp? Wait – been there done that.
If Barnhart wants multi years he’s not coming to Pittsburgh. They only need a bridge to the rookies on the way.
I think he just wants to rebuild his value so he can get a decent payday, Jose Quintana style