Catcher Eric Haase elected free agency on Tuesday, according to his transaction log on MLB.com. He was eligible to become a free agent after having been designated for assignment and sent outright to Triple-A earlier this season. He is perhaps the most notable of several players to hit the open market on Tuesday, including Zack Collins, Cole Tucker, and Josh Lester.
Once a top-30 prospect in the Guardians system (per Baseball America), Haase played a handful of games for Cleveland during the 2018 and ’19 campaigns. During that time, the backstop hit .094/.147/.188 across 19 games, prompting a DFA during the 2019-20 offseason. The Tigers scooped him up for cash considerations, and after another disappointing season in 2020, he broke out the following year. He finished with 22 home runs and a .745 OPS in 98 games – 66 at catcher and a handful in left field. The 2022 season was more of the same, and he posted a respectable .748 OPS in 110 contests. The righty batter was especially impressive that September, slashing .295/.329/.564 over the final month of the season.
Unfortunately, Haase could not build upon that success in 2023, as he struggled out of the gate and only continued to flounder as the year went on. The Tigers gave him plenty of time to turn things around, but eventually, the club decided to take a chance on a different backup catcher, signing Carson Kelly and designating Haase for assignment. The Guardians scooped him up for a reunion, but it wasn’t long before he lost his roster spot to bigger-name waiver-wire additions Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez, and Matt Moore. With the September 1 deadline for postseason eligibility having passed by that point, Haase chose to accept an outright assignment to Triple-A. He finished out the season with the Columbus Clippers, slashing .154/.233/.269 across eight games.
While Haase had a rough year at both the major and minor league levels, he shouldn’t have trouble finding a job for 2024. Capable defensive catchers are always in demand, and his ability to cover the outfield corners is a valuable skill. What’s more, he’s only a year removed from two straight seasons as an above-average offensive catcher. He’ll certainly draw some interest this winter, especially if any teams think he can rediscover his 2021-22 form.
I thought he had a relatively weak glove behind the plate? Not so sure he’s going to have much luck finding more than a C2/3 job on a non-contending team after a brutal season.
He had pretty similar slash lines in ’21 and ’22, so I was a bit surprised he regressed so badly this year.
Played for Detroit, it’s a hitter’s graveyard! Plus terrible player management, if you don’t have but 1 or 2 players have enough ABs to qualify for batting title it’s pathetic
20 and 21 goofed the world up so baseball is no exception. Major logjam of people looking for jobs. Too few heroes like Rodgers so we pray for all who have to retire.
Jake Rogers is a hero, you can tell by his mustache.
He’s not a capable defensive catcher, that’s the problem. He won the job in Detroit last year because Jake Rogers couldn’t play due to TJS. When Rogers came back in 2023, Haase was relegated to backup after struggling mightily at the plate, plus Rogers is exponentially superior defensively. I’d be shocked if Haase got any more than a minor league contract with a possible invite to spring training somewhere. It’s too bad, because his offense, especially for a catcher, was adequate before the wheels came off. But again, he’s lacked defensively and that may make it more difficult to head north with some team, even as a backup.
Totally agree….but if he get that Mojo back and hits some HRs in Spring Training, I think he’d be a very desirable backup catcher, maybe occasional LF / DH??
LF or DH, not catcher, one would hope.
He can sign with the Mets and head north to Syracuse!
LOL
Haase has a poor reputation as a defensive catcher, but it’s not entirely deserved. For instance, he had four defensive runs saved this year as opposed to Jake Rogers’ one. Specifically, the pitching staff pitched considerably better when Haase was behind the plate.
If he has any value as a catcher, it would be his game-calling. He did catch two no-hitters for non-ace pitchers during his tenure with the Tigers which can’t be overlooked. Other than that, poor pitch-framer, lots of passed balls.. .
Haase did just fine as a catcher. His blocking pitches improved during his Tigers tenure. He has a good arm. He is excellent at game calling. If you watched the Phillies/Marlins game last night, it was the umpire missing pitches and not “framing” by the catchers. Framing is just poor umpiring.
Ugh, I think framing is a terrible thing in baseball. The pitch should be called ball or strike when it crosses home plate. Not how the catcher catches it. Why I want the automated strike zone.
Watching him this season on the regular, the man looked badly outmatched far too frequently. I don’t think he has any real value to bring to any MLB team.
He looked pretty bad this season, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t recover his earlier form… he looked good in ’21 and ’22.
A diamond in the rough. He will be a star someday