The D-Backs are re-signing veteran catcher James McCann to a one-year deal, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It’s a $2.75MM guarantee with another $500K in bonuses for the Ballengee Group client, reports Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. The bonuses are tied to McCann’s time on the active roster, according to MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert.
McCann commands a big league deal after settling for a minor league contract last time around. The former All-Star signed a non-roster deal with the Braves and spent the first couple months of the season with their top affiliate in Gwinnett. McCann’s deal included an automatic out if any team were willing to add him to the big league roster. That opportunity arose when Gabriel Moreno broke his right index finger in the middle of June.
The Snakes initially signed McCann to back up Jose Herrera while Moreno was on the shelf. It didn’t take long for him to surpass the light-hitting Herrera on the depth chart. McCann recorded nine hits (including a pair of home runs) and six walks over his first nine games with the Diamondbacks. His production tanked from there, as he hit .232/.267/.364 over his final 106 trips to the plate. The early hot streak was still enough to finish with a respectable .260/.324/.431 batting line in 42 games.
Moreno returned in August. The Diamondbacks jettisoned Herrera instead of McCann, keeping the veteran as Moreno’s backup for the final five weeks. He’ll get a chance to reprise that role for a full season. Adrian Del Castillo had been the only other listed catcher on the 40-man roster. He’s more of an emergency/third option rather than a true backup, as his bat has always been well ahead of his glove. McCann has never graded as an excellent defender, but he’s a competent receiver with an acceptable arm who has long been highly regarded for his work with pitchers.
The D-Backs have a full 40-man roster but probably won’t finalize the contract until after this evening’s non-tender deadline. Any of Kevin Ginkel, Jake McCarthy, Ryan Thompson or the rehabbing A.J. Puk could be dropped from the roster. McCann’s signing pushes their projected payroll (courtesy of RosterResource) to $145MM pending those arbitration decisions.
Image courtesy of Mark J. Reblias, Imagn Images.
Definitely needed that. He played so well
Yeah very impreesing racking up 1.0 WAR in 42 games.
His comedy ain’t bad either
He still plays? I thought he retired like 5 years ago.
That was Brian McCann
Oh okay. That’s makes more sense. Thanks.
Take away his all star year in 2019 and McCann has 5.1 WAR over 11 years. He is an acceptable backup, nothing more.
That’s what he’s signed to be.
Apparently, a strong clubhouse guy too! That character trait seems like a prerequisite for a backup catcher.
Great news for James and his family!
The Diamondbacks found their backup catcher!
No surprise. He did well for them last year and they only had two catchers on their 40 man. One who is more hitter than catcher.
Galen’s second half return to form had a lot to do with him. Not saying they’ll resign Gallen, but if they were, this is the first step.
Really wish the O’s kept this guy. He was the teammate and back up catcher the team needed all last season.