Has Noah Cardenas Blossomed into Minnesota Twins' Third Catcher?

[Cody Schoenmann]

In the ninth inning of Friday night's 4-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins' catcher Christian Vázquez was hit by a pitch on his right arm, causing him to grimace while walking up the first base line as assistant trainer Masa Abe and manager Rocco Baldelli checked on his well-being. Vázquez remained in the game and caught Jhoan Durán's save. The 34-year-old narrowly avoided serious injury. However, watching him nearly leave Friday night's contest raised a serious question regarding Minnesota's depth: who is the club's third catching option? 

Earlier this season, the answer was Triple-A Jair Camargo. However, the 25-year-old will be sidelined for the rest of the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier this month. Emergency catcher Mickey Gasper would have been a viable option in a pinch, too. Unfortunately, he was recently placed on the 7-day IL with bilateral plantar fasciitis, similarly sidelining the 29-year-old for what is anticipated to be an extended stretch. That being the case, the organization's Triple-A catching depth has been spread thin, resulting in recent catching opportunities for prospects Noah Cardenas and Patrick Winkel. 

Since Gasper was placed on the IL on Jun. 23, Cardenas has been rewarded two starts behind the plate compared to Winkel's one. Fellow young catcher Diego Cartaya will factor in the Triple-A catching mix, too. Yet, given his recent placement on the development list and inability to hit Triple-A pitching (58.5% strikeout rate over 65 plate appearances), he is not a serious promotion candidate. That being the case, Cardenas and Winkel are the two backstops likely to receive an opportunity if Jeffers or Vázquez were to get placed on the injured list. Interestingly, Cardenas might have the edge. 

Beginning his 2025 campaign at Double-A Wichita, Cardenas hit .257/.409/.416 with 26 hits, seven doubles, three home runs, and a 137 wRC+ over 127 plate appearances. The 25-year-old was subsequently promoted to Triple-A on Jun. 10. Since joining St. Paul, the former eighth-round pick has hit .185/.267/.556 with five hits, one double, three home runs, and a 102 wRC+ over 30 plate appearances. Cardenas's subpar batting average and on-base percentage are somewhat concerning. Yet, his ability to hit for power in the high minors has impressed, lending merit to the idea that he could produce offensively in the majors. 

Cardenas has demonstrated an ability to hit at an above-average rate since joining the organization in 2021. Interestingly, though, his calling card out of college was his glove, and his defense has remained superb throughout the high minors. The UCLA product is an above-average receiver who sports a strong arm. Plus-defensive catchers who can hit are a rare archetype. Yet, there is reason to believe Cardenas could develop into one at the major league level. If Jeffers or Vázquez were forced to miss time later this season, Cardenas would seemingly be the next backstop up. Also, with Vázquez set to depart from Minnesota after this season, there is reason to believe Cardenas could succeed the veteran as Jeffers's backup. 

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[LambchoP]

None of our options seem viable at the moment. We should really try to acquire a major league quality catcher to pair with Jeffers. If we can move Vasquez, hopefully we can get his replacement at the deadline. If not, it has to happen in the off-season.

[Doctor Gast]

I've always liked Cardenas's defense. IMO, he has leaped-frogged into the #3 catcher. But is he MLB-ready? IMO, no. Will he be our backup catcher next year? I hope not. Can Jeffers become our primary catcher next year? He has proven he can't. So many questions with no answers at catching.

[strumdatjag]

Catching depth throughout the organization needs to be addressed in the upcoming draft and if the Twins become sellers. 

[BillyBallLives]

If and when the Twins trade Vasqy.....Throw Cardenas into the fire and let's see what we've got.
Cardenas already checks several boxes:

• Production at AA and AAA ( 4 HRs in 30 AB   .200   average)

• Defense that pitchers trust.

• IQ and leadership.

If the Twins are thin at catcher and he’s the best available option, giving him a look , that would tell you a lot. Worst-case? He gets exposed, learns, and heads back down. Best-case? You found a cost-controlled #2 or even future #1.

 
There's only one way to find out.

[rdehring]

Add me to the list of those hoping the Twins will address this problem later this month.  Would like to see the main return in one of several deals be a catcher that is very good defensively with a decent bat.  Someone who recently moved up to AAA would be ok as he could be ready for the backup role next spring.

Only problem is there seems to be few good catchers in most organizations.

[Road trip]

Maybe next year for Cardenas, hopefully an injury doesn't force the issue...

And this is not an endorsement of Vazquez's "offensive" numbers.  While the bar is low for catchers, he really isn't even meeting the minimum standards for a catcher anymore.  He might be untradeable at this point with his contract.

[jorgenswest]

The Twins will need a platoon second catcher and a third catcher next year. If they are sellers at the deadline they should look to adding a younger catcher ready to be that back up. If they aren’t able to acquire that catcher with the expiring contracts they have to offer then they should give the job to Cardenas and see if his defense is good enough. His caught stealing rates are not among the best in AAA but they aren’t bad. I am not sure about the rest of his game behind the plate.

[chpettit19]

Is he catcher 3 currently? Probably, not sure who else it'd be. If one of the 2 major leaguers went down with a long term injury do I think he'd be the call? No, they'd go find some random veteran off the street or in trade if it's before the deadline. 

They definitely need to figure out their catcher development system. But that's true of almost every team. The league is catching starved. It's why Martin Maldonado and Austin Hedges keep getting jobs and Ben Rortvedt got real run this year. The bar is not high for major league catching. Which makes it all the more sad that nobody seems to be able to develop any.

[Eephus]

That Diego Cartaya got 65 PA this year is also quite a testament to catching starved systems. Uff da.

[Blyleven2011]

I agree we need someone to step forward a take a hold of the position for maybe the rest of the season after deadline or for next year ...

If Cardenas is good defensively any hitting is a plus  , if he can play defense at the mlb level , I'd like to see what we got ...

The twins aren't going anywhere with the players they have so it won't hurt  ...

If the FO doesn't believe in him  , a solid catcher ready to play in mlb  needs to be acquired at deadline  ...

It's a priority to see how serious our FO really is in improving their team ( I'd say our team but we know that is not the case  ) ...

[Mike Sixel]

3 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

I've always liked Cardenas's defense. IMO, he has leaped-frogged into the #3 catcher. But is he MLB-ready? IMO, no. Will he be our backup catcher next year? I hope not. Can Jeffers become our primary catcher next year? He has proven he can't. So many questions with no answers at catching.

How has Jeffers proved that? I really have no idea what you're thinking here. 

[DocBauer]

Noah really doesn't have much power. His career high is 9 currently. I think his recent "explosion" is probably more of an outlier than advancement, particularly in the more hitter friendly International League.  He's a career. 241 hitter so far, but that's including his horrendous 2024 when he only hit .173. What he does well is control the zone and work the count. He career OB% is .382. That number right there is the reason to hope he can be a respectable ML hitter. 

Reportedly, hes solid behind the plate and calls a good game. He's way ahead of about anyone else in the system in  S%. He probably is the #3 guy now, and might be in 2026. Now we just need to see his bat take the next step at AAA.

[mrtwinsfan]

5 hours ago, rdehring said:

Add me to the list of those hoping the Twins will address this problem later this month.  Would like to see the main return in one of several deals be a catcher that is very good defensively with a decent bat.  Someone who recently moved up to AAA would be ok as he could be ready for the backup role next spring.

Only problem is there seems to be few good catchers in most organizations.

 

Leonardo Bernal      from the Cardinals  is a guy i would like to see twins get  he is a top 100 prospect guy  # 87- , who grades out well , what would we have to give up for a guy like that ??

[terrydactyls]

Maybe the Twins dhould ask Royce Lewis to learn how to be an MLB catcher.  😁

[jorgenswest]

4 hours ago, mrtwinsfan said:

 

Leonardo Bernal      from the Cardinals  is a guy i would like to see twins get  he is a top 100 prospect guy  # 87- , who grades out well , what would we have to give up for a guy like that ??

The Cardinals do have some catching prospects with three in their top 6. 0ne of them has an ETA of 2029 though. Their current catcher Pages is solid defensively but has a weak bat. Herrera is their DH and third catcher and has been on the IL twice this year. He can hit but can’t throw out runners. Pozo is similar to Gasper. Teams need two catchers and I think Crooks and Bernal are their two catchers for 2026. If I were the Cardinals it would take a lot to pry away Bernal. If the Cardinals are going to trade Bernal they would do it to help them get to the playoffs and maybe win the division this year.

They really need a catcher for 2025. They could use a bat and the outfield bats have been disappointing. Would you trade Keaschall for Bernal? The Cardinals would then need to move Donovan to the outfield to play Keaschall at 2B. Would you send Jeffers and hope Bernal is ready for 2026? Those trades don’t help the 2025 Twins.

I wouldn’t do either of those deals now but if they still have Pages, Crooks and Bernal in the winter they would be a good team to try to match up with in a trade.

 

 

[Mike Sixel]

1 minute ago, jorgenswest said:

The Cardinals do have some catching prospects with three in their top 6. 0ne of them has an ETA of 2029 though. Their current catcher Pages is solid defensively but has a weak bat. Herrera is their DH and third catcher and has been on the IL twice this year. He can hit but can’t throw out runners. Pozo is similar to Gasper. Teams need two catchers and I think Crooks and Bernal are their two catchers for 2026. If I were the Cardinals it would take a lot to pry away Bernal. If the Cardinals are going to trade Bernal they would do it to help them get to the playoffs and maybe win the division this year.

They really need a catcher for 2025. They could use a bat and the outfield bats have been disappointing. Would you trade Keaschall for Bernal? The Cardinals would then need to move Donovan to the outfield to play Keaschall at 2B. Would you send Jeffers and hope Bernal is ready for 2026? Those trades don’t help the 2025 Twins.

I wouldn’t do either of those deals now but if they still have Pages, Crooks and Bernal in the winter they would be a good team to try to match up with in a trade.

 

 

Zero chance I trade Keaschell. Why would they do that? 

[jorgenswest]

29 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Zero chance I trade Keaschell. Why would they do that? 

I wouldn’t do either but it is partly because I know Keaschall so much better than I know Bernal. They might need to trade a top 100 prospect to get another and catcher is a much more difficult position to fill. Top catching prospects are a premium asset.

[LambchoP]

Give the catching gear to good ole Mickey Gasper! Dude seems to hit like Babe Ruth in AAA. Now if he could only find a way to do it at the big league level and play a solid catcher, we'd be set :)