Could the Twins Bring Back Christian Vázquez as Their Backup Catcher?

[DJL44]

7 hours ago, Western SD Fan said:

1. Danny Jansen (31, 1.8) -- mutual option - don't see him leaving Toronto, but if he does, see Caratini comment above.

Danny Jansen left Toronto in 2024. He spent the last two seasons with Boston, Tampa and Milwaukee. He's from Wisconsin and could be convinced to sign with the Twins if they give him competitive offer.

[Senior Softball Guy]

3 hours ago, Doctor Wu said:

That's one of things that has always puzzled me, or intrigued me, about catchers. How much positive impact do catchers have on the pitchers they are catching? Some catchers are obviously calling for certain pitches in games, and that can affect things, but in the grand scheme of things, how much to pitchers rely on their catcher? I suppose veterans would be less reliant than younger pitchers, but still, I wonder about these things and I don't know how you measure or use stats to accurately rate the job that a catcher does behind the plate, other than pitch framing or throwing out steal attempts. 

There was a September game that SWR pitched where he was dominant and after the game gusched about how he and Pareda were in sync. Also Pareda did hit (SSS) with the Twins.

[Riverbrian]

If they trade Jeffers. 

I'd be OK with Vazquez for a low dollar contract as we PUNT THE POSITION. Someone like the Dodgers with 40 man pressure just might spit out a Rortvedt type consideration. I'd rather we do that as we PUNT THE POSITION.  

IF they don't trade Jeffers. DO NOT SPEND A DIME ON CATCHING. 

Someone like Pareda would be the best. 

[jorgenswest]

I will acknowledge that the starting pitching was so much better when Vazquez and Jeffers both returned from injury to finish the season.

I would still prefer them to at least make an attempt to solve the problem particularly since they have one year of control left with Jeffers. I see the Pirates with four catchers on their roster to end the season in Davis, Rodriguez, Bart and Flores. The prospect shine has dulled on Rodriguez and Davis. They just acquired Flores in the Bednar deal. I would try to make a trade there. Campusano from the Padres has lost his prospect shine. The Dodgers chose Rortvedt over Rushing for the NLCS and World Series. He has lost some shine. I would go after a prospect who has lost some shine and see if they can turn it around. They tried it with Cartaya last year. Didn’t work out. Try again. Unlike Cartaya the catchers above hit the ball beyond A-Ball. They can also pay more in prospect capital for a catcher like Harry Ford that has a catcher in front of him.

I also wonder if there is any data on minor league catchers and their challenge success rate. Find a catcher really skilled at calling challenges.

[DJL44]

1 hour ago, Riverbrian said:

If they trade Jeffers. 

I'd be OK with Vazquez for a low dollar contract as we PUNT THE POSITION. Someone like the Dodgers with 40 man pressure just might spit out a Rortvedt type consideration. I'd rather we do that as we PUNT THE POSITION.  

IF they don't trade Jeffers. DO NOT SPEND A DIME ON CATCHING. 

Someone like Pareda would be the best. 

I disagree. I think catchers are often undervalued on the free agent and trade markets. I think they can make a big upgrade at a modest cost. They need to chase those upgrades at the margins. Plus, they aren't blocking anyone in the minors. The Twins don't have a catching prospect above A-ball.

[laloesch]

6 hours ago, rv78 said:

In 2026 there's no chance of winning. No desire from Ownership to win. No clue on how to win from the Front Office. A new Manager with no history of winning. Players don't play good enough to win. In the end......... it really doesn't matter who the backup catcher is.

Well see.  If they are trying to quickly recoup loses it might be 2027, 2028.....2030, before we see a team with a chance to win.  

[Riverbrian]

47 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

I disagree. I think catchers are often undervalued on the free agent and trade markets. I think they can make a big upgrade at a modest cost. They need to chase those upgrades at the margins. Plus, they aren't blocking anyone in the minors. The Twins don't have a catching prospect above A-ball.

I'm not so sure.

It's been my experience that whenever there is a scarcity of something. The price goes up. 

There is a scarcity of catching. 

[DJL44]

3 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

I'm not so sure.

It's been my experience that whenever there is a scarcity of something. The price goes up. 

There is a scarcity of catching. 

There is also unclear information, which means the market often does not act efficiently.

[DocBauer]

Unless Falvey is going to micro manage the catcher position...and he shouldn't...Shelton might prefer Jeffers as the #1 guy for around 100-110 games, who can occasional DH against LHP, and the Twins just need a solid #2 option.

Truth is, we've been a bit spoiled over several years where we had Mauer/Redmond, and then Castro/Garver, and Garver/Jeffers, and then Jeffers/Vazquez, at least in certain aspects. Vazquez has fallen off a cliff with the bat.

I'd like an upgrade. Nobody in the system is ready. Winkel, IMO, would probably hit as poorly as Vazquez, and I believe Cardenas might be able to do the job, but his bat needs a little more AAA seasoning so he doesn't embarrass when in the lineup.

I'd love McCann as the #2. There might still be a little life in his bat. Same with Diaz, who had a down season, and who I don't believe the Padres want to keep for a $7M option. But unless between smarts and luck you can grab someone who has 1 more solid season left in the tank, it's possible Vazquez comes back in a more limited role for around $3M. His defense has declined. But the experience and smarts makes him an OK option, if not a good one, to be a more limited #2.

I'd think $3M is a floor rate for a veteran #2 backstop. I'd like to move on to someone else that can perform better than Vazquez's .545 OPS. I mean, how hard could it be to TRY someone else and get worse production? At that point, you might as well just give Cardenas the job.

But let's also be realistic about most #2 catchers and their production. Drew Butera, for example, had a long career as a quality reserve backstop with a CAREER OPS of about the same. 

Vazquez is not my #1 choice. Again, I'd like to take a flier on some other veteran who might have enough gas in the tank for 1 more season of a .650 OPS. But push comes to shove, Vazquez's experience, and knowledge of the Twins staff, in a more limited appearance schedule, really might not be a poor choice.

[Riverbrian]

7 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

There is also unclear information, which means the market often does not act efficiently.

I went to Buffalo Wild Wings the other night. Dropped 25 bucks for 20 wings. Uff Da and the wings were disappointingly small. 

There will not be efficiency through equilibrium in the wing market until we stop eating so many or we produce more Buffalo's and figure out what to do with the rest of the buffalo. .

 

[Richie the Rally Goat]

23 hours ago, Parfigliano said:

Bringing back Vazquez would be showing that TC ownership isn't even interested in attempting a rebuild only in wealth extraction.

I’ve already jumped to the conclusion that this is a money grab while they wait for the CBA and TV deal to sell

[Richie the Rally Goat]

4 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

I went to Buffalo Wild Wings the other night. Dropped 25 bucks for 20 wings. Uff Da and the wings were disappointingly small. 

There will not be efficiency through equilibrium in the wing market until we stop eating so many or we produce more Buffalo's and figure out what to do with the rest of the buffalo. .

 

Isn’t that the definition of efficient market? Supply down, demand up, price up? Buffalos with wings are not a dime a dozen

[Riverbrian]

2 minutes ago, Richie the Rally Goat said:

Isn’t that the definition of efficient market? Supply down, demand up, price up? Buffalos with wings are not a dime a dozen

Apparently Not. I can't figure it out. I've only seen a couple of those winged buffalo in the wild. Their wings are much too large to produce those tiny wings they are selling. 

It's a mystery... It's a mystery.