All Bridge Catchers Lead to Victor Caratini

[stringer bell]

1 hour ago, Riverbrian said:

I'm agreeing with you.

My suggestion would be to surround cough cough Caratini with other guys who can hit.

Focus on strengthening 1 through 8 in the batting order by focusing on 1 through 11 on the roster. Punt the catcher position. 

Can't do that when we are putting every single egg into the Royce Lewis basket and dying with the consequences and Caratini is the only place to turn.  

Bottom line... if we are trying to improve our offense with the Catcher position. We are idiots. 

As per usual, @Riverbrian is making a good case and presenting it well. I agree that the Twins are pretty much stuck with Caratini and while I'm not obsessed with the second catcher, I would hope the GM can find the right guy to pair with him to maximize both Caratini and whoever his alternate/backup is.

Caratini has twice exceeded the 72 games he caught last year and he will play 2027 as a 33-34 year old, so it would seem that a near 50-50 job sharing would be in order. Defensively, Vic is decent blocking and framing and did a good job with ABS challenges. He is a liability against the running game with a below average arm and slow pop time. As a hitter, Caratini has been slightly better against right handed pitching and was significantly better against righties in 2026, so bringing in a right handed hitting catcher would be a sound strategy.

So, Caratini's alternate should be defense-first with running game stopping capability and probably hit right handed. With health, the alternate catcher should be starting more than 60 games, probably closer to 70 or 75. Can that guy be found for a one-year committment and low salary? Maybe it is Alex Jackson, who has an excellent pop time and strong arm (and low arbitration number) or maybe it's somebody else making near major league minimum. I agree that the Twins shouldn't be breaking the bank at catcher.

 

[StiltedGopher]

Sign Jeffers.