Are Jhonny Pereda and Mickey Gasper Competing to Be Ryan Jeffers's Backup Next Season?

Entering the 2025 MLB regular season, catching depth (behind veterans Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vázquez) was one of the most significant short- and long-term areas of concern for the Minnesota Twins. When the season began, Triple-A catchers Jair Camargo and Diego Cartaya were the primary high-minors fallback plans. Both possessing 40-man roster spots, either could have been called up to the majors if one of the two veterans had missed extended time early in the season.

Yet, following Cartaya's significant struggles at the plate and in the field and Camargo undergoing Tommy John Surgery in June, both players were designated for assignment and have since parted ways with the organization. Interestingly, catcher was one of the few positions relatively unaffected by the trade deadline's mass exodus in the short term, as neither Jeffers nor Vázquez was traded. Yet, the organization seemingly gained a long-term solution at the position, acquiring top catching prospect Eduardo Tait alongside starting pitching prospect Mick Abel in the deal that sent star closer Jhoan Duran to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Regardless, the position remained unchanged at the major-league level until Vázquez was placed on the 10-day IL with a left shoulder infection in early August. Since Vázquez was placed on the IL, 29-year-old rookie Mickey Gasper has supplanted him as Jeffers's primary backup, earning nine starts at the position. Gasper remained in this role until Jeffers was placed on the 7-day concussion IL retroactive to Sept. 5. In return, fellow 29-year-old backup backstop Jhonny Pereda was recalled from Triple-A St. Paul, inserting himself into the catching mix.

With Jeffers and Vázquez both on the IL, Gasper and Pereda have become Minnesota's catching tandem since early September, with Pereda earning five starts to Gasper's three. This Saturday, MLB.com's Patrick Donnelly reported that Vázquez is hoping to return before Minnesota's final road trip, which begins Sept. 23. Yet, given the fact that Minnesota is out of playoff contention, there is reason to believe both Jeffers and Vázquez could remain sidelined for the rest of season, with eyes on advancing their respective recoveries into the offseason and entering next Spring Training healthy.

That being the case, Gasper and Pereda could finish the 2025 regular season as Minnesota's catching tandem. These two being the only two options at the position is a rather bleak reality for the final month of the season. Yet, with Vázquez expected to depart the organization this offseason, there's at least some chance that Gasper and Pereda are in an active competition to become Jeffers's primary backup next season.

Obviously, the competition won't be won or lost over the next month. Offseason training, Spring Training performance, and overall recency bias (which will manifest next March) will be the deciding factors. Presumably, the team will also explore external additions at that spot over the offseason. Yet, strong performances from one or both of Gasper and Pereda could function as a springboard toward earning the upper hand. Let's take a look at how both players have performed since Jeffers was placed on the IL on Sept. 5:

• Gasper - .154/.214/.154, 14 plate appearances, two hits, zero doubles, zero home runs, one walk, 14.3% strikeout rate, 5 wRC+
• Pereda - .400/.471/.533, 17 plate appearances, six hits, two doubles, zero home runs, two walks, 23.5% strikeout rate, 184 wRC+

Obviously, 31 combined plate appearances is an exceptionally small sample. Yet, Pereda has significantly outperformed Gasper at the plate over the past two weeks. Pereda has driven the ball hard (54.5% hard hit rate) for extra bases, while posting a respectable 23.5% strikeout rate. On the other hand, Gasper has performed at a subpar rate, continuing the season-long trend of being one of the least effective hitters in baseball.

When assessing the defensive acumen of both backstops, Pereda again has the edge, generating 1 Defensive Run Saved (DRS) over 44 innings at the position compared to Gasper's -1 DRS over 92 innings. Pereda has the upper hand in FanGraphs's framing metric, sporting -0.1 FRM (which is effectively average) compared to Gasper's -0.8 FRM. Pereda also sports better blocking, pop time, and caught stealing metrics than Gasper, lending merit to the idea that Pereda is the overall superior option and possesses the inside track on Gasper heading into 2026.

Again, a poor Spring Training performance from Pereda, a strong Spring Training performance from Gasper, or team decision-makers ultimately electing to sign or trade for an established veteran catcher this offseason could make the prospect of Pereda winning the Opening Day backup catcher gig moot. Yet, given Minnesota's expected spending restrictions this offseason and Gasper's inability to perform at the plate or in the field, there is reason to believe Pereda is the favorite to begin next season as Jeffers's primary backup.