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    How Minnesota Twins' Catching Depth Points to a Three-Catcher Rotation in 2025

    Cody Christie

    By Cody Christie

    The Twins have relied exclusively on a two-man catching rotation over the last two seasons. With recent roster moves, will using a three-man rotation in 2025 make more sense?

    Image courtesy of © Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

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    As they prepare for the upcoming season, the Minnesota Twins face an intriguing challenge. With Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vázquez splitting catching duties in 2023 and 2024, the team had one of the more stable backstop duos in the league. However, the offseason has brought rumors that the Twins could look to trade one of their veteran catchers, creating a void behind the plate. If such a trade comes to fruition, the Twins may need to get creative, potentially adopting a three-catcher rotation to maximize their depth while covering defensive deficiencies.

    The Current Landscape
    If Jeffers or Vázquez were dealt, the Twins would be left with intriguing but unpolished catching options. Diego Cartaya is a former top prospect from the Dodgers who offers offensive upside but still needs refinement on both sides of the game. Last season, he hit .221/.323/.363 (.686) with 16 doubles and 11 home runs in 95 games between Double- and Triple-A. He started 69 games as a catcher, with his other appearances coming as DH. In a three-catcher rotation, he would become the backup catcher. 

    Jair Camargo showed flashes of potential in 2024, but may not yet be ready for a full-time role. In 2024, he played 74 games at Triple-A and slashed .212/.290/.403 (.693) with 16 doubles and 12 home runs. Mickey Gasper is another wild card, but his versatility makes him an intriguing utility option. He played first base and catcher last season and has played some second base in the Puerto Rican Winter League. Gasper hit .328/.440/.531 (.970) with 27 doubles and 12 home runs at Double- and Triple-A. He hasn’t proven he can handle an extended big-league workload behind the plate, though, and scouts are skeptical he ever will.

    In such a scenario, the Twins might adopt a three-man catcher rotation, with playing time split roughly as follows:

    • Starter: 90 games (Vázquez, if retained, or Jeffers in this role)
    • Cartaya: 45 games
    • Camargo: 10 games
    • Gasper: Remaining games in a utility/third catcher capacity

    This structure could allow the Twins to balance experience with development, while maintaining flexibility in their lineup. But is it realistic to expect this group to hold up over a 162-game season?

    The Twins have long emphasized defense behind the plate, which was a key reason for signing Vázquez to a multi-year deal. Among the remaining options, however, there are significant defensive questions. Jeffers ranked in the 14th percentile or lower in Fielding Run Value, Blocks Above Average, and Framing, but improved to the 73rd percentile or higher in Caught Stealing Above Average and Pop Time. Cartaya has the tools to develop into a reliable defender, but is still working on pitch framing and game management. Camargo has a strong arm, as he threw out 30% of runners at Triple-A, but he struggles with some of the other nuances behind the plate. Gasper is versatile but may not provide the defensive reliability typically expected from a catcher.

    A Utility Role for Gasper
    Gasper’s ability to play multiple positions could make him a valuable part of a three-catcher system. He could serve as a backup at first base or in the corner outfield while providing depth behind the plate. This kind of versatility might help the Twins keep their roster flexible, especially if injuries arise or if they want to give regular rest to their starters.

    However, Gasper’s limited MLB experience leaves questions about whether he can handle sporadic playing time effectively. The Twins might not believe he is a big-league catcher, but he could fill the role in an emergency situation. For the three-catcher rotation to work, the Twins would need to trust Gasper in this hybrid role, while ensuring he gets enough reps to stay sharp.

    Should the Twins Make the Switch?
    The idea of a three-catcher rotation isn’t without precedent, but it does come with risks. Balancing playing time while maintaining defensive and offensive production can be a delicate task. If the Twins trade Jeffers or Vázquez, they’ll need to assess whether the remaining group can handle the position's responsibilities.

    A trade would likely indicate that the Twins are confident in their young catchers’ development. Still, the team may need a veteran depth piece to serve as an insurance policy. Otherwise, they’ll be betting on Cartaya’s development getting back on track after years of detour; Camargo’s continued growth; and Gasper’s ability to thrive in a utility role.

    The Twins’ catching situation could undergo a dramatic shift this offseason, and a three-catcher rotation might be the best way to maximize the potential of their roster. However, it’s far from a perfect solution. If the team decides to trade one of their veteran catchers, they’ll need to carefully manage playing time and development to ensure the position doesn’t become a weakness in 2025.

    Would this approach be successful? Do the Twins have enough catching depth? Leave a comment and start the discussion. 

    Cody Christie is a Twins writer and content contributor. His writing can be found exclusively at Twins Daily and his voice can be heard on radio stations throughout the Upper Midwest. Outside of the Twins, he is a father, high school teacher, and avid runner.
    Follow Cody Christie on Twitter: nodaktwinsfan

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    Danchat

    Danchat 14,025

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    I don't see any evidence that they would go away from the 2 catcher model. It's hard to say if they have any faith in Camargo, my guess would be he is on the fringes of the 40 man roster. And once again, I doubt Gasper is given a legitimate shot to be a MLB catcher.

    stringer bell

    stringer bell 25,881

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    Cartaya is 23 and Camargo is 25. There's a reasonable chance that there is more upside in them than they demonstrated in Triple A last year. If, and I'm not saying this will happen, but if either of them moves forward offensively and is able to demonstrate they are a capable receiver, it makes sense to proceed with a guy playing for the minimum rather than having a guy making $10M and accumulating negative WAR. 

    As I've said several times, it will be interesting to see if he reports with the pitchers and catchers and whether he's catching in Fort Myers and considered only as an infielder. Gasper is in another category. He's already 29 and isn't regarded seriously as a catcher. He's an infielder who can catch and if he hits sufficiently there might be a spot for him on the active roster. 

    Jacksson

    Jacksson 312

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    What it points to is that the Twins start the year with Jeffers and Vasquez.  Meanwhile Camargo, Cartaya and Gasper get at bats in the minors and the team patiently waits for one or more of them to be a pleasant surprise.  Meanwhile, they use Vasquez in situations to maximize his value while patiently waiting for the inevitable substantial injury to another team's catcher.  When the phone rings, the Twins answer.

     

    Doctor Gast

    Doctor Gast 10,593

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    13 hours ago, Ricky Vaughn said:

    If this takes place I wont be spending $20 a month to watch them.

    If the Pohlads want to sell the team, they have to put forth a competitive team that fans want to watch. Picking up non-MLB-ready Cartaya and Gasper to pair with AAAA Camargo is worse than doing nothing. By picking up these players, they delude themselves into thinking they have solved the problem when they fall way short. Catcher isn't a position to take lightly, this type of thinking will prove very disastrous. 

    Doctor Gast

    Doctor Gast 10,593

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    12 hours ago, Blyleven2011 said:

    The front office put themselves in this position , they did sign Vazquez  and have played him for 2 seasons with 1 to go , Vazquez is defense,  if he hits that's a plus for his position  ...

    If I was going to trade anyone it would be jeffers , he hasn't the stamina to be a everyday catcher , he hits alittle  and that's what the fans want but it's streaky and his defense isn't as good as Vazquez no matter what the metrics say  ...

    Trade jeffers and resign Vazquez as a backup catcher for lesser pay in 2026 , everyone wants to trade Vazquez  because they think he is over paid ( i think the dodgers over pay all their free agents ) , extend Vazquez for lesser money and everyone will be happy ...

    For two seasons now , fans have harped on Vazquez  because he doesn't hit , he going into his free agent year , I think he'll hit alittle better than last year even if he is getting older , I like watching Vazquez catch , he's in the game with his defense and smarts and pitchers like him ( do the pitchers think he is over paid , No  )...

    The twins need to find a capable catcher for the future and quite sucking hind tit , call Pittsburgh or any team that has a catcher blocked  that is ready to play for us ...

    Bingo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jeffers has been hyped as the Twins' primary catcher. Jeffers doesn't have the stamina to be anything more than a backup. I'm all in favor of keeping Jeffers as a backup but as Boras is his agent, he'll demand $15+M/yr. & because the Twins have done nothing to acquire a future catcher, he'll probably leverage 5yrs. Normally Boras likes to take his client into FA but in Jeffers case, he'd be happy with a nice extension. That is if they are stupid enough to extend Jeffers this season. If they make Jeffers catch every day this season he'll quickly falter & fall on the IL, like he did in '22. In his last year of availability, he'll be worthless & we get nothing for him & we'll have nothing because the Twins placed their hope on him beyond rationale. It was more beneficial to have traded him last season but we can still get something for him if we trade him this season, But for us to do that we have to have a future starting MLB-ready catcher & backup to plug into the gap. It's a great idea to extend & renegotiate a more reasonable Vazquez contract. Vazquez mentoring the upcoming catchers will secure a much better-catching core in the future.

    umterp23

    umterp23 1,093

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    People talk of salary relief if trading Vázquez. The assumption is we aren’t eating any of the salary to move, which is what Twins would have to do. Most likely teams are going to ask twins to eat $5MM and what relief is that? I don’t see twins trading Jefferson unless it is a sizeable offer in favor of twins, not sure FO has ever won on sizeable offer though. What team is going to trade for Vázquez and also give us a joint ready MLB catcher, not happening. $5MM to spend on FA catcher won’t get us much I don’t think

    stringer bell

    stringer bell 25,881

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    3 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

    Bingo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jeffers has been hyped as the Twins' primary catcher. Jeffers doesn't have the stamina to be anything more than a backup. I'm all in favor of keeping Jeffers as a backup but as Boras is his agent, he'll demand $15+M/yr. & because the Twins have done nothing to acquire a future catcher, he'll probably leverage 5yrs. Normally Boras likes to take his client into FA but in Jeffers case, he'd be happy with a nice extension. That is if they are stupid enough to extend Jeffers this season. If they make Jeffers catch every day this season he'll quickly falter & fall on the IL, like he did in '22. In his last year of availability, he'll be worthless & we get nothing for him & we'll have nothing because the Twins placed their hope on him beyond rationale. It was more beneficial to have traded him last season but we can still get something for him if we trade him this season, But for us to do that we have to have a future starting MLB-ready catcher & backup to plug into the gap. It's a great idea to extend & renegotiate a more reasonable Vazquez contract. Vazquez mentoring the upcoming catchers will secure a much better-catching core in the future.

    You've consistently been the least Jeffers-friendly poster on this site. That is fine, but I disagree. Jeffers has compiled 5.4 WAR (BBRef) over the last two seasons, which is among the top ten in catchers for that period in exactly 800 plate appearances, so less than full-time duty. He turns 28 this year, so it should be his peak year and yet you say that Vázquez is the one who should be extended (if any)? 

    Jeffers isn't a superstar, but he's a good catcher on balance. He makes a lot less money than Vázquez and he's eight years younger. If you want a competitive team on the field, getting Jeffers in the lineup more should be a priority.

    As for the other catchers--progression isn't linear. Neither Cartaya (at age 22) or Camargo (at 24) was ready to help a big league club last year. That doesn't mean in 2025 they won't be good enough to be better than what the club has received from Vázquez in the last two years--minus .5 WAR. I've said I think spring training will be huge for those two. They have a chance to put themselves in line for a promotion to the big leagues and if there is an injury or trade, one of them could be a backup this year. No guarantees that either guy solves the catching depth problem, but both have enough tools and youth that they have a chance.

    Gasper is another matter altogether. I don't believe he'll be competing for the third spot in the pecking order, but he will be looking to make the club as a utility guy who can hit and play a couple of positions of need for the Twins (and those positions are ones that Castro doesn't play).

    chpettit19

    chpettit19 23,687

  • Community Moderator

    • Posted

    15 hours ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

    I'll propose a trade, that is no more ridiculus than considering playing Gasper and Cartaya. Jeffers to Seattle for Harry Ford. We throw in Julien and work any other pieces into a deal from either side to make it work. Then we expand the budget to sign Diaz or McCann to help this year. Dipota likes to deal and the Mariners need a bat. Jeffers does this for them. The Mariners still have Raleigh to catch a long with now Jeffers to catch and DH. We're going to lose Jeffers in two years anyway.

    While I'd love Ford, I don't think Jeffers fits in Seattle. They also have Garver at the DH spot. Garver may be toast, but that stadium is likely to eat up a lot of Jeffers' power and I don't think he'd put up the DH numbers they'd hope for. Maybe Raleigh could, but he's a better defensive catcher than Jeffers so you'd want him back there more than Jeffers.

    Doctor Gast

    Doctor Gast 10,593

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    2 hours ago, stringer bell said:

    You've consistently been the least Jeffers-friendly poster on this site. That is fine, but I disagree. Jeffers has compiled 5.4 WAR (BBRef) over the last two seasons, which is among the top ten in catchers for that period in exactly 800 plate appearances, so less than full-time duty. He turns 28 this year, so it should be his peak year and yet you say that Vázquez is the one who should be extended (if any)? 

    Jeffers isn't a superstar, but he's a good catcher on balance. He makes a lot less money than Vázquez and he's eight years younger. If you want a competitive team on the field, getting Jeffers in the lineup more should be a priority.

    As for the other catchers--progression isn't linear. Neither Cartaya (at age 22) or Camargo (at 24) was ready to help a big league club last year. That doesn't mean in 2025 they won't be good enough to be better than what the club has received from Vázquez in the last two years--minus .5 WAR. I've said I think spring training will be huge for those two. They have a chance to put themselves in line for a promotion to the big leagues and if there is an injury or trade, one of them could be a backup this year. No guarantees that either guy solves the catching depth problem, but both have enough tools and youth that they have a chance.

    Gasper is another matter altogether. I don't believe he'll be competing for the third spot in the pecking order, but he will be looking to make the club as a utility guy who can hit and play a couple of positions of need for the Twins (and those positions are ones that Castro doesn't play).

    WAR especially BBRef is a very poor way to measure a catcher's value. If you read carefully my texts you'll see I'm a fan of Jeffers. But I'm not delusional, as a backup catcher he's a very good hitter with average-ish defense. As an equal tandem he starts out fine but as the season wanes so does he, leaving us with less-than-impressive results. As a primary catcher catching every day over an extended amount of time he falters & ends up on the IL. That's reality. Catching is very strenuous, most don't have the stamina to be a starting catcher. You have it or you don't, Jeffers doesn't have it & hoping doesn't make it so.

    Camargo's hitting like many shining star hitters in our system took a big dip in hitting as pitchers made drastic adjustments. Hitters like Severino have been cast aside. Slugging has been Cartaya & Camargo's calling card. Cartaya has made some slight improvements in defense & hopefully, he'll retain & continue to put into practice what he has learned at LAD. The barometer in how a prospect will produce at the MLB level is how they do in the higher MiLB. Cartaya's higher MiLB path has be underwhelming & slow. He has to dominate AAA before he gets a shot at MLB, according to his progress that won't be soon & his adjustment to MLB pitchers will be that much harder. I doubt either will be really MLB-ready this season (that's not to say they won't dip their toes). Those are my observations. I hope that Jeffers miraculously becomes that catcher that FO has envisioned him to be & I hope that Camargo & Cartaya are transformed but I don't see anything concrete to anchor that hope onto. I am so dogmatic on my stand because the course the FO have taken is disastrous & I'll try my best to have them steer away from it.

    bean5302

    bean5302 9,281

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    On 1/20/2025 at 3:13 PM, sweetmusicviola16 said:

    Myles Straw is a 7 WAR career player. So maybe that says a little about WAR. Vazquez is worlds better than the 3 AAA depth players we have. If Vazquez is traded then the first thing to do is sign Diaz if he's still available by then. Camargo,Gasper or Cartaya in 2025 will kill the team imo.

    Vazquez used to be an MLB caliber player. Should we go out and bring back Michael Cuddyer? He was an 18 WAR career player!



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