Angels Rumors: 3 free agent catchers to consider

Is it possible Albert Pujols recruits Yadier Molina to the Angels?

The Mets signing James McCann to a 4-year, $40.6 million deal gives a general idea of the catching free-agent market. The biggest available name is J.T. Realmuto, who some are projecting to break AAV records. If the Angels don’t want to break their bank completely but are still willing to spend, Yadier Molina is someone they may consider.

The 38-year old Molina is projected to sign a deal in the one-year $10 million range next season with options for a second year. After 17 seasons in the big leagues, he’s no spring chicken, but still one of baseball’s smartest players on the field.

Offensively, Molina hasn’t put up eye-popping numbers the last five seasons, but he’s got a knack for being an annoyingly tough out. He rarely strikes out and is one of the best at using the entire field as a hitter.

Yadier Molina Last Five Seasons:

• 2016: (147 games) .307 BA 8 HR 58 RBI .787 OPS
• 2017: (136 games) .273 BA 18 HR 82 RBI .751 OPS (All-Star)
• 2018: (123 games) .261 BA 20 HR 74 RBI .750 OPS (All-Star)
• 2019: (113 games) .270 BA 10 HR 57 RBI .711 OPS
• 2020: (42 games) .262 BA 4 HR 16 RBI .662 OPS

Early in the offseason, there were rumblings of Molina upset with the Cardinals. His older brother, Bengie Molina went on a podcast to say Yadi wanted to feel “appreciated”.

Since then, both the Cardinals and Molina have seemed to resolve whatever bad-feelings they had with one another. Now there’s optimism that both sides will reach an agreement sooner than later.

It would be a tough sell to pry away Molina from St. Louis. Maybe he can be bought with a bigger contract, though it’s probably not worth overpaying a player of his age even if he is one of baseball’s greatest catchers.

One person who could step in to recruit Molina to the Halos is his former teammate, Albert Pujols. There haven’t been any official reports of this, I’m purely speculating here.

Pujols and Molina went to the postseason in five of their eight seasons together in St. Louis where they won two-World Series titles. That’s a special bond the pair has together.

The duo is entering the twilight years of their baseball careers, could that bond be enough where they ride off into the Los Angeles sunset together? Probably not, but it’s nice to think about.

Kurt Suzuki is an affordable option who might be the best fit for the Angels.

Whenever he decides to hang up his spikes, Kurt Suzuki will finish his career as one of the most underrated ballplayers this game has seen. Not only would the Angels save money by signing Suzuki, they also get solid production as well.

The 37-year old has spent 14 big league seasons behind the plate and is a respected player throughout the league. Suzuki’s offensive numbers aren’t near the level or potential of a Contreras or Realmuto, but they’re still solid have kept him around this long.

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Kurt Suzuki Last Five Seasons:

• 2016: (106 games) .258 BA 8 HR 49 RBI .704 OPS
• 2017: (81 games) .283 BA 19 HR 50 RBI .887 OPS
• 2018: (105 games) .271 BA 12 HR 50 RBI .776 OPS
• 2019: (85 games) .264 BA 17 HR 63 RBI .809 OPS
• 2020: (33 games) .270 BA 2 HR 17 RBI .745 OPS

At this point in his career, Suzuki probably won’t give teams a full-season workload behind the dish, but it’s possible you can platoon him when Stassi is ready to return. A price range of one-year, ~$5million is likely for the veteran catcher in 2021.

For those who value intangibles over analytics, Suzuki is at the top of the list in that department. Suzuki has seen a lot in his nearly decade and a half behind the plate in the big leagues and was a key member of the 2019 Nationals team who won the World Series.

He’s far from flashy, but Suzuki is the ultimate professional who could help the growth of the starting rotation. Maddon has a history of relying on veteran catchers, so this move is right up his alley.

The cost-effective signing also leaves some room in the budget to allocate funds elsewhere which is something to consider.

Should the Angels break the bank to sign J.T. Realmuto?

It wouldn’t be right making this article about which available catchers the Angels should sign without mentioning J.T. Realmuto. Should they sign him? Considering his skill set, absolutely. As far as how much he’s going to cost, I would take a pass.

The 29-year old catcher has the fifth-highest WAR3 (10.3) among active free agents. That alone might warrant a team to spend around $25-$30million, per year on Realmuto.

J.T. Realmuto Last Five Seasons:

• 2016: (137 games) .303 BA 11 HR 48 RBI .771 OPS
• 2017: (141 games) .278 BA 17 HR 65 RBI .783 OPS
• 2018: (125 games) .277 BA 21 HR 74 RBI .825 OPS (All-Star)
• 2019: (145 games) .275 BA 25 HR 83 RBI .820 OPS (All-Star)
• 2020: (47 games) .266 BA 11 HR 32 RBI .840 OPS

His numbers are some of the best amongst catchers, but I think the Angels should avoid this for a few reasons. Having the league’s highest-paid player in Mike Trout, along with Anthony Rendon and Albert Pujols not far behind means dedicating this amount of money makes things difficult for the future.

The payroll will decrease significantly in the next few years so it’s not impossible to write this check for Realmuto, but I think there are other viable options of bringing a catcher the Angels should consider. The organization could then spend that money elsewhere like starting pitching while bringing in a more affordable option behind the plate.

The current record for the most expensive MLB catcher is held by Joe Mauer. The former Twin made just two all-star appearances after signing his 8-year, $184 contract in 2011. I’m not trying to say Mauer was no good, he was a solid player with a career .306 BA. His overall offensive statistics prior were far better than what he did after he inked his big contract.

There’s no way of knowing for sure if the same will happen to Realmuto, but it’s worth noting Mauer wasn’t just the best hitting catcher at the time of his mega-deal, but one of the best overall players in the entire league. Mauer had four all-star appearances, four silver slugger awards, three gold gloves, and was the AL MVP in 2009.

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It’s a risk to sign a catcher for this much money. I would rather take the gamble of trading prospects for Contreras who is under team control through the 2022 season.