Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Yankees Catching Concerns

With word coming out last week that Jorge Posada will not be ready by spring training, and the fears that he may not even be ready for opening day depending on how well his shoulder heals, there has been much talk about a backup plan.

Steven Goldman of the Pinstriped Bible discusses it here, and ESPN's Rob Neyer here.

Goldman suggests making a run for Miguel Montero:
Yet, for the Yankees, given their awareness of Posada's indeterminate state, need to make replacing Molina a priority or risk losing any close pennant race. They've already blocked the Red Sox off of Mark Teixeira this winter. Now it might be wise to block them off of Miguel Montero of the Diamondbacks. Right now, the D'backs seem to be holding out for a big return on the 25-year-old, and the Yankees are starting to run out of fungible Jeff Marquez types. The good news is that if Montero is too big a target, there are many catchers loose in the jungle, almost any of whom is likely to outhit Molina in a part-time role.
Not a bad idea, although he may be too costly. Montero hit .255/.330/.435 with 5 HR and 18 RBI in 70 games last year for the DBacks.

What do you think the Yanks should do? Sit tight with what they have and hope Jorge comes back at full strength, and if not go with a combination of Jose Molina, Kevin Cash, and Francisco Cervelli? Or should they make a run at one of the catchers on the market?

12 Comments:

Anonymous said...

I know the Yankees have been against trading Hideki Matsui but we might need to open a spot at DH, at least occasionally for Posada. The Yankees need to start to prepare for the future for their offense. Mats, Damon, Posada are all getting old and have been breaking down a lot more. The Yankees need to get younger and Montero would be a nice fit. Kennedy could be enough of a return. We could eventually have two Montero's sitting pretty in the middle of our lineup.

Anonymous said...

It not like its the end of the world if we need to keep using jose molina..he is an awesome defensive catcher with a great arm...i understand he isnt on the same level as posada at the plate...he would be fine.just my 2 cents

Greg Cohen said...

I also don't think it will be the end of the world if they go with Molina for a little while. But if they can do better I'm certainly not against that either.

P-Cat said...

Sit tight. Go with Molina. Don't panic.

Senorgrande said...

Molina. We need a defensive catcher with a good arm. Someone who can handle CC and AJ.
Bat him 9th. We will be fine.

YankeePride3 said...

I wouldn't mind Molina at all if Posada can't come back. He did a GREAT job with the staff last year and is a great defender. With Teixeira in the mix now, we could afford to bat Molina ninth.

Anonymous said...

Why trade for a young catcher when you have Cervelli, Austin Romane, and Jesus Montero all catching in the minors? Molina is just fine as a back up.

Anonymous said...

Montero won't be a catcher for long, Cervelli has a limited upside in comparison to Miggy Montero, and Romine is still a few years away. Not at all a bad idea to upgrade on Molina.

Anonymous said...

Sign Ivan Rod.

Anonymous said...

With the Yankee's Montero apparently developing nicely, I don't think they should trade for youth.

Anonymous said...

I agree bring back Ivan Rodriguez. I don't think he showed his best last year and might have something left to surprise us with.

Mike B. said...

I'm not surprised that Posada might not be ready by opening day, at least not after speaking with a local "bone doctor" who operated on my knee. In fact, Posada might be cooked as far as throwing in the major leagues goes. Trading Matsui won't upset me, but I also have to say that Molina should work out fine for us. Perhaps he can raise his average a few points, too.

Of course, we'll need a reliable back-up catcher. Now where to get him?....

Mike