On Wednesday, newly acquired Rod Barajas finally arrived to camp. He signed a one-year deal with the Mets over the weekend and is projected to be the main catcher for the team in 2010.
Last year, with the Toronto Blue Jays, Barajas hit 19 home runs, nine of which were hit in the spacious Rodger Centre. Mets catching only hit 13 in total. But is Barajas good enough to help the team reach the promise land?
In the history of the organization, there have been stellar forces at the catcher position. Names like Gary Carter, Todd Hundley and Mike Piazza once struck terror into the heart of the pitchers. Others like Jerry Grote and Paul Lo Duca guided pitching staffs and came through when the team needed them most. But long gone are those days. These great athletes stand out the most because of memorable moments.
You might have to go back a bit, but Grote was an iron man, catching in all of the games during the 1969 World Series, working with pitchers like Hall of Famer Tom Seaver to shut down the Baltimore Orioles offense. Who can forget how Carter provided some pop for the 86’ Mets? From the mid 1990s to the early part of the millennium, catchers like Hundley and Piazza both provided raw power and anchored the batting lineup with their presence. It also feels like yesterday when Lo Duca tagged out two Dodgers coming to the plate simultaneously (good times!).
Last year, it was simply a mess. Brian Schneider was out much of the season with frequent injuries. The backup Ramon Castro, who did provide thunder off the bench, was traded off to the White Sox. That left rookie Omir Santos to pick up the majority of the workload, playing a career-high 96 games.
Sure, Santos had given some things to watch in an injury riddled season including the Omir-acle against the Red Sox at Fenway. Unfortunately, that’s all that stands out.
It has been three seasons since the Mets last felt the crisp fall breeze of the postseason. It’s also the same amount of time a catcher has not produced significant numbers at the plate. Lo Duca batted .318 in 2006, but that number declined the following year (.258).
It’s also key to point out that the Mets had not been close to the playoffs with a defensive first catcher since Grote and that was only a Miracle (sorry, had to put it in).
But things look bright right now. There is no doubt Barajas will give it all he has for this team. He is also a better option than the other catchers signed at the beginning of the season (Chris Coste and Henry Blanco). Along with David Wright, Jason Bay and Carlos Beltran (when he comes back), he will be a complementary piece offensively that will take some of the pressure off the bigger bats. Since he is batting on the lower half of the lineup, there could be more opportunities to produce. On defense, he is solid. In his career, Barajas has gun down a third of base stealers. Who doesn’t want that on their team?
There’s also something else the 11-year veteran brings to this table. He has worked with one of the best pitchers today…Roy Halladay. Yes, that guy. Who better to sign than your rival’s pitcher’s former catcher? Halladay was traded to the Phillies earlier this offseason. Maybe he knows some secrets to slay the mighty right-hander? Now, he has a chance to work with his fellow Venezuelan, Johan Santana. And of course, maybe he could help the current staff get on the right track.
The Mets were looking to fill a void and they found one, at least until their highly touted prospect Josh Thole can (hopefully) become another face of the franchise. For now, everyone will be waiting until the first pitch to see if Barajas can contribute enough for the Mets to contend. He just cant do it all himself.
0 comments:
Post a Comment