Cecil's Corner-Seattle Mariners

With the offseason now under way for the Seattle Mariners I would like to go over the roster, position by position and what I think they should do at each position starting with catcher.

John Jaso:

I think we can all agree that Jaso had a very nice season even if it was unexpected. He came to the Mariners in a nondescript trade with the Tampa Bay Rays for Josh Lueke. I thought it was a nice trade at the time because we needed a backup catcher and I have always felt the backup catcher should be a left handed hitter if the starter bats right. Tom Lampkin had a 15 year career as a left handed hitting backup catcher despite being just a career .235 hitter with average defensive skills.

Jaso was by far our most clutch hitter and did a decent job behind the plate. I was surprised it took the Mariners so long to figure out that he was the best catcher for Felix Hernandez because Olivo and Montero had such a difficult time catching Felix’s pitches because they moved so much. I also think Jaso called a good game for the pitching staff as a whole. With that being said though, I think Jaso is best suited as platoon catcher. I think the Mariners gave Jaso just about the right amount of at bats to take advantage of his skill set but with one caveat. With Olivo’s struggles at the plate and Montero getting the bulk of his at bats as DH, It can be reasonably argued that Jaso should have gotten even more at bats. But in an ideal situation, with a legitimate starting catcher (let’s hope Mike Zunino fits that bill soon)  Jaso is best suited as a backup catcher and pinch hitter.

I think the Mariners will and should resign Jaso. Even to a multiyear contract because he still will be a valuable part of the Mariners even after Zunino ultimately takes over as the starting catcher. But for now he should be the main catcher but in a platoon type of situation.

Jesus Montero:

For a 22 year old in his first major league season trying to catch and hit in the middle of a line up, I think Montero did a respectable job.  But if it were up to me that job would be done for him. Unless the Mariners already know he can’t play first then his catching days should be over. I would move him to first base immediately and have him play some winter ball. More on Montero in the upcoming first base breakdown.

Free Agent Catcher:

I would sign the best defensive free agent catcher I could find at a reasonable price. I really believe Zunino will be up sometime next year so we only need a stop gap at catcher. With Jaso and Montero, if they choose to keep him at catcher are below average catchers so a good defensive catcher would be beneficial.