Who will Catch Felix on Opening Day?
Plenty of speculation suggests Rob Johnson and Adam Moore will platoon behind the home plate in Seattle come April. Inviting five other catchers to spring training suggests the platoon may not be set in stone just yet. Adam Moore is obviously the strongest candidate for everyday catcher of the Seattle future, but he's going to have to hit well in spring training if the future starts in April 2010. His statistically insignificant at bats in 2009 make it difficult to draw any strong conclusions about a 2010 performance, but Moore stuck out at twice the rate of his overall minor league performance in his brief visit to Seattle.
There's a strong possibilty the M's will break camp feeling like Moore needs a little more time with the Rainiers before finding a more permanent role at Safeco. And we certainly can't rule out the possibility that Johnson's three surgeries will result in a more limited role early in the season. One of the insurance players invited to spring training just might end up sharing the starting role.
Here's how the five non-roster invites break down:
Josh Bard is certainly the most likely platoon for Rob Johnson. While Bard's ability to throw out runners is in decline from where he was in his first few seasons (down to 20% from an early career 37%), he remains the strongest candidate both behind the plate and in the batter's box. Bard is a switch hitter, making him a worthy counterpart to Johnson's bat on the right side of the plate. While Bard hasn't spent much time at Safeco in his career, he has hit .308 based on 44 plate appearances.
Eliezer Alfonzo throws out base runners with more consistency than Bard, but that's about the strongest case you can make for the guy. Alfonzo is more likely to allow passed balls than Bard. While Bard hasn't hit well since 2007, Alfonzo has never really taken to big league pitching, striking out in 27% of plate appearances. That doesn't make him AL reigning strikeout leader Jack Cust, but Alfonzo also doesn't have Cust's run production.
Luis Oliveros spent 9 seasons in the Mariners' minor league system, finally cracking the AAA level and playing a few games with the Tacoma Rainiers in 2008. During 2009 spring training Oliveros tore the ACL in his left knee while running, forcing him to sit out all of 2009. He's back in camp this year, with an outside shot at cracking the Mariners starting roster and will likely wind up in Tacoma if he demonstrates he can still play.
Guillermo Quiroz is the third catcher from Venezuela at camp with the Mariners in 2010, along with Eliezer Alfonzo and Luis Oliveros. While he does have some playing time with the Orioles in 2008 and a brief stint in Seattle during May 2009, Quiroz is a guy who is more likely to strike out than get a hit. Unless Quiroz spent the winter in batting practice, expect to see Quiroz either in Tacoma or returning to West Tennessee.
Steven Baron, who the Mariners drafted #33 in the first round of the 2009 draft, is unlikely to see any playing time in Seattle this year. He's got some adjusting to do after hitting .179 and striking out 38 times in 116 plate appearances in the Appalachian League. Baron is only 19 so he's got time to develop. It's not unthinkable that he might play in Everett before the season is out.
Obviously some of these guys are in camp to provide a target for the pitchers to get throwing time in. Seeing Bard recapture some of his previous hitting ability or Moore breaking out of camp with the same bat that's propelled him through the minors would be a welcome departure from what has become one of the more unpredicatable slots in the batting order.
