Article: The Blue Jays Need a Backup Catcher: There’s Still a Good One Available

[Jesse Burrill]

Backup catcher is a position of need for the Blue Jays, and with Yasmani Grandal available, it's not too late to fix it.

If Saturday's spring training game debut is any indicator, Alejandro Kirk is set up for a big season. He ended his day 1-for-2 with an RBI and did some very impressive things with the bat. In his first plate appearance, he fell behind, 1-2, then drove a Carlos Rodón changeup into left field (missing out on a hit due to a nice defensive play). In his second at-bat, Kirk got ahead, 3-0, then roped a 93-mph fastball into left for an RBI single, scoring Bo Bichette and knocking Rodón out of the game.

The exit velocities on his two plate appearances were phenomenal: 109.6 mph off the bat in the first and 110.4 in the second, the two highest exit velocities in the game. In fact, those two numbers would have ranked second and fourth respectively out of Kirk's batted balls during the 2024 season. Kirk delivered once again on Tuesday, knocking another hard-hit RBI single up the middle against the Cardinals:

There is no question about Kirk's importance for the Blue Jays this season, but the team will need more than one catcher. Last season Kirk led the team in games at the position with 103. That number was 123 in 2023. That's a heavy workload, and expecting it from him for three years in a row is a tall order.

The role of a backup catcher is very challenging. They’ve got to know the pitching staff inside and out just like the starter catcher, but with minimum reps. They also have to prepare and plan for other teams just like the starting pitchers. On top of that, leadership skills and the ability to contribute to the team when called up are also important. As a team, the Blue Jays value defence highly, especially up the middle, and the catchers are no different. Danny Jansen was known as a hitting prospect coming through the pipeline, and the Blue Jays sharpened his defence as he became a regular big leaguer. The same is true for Kirk, a bat-first prospect who developed into one of the best framers in the game. The Blue Jays do not have good options at backup catcher.

As things currently stand, Tyler Heineman is projected to be the team's primary backup, but even for a backup catcher, Heinemann is not that exciting an option. He has a career OPS of just .571. Even as a decent defender and framer, it's unlikely we want to run with the now 33-year-old for an extended period of time. The other options the Blue Jays have for their backup catcher spot include Ali Sanchez and Christian Bethancourt, both of whom are in camp on minor-league deals, and neither of whom have ever shown the ability to hit. Sanchez has a career OPS of just .438 and although he is a good blocker, the defence is just okay. Bethancourt's career .621 OPS doesn't feel much better, and although the former pitcher has an incredible arm, he's not much of a framer.  If Kirk gets hurt or underperforms, the Blue Jays will be giving significant playing time to these options. Even if Kirk stays healthy and productive, one of these players will be catching at least 40 games, creating a giant black hole in the lineup.

It's not too late for the Blue Jays to fill this backup role with a catcher who has veteran experience, is an elite framer, and in a perfect world, can hit left-handed to help against a tough right-handed pitcher. Out of the remaining free-agent catchers, Yasmani Grandal might make a lot of sense. Grandal's best skill behind the plate is his framing ability. According to Baseball Savant, he’s 86th percentile in framing, and according to Baseball Prospectus in 2024 he ranked:

• Seventh in Called Strikes Above Average
• 10th in framing runs
• 10th in Deserved runs prevented

Grandal did all of this while hitting from both sides of the plate, swatting nine home runs and running a .704 OPS (.987 OPS after the All-Star break). His barrel rate (9.8%) and hard-hit rate (42.8%) were much improved from his time with the White Sox, and he did all of this while sharing time at catcher with the Pirates. 

Grandal is far from a perfect player. If he were, he’d cost a lot more money and would be signed by now, He’s got a poor throwing arm, is a candidate for one of the slowest base runners in baseball, and, going into his age-37 season, his peak years as a perennial five-win player are behind him. But having to rely on extended periods from Sanchez/Bethancourt/Heinemann would be a recipe for disaster, especially for a team whose offence underperformed last season. Grandal isn't perfect, but he could be had for cheap on a short-term deal, and anything but his worst-case projection would make him a significant upgrade over these options.

Upgrading at catcher would help the Blue Jays raise their floor, but, crucially for a team that projections see as somewhat unlikely to make the playoffs, it could also raise their ceiling quite a bit. One thing is for sure: there still may be a move or two to be made for the Blue Jays between now and Opening Day. Adding Grandal's framing ability would make the Blue Jays better. 

View full article

[Brownie19]

I'm all for adding Grandal.  Great to see Kirk pounding the ball so far in the spring.  It would be such a pleasant surprise if he could return to a 115+ wRC+ hitter and would re-establish himself as one of the best young catchers in baseball.  That .270/.350/.410 slash line steamers projects would be such a boost to this lineup.

[Orgfiller]

Grandal is a great option, but I fear his throwing woes are a legitimate reason as to why teams are shying away from him now that the running game is a big aspect once more. He was in the 1st percentile for pop time and CS Above Avg last season, and has been horrendous at this aspect going back to 2022. Really the only aspect you can anticipate him being good at is his framing, as his blocking has varied from playable to downright awful these last few years.

Of course, beggars can't be choosers, a switch hitter with enough bat still left to play, over a decade of catching experience and respect from his peers would make for an ideal backup to Kirk, one that can speak Spanish at that. The remaining options in free agency are extremely bleak.

[Terminator]

He'd be a great add over the turds we've got. He might add close to a WAR for 5 mil or so?

The problem is that he's probably good enough to start close to 100 games. We've got a great Catcher already so he'd be looking at 40 games. So I think he'll probably look elsewhere.

[Brownie19]

8 minutes ago, Terminator said:

He'd be a great add over the turds we've got. He might add close to a WAR for 5 mil or so?

The problem is that he's probably good enough to start close to 100 games. We've got a great Catcher already so he'd be looking at 40 games. So I think he'll probably look elsewhere.

I can't imagine anyone is giving him a starting role - unless they are hit by the injury bug in spring training.  He might be holding out to see if that happens.  But I agree, there are probably better situations for him around baseball - teams with more clear paths to playing time.

[Brock Beauchamp]

2 hours ago, Orgfiller said:

He was in the 1st percentile for pop time and CS Above Avg last season

Well, I guess 1 out of 100 guys have to be, but... yikes.

[Orgfiller]

49 minutes ago, Terminator said:

He'd be a great add over the turds we've got. He might add close to a WAR for 5 mil or so?

The problem is that he's probably good enough to start close to 100 games. We've got a great Catcher already so he'd be looking at 40 games. So I think he'll probably look elsewhere.

I think he's too old and past his prime to realistically warrant a starting/part-time starting gig. Then again, he's still a free agent so maybe you've correctly identified why he remains unsigned this late into the offseason.

He just made 1/$2.5M playing for the Pirates, but following a bounceback season of sorts for them I'd probably be willing to go to $4-5M for a one year deal.

[Terminator]

I'm literally getting tarred and feathered over suggesting Grandal could start 100 games

[Brock Beauchamp]

1 hour ago, Terminator said:

I'm literally getting tarred and feathered over suggesting Grandal could start 100 games

Literally?

Where do people even find tar nowadays? It's 2025, for crying out loud.

Link plz

[Brownie19]

26 minutes ago, Brock Beauchamp said:

Literally?

Where do people even find tar nowadays? It's 2025, for crying out loud.

Link plz

 

[jaysblue]

Last season Grandal got 215 AB's in 72 games with the Pirates. Think he got some time on the IL, but even when he got back, with the emergence of Joey Bart, he was still kind of in a part-time role. 

I think he would sign somewhere to catch 30-40% of the time, and get his 250-300 or so AB's. Like some others have said, he likely doesn't sign anywhere as a starter, unless a team loses their No. 1 catcher to injury. 

As for Kirk, can he catch 130-140 games per season? I think it's a good idea to have a reliable partner with him in order to keep him fresh. Having Kirk start 110-120 games behind the plate seems more reasonable. Plus, bringing in Grandal allows you to use Kirk at DH, let's say if his bat reverts back to his 2022 form. 

[max silver]

6 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

Last season Grandal got 215 AB's in 72 games with the Pirates. Think he got some time on the IL, but even when he got back, with the emergence of Joey Bart, he was still kind of in a part-time role. 

I think he would sign somewhere to catch 30-40% of the time, and get his 250-300 or so AB's. Like some others have said, he likely doesn't sign anywhere as a starter, unless a team loses their No. 1 catcher to injury. 

As for Kirk, can he catch 130-140 games per season? I think it's a good idea to have a reliable partner with him in order to keep him fresh. Having Kirk start 110-120 games behind the plate seems more reasonable. Plus, bringing in Grandal allows you to use Kirk at DH, let's say if his bat reverts back to his 2022 form. 

I believe the stated plan for Kirk was to have him start in the range of 120 games this season.

[Delete_My_Account_Thanks]

I'm down for Grandal.  I think he'd be a perfect addition

[Jonn]

Really don’t think Grandal moves the needle at all. Probably should just roll with Bethancourt.

[BatFlip]

3 hours ago, Terminator said:

I'm literally getting tarred and feathered over suggesting Grandal could start 100 games

Deservedly so!

[jaysblue]

55 minutes ago, Jonn said:

Really don’t think Grandal moves the needle at all. Probably should just roll with Bethancourt.

Nobody is saying he would move the needle, but would be a nice second option behind the plate and you might be able to squeeze 1 WAR out of him for $2-3M. Plus, he's a switch hitter, which is nice to have off the bench. 

[max silver]

4 hours ago, Terminator said:

I'm literally getting tarred and feathered over suggesting Grandal could start 100 games

That doesn't feel very realistic as he's maxed out at 92 starts in a single year in the last 5 seasons.

[max silver]

16 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

Nobody is saying he would move the needle, but would be a nice second option behind the plate and you might be able to squeeze 1 WAR out of him for $2-3M. Plus, he's a switch hitter, which is nice to have off the bench. 

I think the biggest benefit for a Grandal signing would be adding depth to cover for Kirk if he were to miss any time due to injury. It's maybe passable to run a guy like Heinemann as backup catcher, but if he's forced into starting and the team is forced to use the depth guys in any capacity the catching situation gets pretty ugly in a hurry.

[Pendleton]

The only issue would be a Kirk injury, as mentioned we wouldn't want to run with Heineman/Sanchez for an extended period. 

If you are getting 100-120 games from Kirk, the "upgrade" over Heineman for the remaining 40-60+ games might not be worth the cost.

For what it's worth, Zips projects Heineman at 0.9 WAR in 63 games, and Grandal at 1.5 WAR in 88 games. 

Steamer projects Heineman at 0.5 WAR in 33 games, and Grandal 0.8 in 41 games. 

 

[Terminator]

22 minutes ago, Pendleton said:

The only issue would be a Kirk injury, as mentioned we wouldn't want to run with Heineman/Sanchez for an extended period. 

If you are getting 100-120 games from Kirk, the "upgrade" over Heineman for the remaining 40-60+ games might not be worth the cost.

For what it's worth, Zips projects Heineman at 0.9 WAR in 63 games, and Grandal at 1.5 WAR in 88 games. 

Steamer projects Heineman at 0.5 WAR in 33 games, and Grandal 0.8 in 41 games. 

 

Wow! Hiney-man has better projections than I realized. In his limited time he does have some good defensive ratings. Would hate to watch him hit over an extended period of time though.

[John_Havok]

1 hour ago, Terminator said:

Wow! Hiney-man has better projections than I realized. In his limited time he does have some good defensive ratings. Would hate to watch him hit over an extended period of time though.

Heine and Grandal are like 2 sides of a coin. One can hit but is gross defensively (especially the arm) the other is great defensively and putrid with the stick. 

Rolling with the D guy is probably the play with the running game coming back 

[Spanky99]

I know jaysblue and I wanted Grandal months ago after Jansen signed, I'm down for some Yasmani, bring it.