The Twins and Guardians both made moves to shore up their catching positions over the last 24 hours, and it could've been worse.
Just like Matt Olson, last winter's most coveted Oakland A, Sean Murphy made all the sense in the world to shore up a major position of need in Cleveland. Just like Olson, Murphy instead went to Atlanta in a three-team deal that seems more quantity-than-quality for Oakland.
The Guardians then went and signed Mike Zunino for one year and $6 million, and the concern level hinges on which Zunino Cleveland is getting.
The 2021 version hit .216/.301/.559 with 33 homers over 109 games, which was good enough for an All-Star appearance and an MVP vote.
The 2022 version hit .148/.195/.304 with 46 strikeouts over 123 plate appearances before undergoing surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome on his left shoulder, which would mean that Cleveland would merely be replacing one Austin Hedges with a slightly more powerful version.
Zunino looks like a decent stopgap while Cleveland waits to see whether Bo Naylor can become a dependable first-stringer, but there's a chance that it could also amount to nothing. Alas, Cleveland received the second-worst production in the league from the catcher position last year, and that didn't seem to hold them back.
Prior to Cleveland's signing of Zunino, the Minnesota Twins also moved to shore up its catching depth by landing the free agent market's best backstop. They signed Christian Vázquez to a three-year, $30 million contract.
Vázquez hit .274/.315/.399 over 119 games in 2022, with his better work coming with the Red Sox (.282/.327/.432) prior to the deadline deal to Houston (.250/.278/.308). Vázquez didn't make enough of a dent to unseat Martin Maldonado as the Astros' primary catcher, but he represented a major upgrade over the non-Maldonado options and still served enough of a purpose and won his second World Series ring as a result.
Vázquez replaces Gary Sánchez, and while he won't match Sánchez's power, he does everything else better, including hitting right-handed pitching, which means that holdover Ryan Jeffers can be shielded against lefties. The Twins received middle-of-the-pack production from their catchers, and while Vázquez doesn't figure to move that needle, he should reduce some of the Twins' boom-and-bust issues in the lineup.
