3/28/15

Positional Rankings - Mets Catchers



#12 Mets

NamePAAVGOBPSLGwOBABatBsRFldWAR
Travis d’Arnaud480.253.312.434.3266.30.0-6.62.6
Anthony Recker128.207.270.360.280-2.8-0.2-0.50.3
Kevin Plawecki32.245.298.364.294-0.40.00.00.1
Total640.244.303.415.3153.2-0.2-7.13.0

Say this about Travis d’Arnaud: He (mostly) stayed healthy in 2014, after missing time in each of the two previous years to left leg injuries. His first full season was generally a success, though it gets a lot more interesting if you look at his first- and second-half splits:
First half: .217/.292/.354 (81 wRC+)
Second half: .265/.313/.474 (124 wRC+)
You can’t simply look at that and presume that what he was in the second half is the player he’ll be going forward, but with Mets fans still reeling from the Zack Wheeler injury, let’s give them something to dream on here. Appropriately, the non-Fan projection systems aren’t going overboard on d’Arnaud, because the others all see him as a ~112 wRC+ guy, which is more than good enough. Anthony Recker is a mere placeholder, but it’s not him that d’Arnaud has to worry about. It’s Kevin Plawecki, who has done nothing but hit his way up the ladder, and reached Triple-A last year. N0. 40 on Kiley McDaniel’s Top 200 list, he should make his big league debut sometime late in 2015, and the Mets may have a decision to make on their long-term future behind the plate next winter.

Mack - Let's face it... the future of Mets catching will make a lot more sense if Arnaud works out as the kind of player he was projected to be as a prospect. 

I believe he has the bat to make it big time, but I'm not sure about the body. He also has more bad luck behind the plate than any catcher I have seen in years. 

Lastly, his almost obsession with framing continues to cause too many passed balls. He needs to keep his eye on the ball being thrown, especially when most of them from this staff are over 90 miles per hour.

I love the potential of Plawecki, but, in my book, this is d'Arnaud's job in 2015... and, if he plays his cards right, well past that date.

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