Lo Duca traded to Mets (Done Deal)

[goonys evil twin]

That is because he is not a good catcher. He is a decent hitter for a catcher though.

Behind the plate he sets up too late' date=' he hops around, he has bad footwork, and an inaccurate arm. I can't fault him for his pitch calling as I don't know if he calls the pitches.[/quote']

 

He was the best hitting catcher in the NL, Id say thats a little better than "decent".

 

Three things: Using just last year to define a hitter is not wise. While he did have the best numbers in the NL, he did so without enough PA to qualify, which takes away some value (ie. he's not a franchise catcher). There are multiple AL catchers who are better.

 

Only 7 catchers in baseball qualified. That's not a huge indictment IMO. Setting 300 PA's as a benchmark, Barrett was 3rd in MLB in Catcher OPS.

 

And, just using last year is a mistake, plus, his OPS relies very heavily on SLG, whereas he's a little lower on the list for OBP. He's a good hitting catcher, but he's not the best out there, or significantly better than guys right behind him. And, his defense negates some value.

 

But I would say he's better than LoDuca.

[Keener98]

That is because he is not a good catcher. He is a decent hitter for a catcher though.

Behind the plate he sets up too late' date=' he hops around, he has bad footwork, and an inaccurate arm. I can't fault him for his pitch calling as I don't know if he calls the pitches.[/quote']

 

He was the best hitting catcher in the NL, Id say thats a little better than "decent".

 

Three things: Using just last year to define a hitter is not wise. While he did have the best numbers in the NL, he did so without enough PA to qualify, which takes away some value (ie. he's not a franchise catcher). There are multiple AL catchers who are better.

 

Only 7 catchers in baseball qualified. That's not a huge indictment IMO. Setting 300 PA's as a benchmark, Barrett was 3rd in MLB in Catcher OPS.

 

And, just using last year is a mistake, plus, his OPS relies very heavily on SLG, whereas he's a little lower on the list for OBP. He's a good hitting catcher, but he's not the best out there, or significantly better than guys right behind him. And, his defense negates some value.

 

But I would say he's better than LoDuca.

 

Fair enough Gooney, I just thought the notion that Barrett was "decent" like was stated was real unfair to Barretts offensive game. I know he has flaws, but I think he also still has room to improve. While I agree he's not a franchise catcher, but like you stated there aren't very many of them around.