2012 MLB Free Agents: Pirates Sign Rod Barajas
By Editorial Staff
The Pittsburgh Pirates signed catcher Rod Barajas to a one year contract this afternoon. Barajas will make $4 million next season and the deal includes a $3.5 million team option for 2013. With the signing, Pirates general manager Neal Huntington confirmed that Barajas will become Pittsburgh’s primary backstop in 2012.
Entering the offseason, catcher was one of the areas of needs for the Pirates. Before players hit the open market, Pittsburgh elected to decline options that would have brought back veteran backstops Ryan Doumit and Chris Snyder.
According to Barajas, the Pirates “were aggressive” in their pursuit of him. Even though he had offers from several other clubs, Barajas chose Pittsburgh because he said they “showed that they wanted me to be a part of the team”. For Barajas being wanted “is huge”.
While the Pirates have tabbed Barajas as their everyday option behind the plate, they do realize that they will have to be careful with the 36-year-old. Huntington said that the club is “going to have to make sure we monitor his workload and put him in position to be successful”. In Huntington’s eyes, “that’s why the number two catcher is going to be important”.
Barajas offers the Pirates some power from their catcher position, as he’s hit at least 16 home runs over the past three seasons. In 2011, Barajas hit at a clip of .230/.287/.430 in his 98 games with the Dodgers.
The one year deal was key for the Pirates because they have top prospect Tony Sanchez waiting in the wings. Sanchez spent the entire 2011 season with the Pirates’ Double-A affiliate and the club is hoping the 23-year-old will join the big league team in the next year or two.
For more on the Pirates, be sure to check out Rum Bunter.
You can check out all of the available free agents by position below.