Atlanta Braves: R.A. Dickey May Have New Personal Catcher in Kurt Suzuki
With his move to the Atlanta Braves this offseason, R.A. Dickey is looking for a new personal catcher. Will it be Kurt Suzuki?
With their signing of R.A. Dickey this past November, the Atlanta Braves are hoping he can dominate the NL East again as he did during his Cinderella run in 2014 that culminated in a Cy Young award.
On Monday, Dickey made his spring training debut for the Braves, giving up two runs (one earned) over two innings. He gave up two hits, walked a batter and struck out two. But most importantly, there were no passed balls in the box score. Kurt Suzuki did his job.
Getting Comfortable
With Tyler Flowers in camp as the incumbent starter for the Braves, Suzuki was given the first start this spring behind the plate with Dickey on the bump. And although he went 1-for-4 with five men left on base, the takeaway from the game was that he was comfortable behind the plate.
In a post-game interview with Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Suzuki felt good about his first game action. “You know you’re going to mess up every once in a while, but we’ll see,” he said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
The Challenge
Catching Dickey’s knuckleball is a difficult task. So much so that Dickey single-handedly kept Josh Thole in the major leagues for the past four seasons in Toronto. (Thole hit .200 over four seasons in Toronto and was second in the majors with 17 passed balls in 2016.) But Thole isn’t in Atlanta, and the Braves’ hope is that either Suzuki or Flowers can master the art of catching the knuckleball before the games start counting.
Suzuki signed with the Braves on January 30 after spending the past three seasons in Minnesota where he was an All-Star in 2014. With 10 years of big league experience and over 1,100 games behind the dish, Suzuki has a lot to offer the Braves and their young roster. He does not strike out a lot (only 153 strikeouts in his last 1,230 at-bats) and can drive in runs when called upon (160 over the past three seasons), making him a serviceable player for the Braves.
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But at 32 years old, the Braves brought in Suzuki to rest Flowers on a regular basis, and that rest can come every five days when Mr. Dickey is due to start.
The opportunity to make an impact is there; Suzuki just needs to keep up his end of the bargain.