The New York Yankees’ quest to overhaul the catching position may lead to Yadier Molina.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweeted that the New York Yankees were among the teams interested in catcher Yadier Molina. 2021 will mark the 38-year old Molina’s 18th season in the majors.
Future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina has received calls with interest from both the Yankees and Mets plus 3-4 other teams in addition to the #STLCards as I just said on @MLBNetwork St. Louis is the likely favorite but in free agency you never know. Seeks a 2-year deal.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 12, 2020
Molina hit .262 with four homers, 16 RBI and an 81 OPS+ in 42 games last season. His offensive numbers have gone down over the last few years, which is to be expected of a catcher of his age and experience. Molina is nine games shy of becoming the fifth catcher in MLB history to catch 2,000+ games, joining Ivan Rodriguez (2,428), Bob Boone (2,225), Gary Carter (2,056) and Jason Kendall (2,025).
Would signing Molina benefit the Yankees? The club’s catching situation is in turmoil with the deterioration of Gary Sanchez. The former All-Star Sanchez hit .147 in 49 games with the Yankees last season. His .147 AVG was the worst in the majors among all players with at least 150 plate appearances in 2020.
Sanchez has been struggling for a while now. He’s hitting just .208 over his last 162 games. He’s also struck out 198 times over that span. The saving grace–if you can call it that–is his power. Sanchez has 46 homers and 107 RBI in those contests. In other words, you have the offensive equivalent of Adam Dunn behind the plate. He’s not going to hit for a high average. He’s going to strike out. But, when Sanchez connects, runs will be driven in.
Signing an aging, albeit future Hall of Fame, catcher to start over Sanchez is not a good idea. Sanchez is under club control for two more seasons. If the Yankees want to sway Molina from the Cardinals, they’ll have to offer him a multi-year deal.
New York already has Kyle Higashioka lined up as the backup catcher. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was competing with Sanchez for the starting job at the beginning of next season. Higgy already has an edge given his success with Gerrit Cole, as the Yankee ace posted a 1.00 ERA with four games (27 innings) with Higashioka behind the plate last season. Cole had an ERA approaching four in eight games (46 innings) with Sanchez behind the dish.
Some will argue Sanchez could be the designated hitter. Nope. That’s not going to happen. That spot is needed for Giancarlo Stanton and likely Aaron Judge. I could see Sanchez learning to play first base to get some extra at-bats. However, if I’m manager Aaron Boone, there’s no way I’m taking Luke Voit (who led the majors with 22 homers last season) out of the lineup for Sanchez.
Here’s another thing to keep in mind: a lack of revenue coming in due to COVID. The Yankees need to be smart with how they spend their money. Molina could easily get a free agent deal worth more than $20 million over two years. That money needs to be spent elsewhere. Re-signing DJ LeMahieu and adding to the rotation are the first priorities.
Will Sanchez ever turn things around? I don’t know. However, the New York Yankees can’t misuse its money at the moment. Molina is not a priority. Would it be cool to say a Hall of Fame catcher spent time in pinstripes? Sure. But, would it be cool to say signing a third catcher meant the Yankees couldn’t keep LeMahieu or sign Trevor Bauer?
Nope. Not cool at all.