The Quiet Free Agent Front

Amidst all the news (or lack thereof) of the players who remain unsigned this offseason, there is one player that many people may have forgotten. He has been left out of the news and rumors and yet this player is a sure-thing Hall of Famer. Would it help if I told you this player was a catcher? Putting games aside, the player is Ivan Rodriguez. Take a minute to think about that. I bet most of the people that read this forgot about him and now wonder why he is still available. The answer is complicated and unlucky for a player of his caliber.

First of all, Rodriguez is a bonafide All-Star and future Hall of Famer and could be an upgrade to many teams, regardless of his age. Although Pudge’s (Rodriguez’s nickname) batting average dipped to .276 last season, that number would still be better than two-thirds of the rest of the league’s starting catchers. His career .301 batting average is second in active catchers to Joe Mauer. And to top it off, he is still considered one of the best defensive catchers ever.

So what’s the problem? Well first of all, most teams are content with the catchers that they have. Nobody wants to jeopardize a young man’s chance to play by signing an aging catcher. Secondly, although Pudge has consistently been a great average hitter, he is a free swinger who rarely walks and therefore rarely gets on base via the walk. His on base percentage dipped below .300 twice in the last four years although his average never dropped below .276 in those same four years. So once again, teams would rather see what young talent they have or stick with the veteran they already have.

Pudge needs only 395 more hits to reach the historic 3000th. So it would be sad to see a guy like him go out without a chance. That is why I can see him either prematurely retiring and then signing a midseason deal when a team’s catcher goes down and someone is needed or sign a Minor League deal and try to crack a team’s roster. Either way I hope some team gives Pudge a chance because he could be the first ever full-time catcher to 3000 hits (Craig Biggio has over 3000 as a catcher, second baseman, and outfielder—mainly second base). Now that's something that will make the news.