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Although a few veteran catchers have already signed this offseason there are several others still available in free agency. While the need for a backup to Willson Contreras isn’t at the top of the Cubs wish list they are looking for one. Now, there are two new catchers available via the trade market and that’s great news for the Cubs.
On Wednesday night, Jeff Passan reported that not only have the Blue Jays talked about trading Russell Martin, but that the Pirates are also considering dealing Francisco Cervelli.
An already-crowded catching market is growing even more saturated, as the Toronto Blue Jays have discussed trading Russell Martin and the Pittsburgh Pirates are open to dealing Francisco Cervelli, league sources told Yahoo Sports. Both are drawing interest from a number of teams.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 29, 2018
Martin, 37, will be in the final year of his contract in 2019 that will net him $20 million. Meanwhile, Cervelli, 34, is also in the final year of his deal that’s set to earn him $11.5 million next season.
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To start off, obviously Cervelli would be the obvious first pick for any team trying to make a trade for either catcher. He’s younger, owed a lot less money and well he’s the better player.
In 2018, Cervelli had a 3.3 fWAR with the Pirates, putting up a 125 wRC+ and .378 OBP in 104 games. So, obviously he would cost more in a trade and at this point the Cubs wouldn’t really make sense as a trade partner with the Pirates. However, him being on the trade market is still good news because hopefully the Pirates deal him out of the division, as he’s been a Cubs killer since signing with Pittsburgh prior to the start of the 2015 season.
This past year Cervelli had a 1.215 OPS in 16 games against the Cubs, hitting four of his 12 home runs against them. So please Pittsburgh, get him out of this division.
You’re probably wondering where Martin fits into the Cubs and although he comes with a big price tag there’s a chance that the Cubs could use this opportunity to get rid of Tyler Chatwood.
The right-handed pitcher for the Cubs was a complete disaster in 2018, and he still has two years left on his deal worth $25.5 million, $12.5 million owed to Chatwood in 2019, $13 million in 2020. But hey, if the Blue Jays are looking for someone to trade bad contracts with, then the Cubs could be an option.
Glad to see Cubs should have lots of options for a quality veteran back-up catcher to add to the mix.
Relatedly, can I interest anyone in a Tyler Chatwood for Russell Martin contract swap? pic.twitter.com/A3Werc4F5M
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) November 29, 2018
At this point it’s just a suggestion, but it could make sense for both sides and who knows, maybe the Cubs can even shed Brian Duensing or Brandon Kintzler’s money in a deal for Martin too.
Martin has made four all-star teams in his career, the last coming in 2015, but obviously he’s not at that level anymore. However, if there’s one thing on offense that he still excels at it’s getting on base. Despite his awful .194 batting average with Toronto in 2018, Martin still managed to post a .338 OBP, drawing 56 walks in 90 games.
So, the Cubs could get their backup veteran, while getting rid of Chatwood and then Martin’s contract is off the books after 2019.
There’s also the chance that other free agent catchers who are still un-signed take a lesser deal because they don’t want to wait and possibly end up with a worse deal by the end of the offseason.
Expect more action to pick up next week, as the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas begin on Dec. 9.
