Red Sox have interest in veteran catcher
The Boston Red Sox are expressing interest in veteran catcher Martin Maldonado, according to Buster Olney of ESPN. Credit for the initial mention goes to ITalkStudiosYT who posted on X.
Maldonado, 37, has been the Houston Astros starting catcher over the last three season. Offensively, he provides a little pop but is a career .207 hitter. The real value is defensively.
Defensively the Red Sox need improvement up the middle. While it is not viewed as a pressing need, a defensive backup catcher could be a place to upgrade.
Current backup Reese McGuire has a pop time of 1.98 seconds, which is in the 36th percentile. For comparison, Maldonado has a pop time of 1.93 seconds.
Meaning McGuire doesn’t get the ball out of his glove and into his hand as fast. With baseball becoming more atheltic and an emphasis on stolen bases, he struggles when it comes to holding runners on at first.
Maldonado could provide veteran leadership much like David Ross did for the Red Sox when he came to Boston.
Maldonado could act as a mentor in the clubhouse and with current starter, Connor Wong. Alex Cora has always had high praise for Maldonado.
“They (Astros) think ahead. You've got us (Boston) playing the way we're playing. So they decided to get one of the best defensive catchers in the league, and he's been outstanding. And that's the difference." Cora in 2018 reacting to the news of Maldonado being traded to Houston.
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