The Blue Jays have an enviable crop of talented catchers and are expected to use one of them in a trade this offseason, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
It’s been speculated for quite some time that the Blue Jays will have to move on from a catcher eventually, given their various options. Danny Jansen, Alejandro Kirk and Gabriel Moreno are all MLB-caliber backstops with varying degrees of experience. Since most teams are lucky to even have one good catcher, let alone three, it’s fairly logical to think they might consider dealing one of them to address another part of the roster. Last offseason, Toronto’s catching mix came up often in offseason chatter and it has only gotten more crowded since then.
Despite the numbers of options available, there were good reasons they didn’t pull the trigger on a deal a year ago. At the end of 2021, Gabriel Moreno was considered one of the top prospects in baseball but only had three Triple-A games on his résumé. Alejandro Kirk had an exciting debut in 2020 but was limited by injury to just 60 games in 2021. Danny Jansen, the longest-tenured of the bunch, also missed significant time in 2021, only getting into 70 contests. Given there was some uncertainty with each of their three choices, it made sense to take a wait-and-see approach.
Here in 2022, Moreno added 62 more Triple-A games, hitting .315/.386/.420 for a wRC+ of 120. He also got into 25 big league contests and produced a .319/.356/.377 line with a 113 wRC+ while looking strong on defense, including throwing out 7 of 17 attempted base stealers. Kirk stayed off the IL and got into 139 games. In that time, he hit .285/.372/.415 for a wRC+ of 129 while also posting 9 Defensive Runs Saved and a 7.6 from the FanGraphs framing metric. Jansen still dealt with injuries and only got into 72 games, though he hit a tremendous 15 home runs in that time and slashed .260/.339/.516 for a wRC+ of 140. His defensive marks were also generally strong, allowing him to post 2.6 fWAR despite playing less than half of the team’s games.
If the Jays felt they had enough catching to consider a trade a year ago, the circumstances have only pushed them further towards that conclusion since then. The only question will be which of the group to move on from. Jansen got a cup of coffee in 2018 but established himself as a regular in 2019 by getting into 107 games. His bat was below average but he provided 12 DRS and earned an 8.1 from the FanGraphs framing metric. His bat has continued evolving in the following seasons, though that has come with durability concerns. Due to the pandemic-shortened season in 2020 and two straight years of injury disruptions, he hasn’t played more than 72 games in a single season since 2019. He also only has two remaining years of club control and is projected for a $3.7MM arbitration salary in 2023 by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
Kirk and Moreno are each still in their pre-arb years, with the Jays still having four years of club control over Kirk and six over Moreno. That extra cheap control surely makes them more appealing to the Jays in the long term but it would also lead to greater returns in any trade talks. Various teams will likely be considering upgrades behind the plate this winter, including the Astros, Cardinals, Tigers, Cubs, Brewers, Diamondbacks, Twins, Guardians, Pirates, Red Sox and Rays. Some of those teams will look to free agency, with Willson Contreras the top of the market. However, he will surely require a significant contract as well as draft pick forfeiture, since he will undoubtedly receive and reject a qualifying offer from the Cubs. There will be other options available, such as Christian Vázquez, Gary Sánchez, Tucker Barnhart and more, though those players are all older than the trio on Toronto’s roster and will likely earn higher salaries on the open market.
Regardless of how the Jays ultimately decide to play it, this catching surplus might be their best path towards improving the club this offseason. As recently explored by MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk as part of the Offseason Outlook series, the Jays are already slated for a franchise-record payroll, even before making any moves. A few non-tenders could drop that number a bit and ownership could greenlight some extra spending, but it’s possible that the Jays aren’t positioned for huge free agent strikes this winter. If that is indeed the case, a trade centered around one of their backstops could be the ticket to improving the roster for 2023.
Starting pitching will likely be an area of focus for the club, with Ross Stripling departing via free agency and Hyun Jin Ryu set to miss at least part of the season due to Tommy John surgery. They will still have a strong front two in Alek Manoah and Kevin Gausman but then a group of guys coming off down years in José Berrios, Yusei Kikuchi and Mitch White. Finding starting pitchers that are both cheap and good is generally quite difficult to do, but the Jays look to be in good position to turn to the trade market instead.
Cardinals should try to get either Murphy, Moreno or Melendez
Moreno for Gorman. Cardinals get their catcher, and the Jays get a lefty bat. And maybe the Jays can figure out what else to offer to get Burleson in the deal.
blue jays probably throws in something more cause they have little leverage
The Jays have leverage if anything, they have 2 and arguably 3 catchers that are better then all but maybe 1 Fa plus they can play them all. Kirk/Jano C/DH Moreno is 2b/3b and OF in if they really need it
Where do you play Gorman? Chapmen is better defensively at 3rd. Gorman is a below avg 2nd baseman.
I’d prefer to get Jordan Walker for Moreno if possible.
The Cards didn’t trade Walker for Soto, so they are gonna trade him for a catcher? Just give us Moreno for free if we’re saying things simply to say things.
Listen, I’m no expert, but there are people who are prospect experts that rate Moreno as a better prospect than Walker (Keith Law and Fangraphs for example). I see you also prefer Carlson to Kirk or Moreno. That’s fine and certainly your/the Cardinals choice, but it seems you’re in love your guys a little too much.
junior felix;
Have you ever done a study of the success rate of projections by Keith Law and Fangraphs?
Samuel;
I have not.
I would like to find out what Walker is first and foremost before trading him. Secondly, I prefer to keep Carlson as he’s the only competent CF on the roster. If the Jay’s would like to talk Libby, Gorman, Yepez or Burleson I would be all ears.
Carlson and gorman for Moreno, Mitch white and or Jordan Romano
Not sure how trading Romano makes sense for the Jays.
Lol I was just thinking of jays pitchers
Lopez from the Marlins would match with the Jays here.
For Moreno or Kirk as a centerpiece, absolutely
NO they need to get rid of Jansen not Kirk and Moreno. Kirk Moreno are both better defensively and offensively plus the Blue Jays like to DH Kirk meaning Moreno would be the better choice behind the plate.
Keeping Jansen would not help the pitching and he is essentially Gary Sanchez so do as the Yankees did and get rid of him.
Ugh. Jansen is not Sanchez. Sanchez only produced 0.9 bwar in 471 PA and Jansen produced 2.9 bwar in 248 PA so you need to stop with that erroneous comparison.
Using just WAR as your only stat to compare is not a good argument but your right he is not comparable to Gary Sanchez…….he is worse. Comparing multiple years, offensively, Sanchez has a fair bit more power and provides a bit more with the bat but with a few more strike outs. Defensively they are about the same….maybe a slight advantage to Sanchez as he commits a few less errors and less catcher interference in more opportunities and has an advantage on pitch framing but neither are good defensively.
iron;
For the Jays…yes.
For the Marlins…no.
The Marlins have a catcher that does a great job handling that staff….which was a big reason the staff did so well in 2022 (I have doubts any of the 3 Jays catchers could do that well with them).
If the Marlins trade Lopez they want more offense and they want a player that can defend in CF. It can be a multi-player trade; but Lope is a prize and they’re not giving him up to fix something that works fine.
I’m sorry and will try to stay off of here at this time of year.
It’s just that almost all trade proposals are made to benefit one team, when the other team is not getting back what they want when giving up a quality player. No way do teams make trades that are one-sided. People that get high positions in front offices are not stupid.
Gurriel and Jansen for Lopez and Jesus Sanchez, and maybe Jacob Stallings.
Idk what fantasy baseball trade you’re auto accepting. Huge overpay for the marlins.
I disagree. The Marlins need hitters. They’d get a good one in Gurriel (he had a down season due to a wrist issue) and a good power bat at catcher (Jansen has nearly a .500 SLG over the past two seasons).
Meanwhile, Miami would be trading from a surplus of pitching, and Sanchez has struggled to establish himself and could benefit from a change.
Both teams would be better.
Miami would be able to do better
Chapman can’t hit. Just use this year to make Moreno a third baseman and keep all three. Kirk is too fat to be an everyday catcher, and Jansen is too good to trade.
I don’t know if that’s true. I mean, not that he’s fat – he is. But he must be pretty nimble behind the plate, since he grades out well defensively.
Kirk does a decent job behind the plate two times a week. My opinion is that if you try to push it with him behind the plate, its going to be detrimental for him. He’s a 23 yr old professional athlete and looks like that… yeesh. How much would a team seriously give up for him? Jansen is a true catcher and has a decent bat. Moreno looks good too… this is Chapman’s last year – why would Toronto pay $20M/yr in ’24 and beyond for a 3rd baseman with a .750 OPS? Moreno has a rocket for an arm and might be an above average 3rd baseman, who makes the league minimum for a couple years, and i believe could easily replicate Chapman’s .750 OPS. Whatever, it was just an opinion
Chapman can’t hit? Please elaborate.
I got this. 119 career OPS+. 25+ home runs /year. But if that isn’t good enough, Gold Glove defense.
Chapman had a 115OPS+ last year. He can hit fine, and plays terrific defense.
As a Jay’s fan, I’d be ok with trading Jansen or Kirk, but not Moreno. Kirk can get by now, but isn’t likely to be able to stand up to the rigors of catching long term with that body. He ran out of juice in the second half last year, which is not unusual for young players, especially catchers, but he played 51 of his 139 games at DH. I’m worried that he wont be able to stay healthy/ productive as he ages.
Just as a reference Santiago Espinal has what “some” consider a perfect body but he could not stand up to the rigors of everyday playing and he has been around longer than Kirk so what makes you think Kirk’s body type won’t last?
5’8″ and 265 isn’t fat. It’s “stocky”.
I’m not fat. Momma told me I’m just big boned.
My Mom said she’s never seen a fat skeleton
Just cause your big doesn’t mean you are not athletic, quick or nimble.
Well Billy Beane is pissed
Would love to snag one but we’ll get outbid.
O’Hoppe looks to be the goods. Stassi is on his last leg, and there’s no help in AAA.
We can’t even get ONE?!????
They’ll only deal one.
Sheesh. Welp. How is Posey feeling these days?
Halo, O’Hoppe is definitely legit. I was pissed that we couldn’t keep him out of any deadline deals this year. He’ll be hitting you 25+ bombs a year sometime in the near future.
I’m very excited about him. On the flip side I was bummed to lose Marsh.
Hopefully this trade is great for everyone.
We can’t even get ONE?!????
==========================
Why would you want one? It makes no sense to have one catcher under contract, have a second catching prospect that you like, and then want to trade away prospects to obtain a 3rd catcher to squeeze away PAs from the other two catchers.
JoeBrady, stop nitpicking my effing comments you have been doing it for days now! Bug someone else!
JoeBrady, on 2nd thought…You are a bonafide turd and you are now getting muted. Adios!
Mets fan here… PLEASE GIVE US ONE OF YOUR CATCHERS!!!
Hey!!! Halos asked 1st!!!
I think trading Kirk is the way to go. His value is very good with the year he had. Jansen has to stay cuz of his defense and Moreno is just to good to be traded. They should definitely explore a trade w/ the marlins for Lopez
I would agree, but he was Manoah’s personal catcher this season. I’m sure they trust their ace to replicate his season with someone else but they might not want to mess with that.
What defense for Jansen? He is the worst defensive catcher of the three.
Game calling is a big part of catching and not reflective in defensive metrics
Not saying it’s accurate but that’s what someone in the jays front office would tell you about what they like about Jano
Jansen is a terrible game caller from what I have seen when watching the games and he has zero ability to adjust during a game ….if you want stats that support this there are some but pick a site and look at them and they show he is not great. Also he does not get pitchers as deep into games as some of the other option the Blue Jays have used.
Be sure to include Kikuchi in any trade package for said catcher.
That would nullify the return.
Cardinals and the Jays have been able to reach deals quite a few times. Would love to see Mozalak send Dylan Carlson for Kirk. Maybe Carlson and Hudson can get it done.
Carlson’s value >>> Kirk
I’ve watched almost every game Carlson he played in the majors and no, he’s not. He’ll be lucky to ever be as good as Colby Rasmus which is a little ironic because we shipped Colby to TOR as well. The Cardinals have a equal to Carlson, he is nothing special.
Who exactly plays CF if the Cards deal Carlson? There is like 1 FA that is acceptable at the position. Nimmo. That’s it. He’s gonna cost more than he’s worth because he’s the only one. I’m all for doing a deal with Toronto, but not for the only player on the roster that can be an (almost) every day CF currently. CF is a barren wasteland these days. Love the Jay’s catchers, but not that much.
O’Neil is very capable of playing CF if he can stay healthy. Nootbar and Walker are both CF capable as well.
Walker is just now learning the OF. No way he can play CF. O’Neill is much better suited to a corner OF spot. Maybe Nootbar, but once again Carlson has at least proved he’s capable there. I dont see the Cards dealing him.
Pay more attention. O’Niell has 167 innings(20 starts) in CF and has a perfect 1.000 fielding %.
If healthy, and that is a big if, O’Neill is a Gold Glove caliber LF. Why would you want to move him? 20 innings not enough to say he could hold his own every day in CF. Listen I’m not some huge Carlson supporter, I’m a supporter of having at least 1 every day CF on the roster. There are a ton of other positions we could trade from to get a deal done.
Be ok if Tigers dealt from their pitching depth to pick up a young talented catcher.
I agree they need to look for some help. Not necessarily these three in particular. It’s unfortunate how big of question mark Jake Rogers is.
Haase isn’t the best, but he brings something to this team night after night, that is greatly appreciated. I enjoy listening to his interviews, he has so much passion and love for this team and the game
Danny Jansen you are a Detroit tiger!
Mets need to trade for Kirk just so we can see him and Voglebach on the same team!!
This is the way. Only need to change two letters on the jerseys to make them the “New York Fats”
Jansen, Biggio, Bichette, Kikuchi, Orlevis Martinez, and Irv Carter for Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff from Milwaukee.
Jays sign Swanson to replace Bichette.
Thoughts?
@Moose, my first reaction was to comment and call you crazy for thinking Kikuchi wouldn’t entirely drag down the value of the Brewers return. So I checked trade values and oddly enough the returns are within roughly 2 points. The only issue is, you’d likely have to overpay Swanson to head North and it’s still not a guarantee he’d sign so you’d be out Bichette, out Martinez and stuck with Espinal at SS.
I wouldn’t make the trade until Swanson signs and I don’t think it would be a huge overpay probably 20ish million a year
Trade values is a joke.
If I were Mil, I’d hang up.
Biggio is marginal at best for $3M, and Kikuchi is pretty bad. So combine Biggio, Kikuchi and Jansen, and their combined bWAR is 2.7 for $19M. The entire package is about a net -0-.
Carter is a low-end prospect. So that makes it 3 years of a quite good Bichette, plus a good, but not great prospect, for two years each of two top-tier S{s.
In addition, since Mil already has a superior SS, why would they be interested in Bichette?
I posted that before they picked the option up on Wong so probably not gonna happen now. They would have moved Bichette to 2B, Biggio plays LF and Yelich moves to CF. Also with the ban on the shift this year Biggio will probably be a better hitter.
This front office can’t trade it way out of wet paper bag with out getting the bag back in a deal. Look at the groshans trade. Can both Shapiro and Atkins neither know how to win.
It’s a very difficult decision. One that you could potentially regret big time in a couple years if you trade the wrong guy. Kirk to me was the most lethal bat in the blue jays lineup. He doesn’t chase outside of the zone and can hit to all fields. The young stars (Guerrero, Bichette) at times chase anything outside of the zone which makes opposing pitchers game plan all that much easier. Kirk is a nightmare at the plate for opposing pitchers. Moreno could turn out to be the same thing but only superior on defence. I’d way rather trade Jansen even if it’s only for a lock down bullpen piece. I love the guy but the other two are just too good of hitters to let go.
BlueJ’sAllDay;
Everything I’ve read, and what little I’ve seen of Moreno is that his defense and running a game abilities are not there yet, and may never be. Furthermore, he may be switched to another position – primarily 1B or DH.
But the thing is this – I’ve been reading that the Jays would trade one of those 3 for a year now. Wish they would go ahead and get it over with.
P.S. Catching eats up players. Physical and mental strain. Why many teams use 2 to share the load. The Molina’s and Realmuto’s are outliers.
Moreno is the real deal defensively. As far as catch and throw he is elite. As far as game calling and connecting with a pitching staff/game plan, I have not seen anything to suggest he’s ready on that level. I watched all of his games in the show and pitchers generally pitched below their capabilities. But his catch, throw and athleticism is extremely elite. Think Realmuto in that regard.
Where have you read Moreno as a 1B? He’s pretty short for a 1B. He’s played or at least worked out at every other infield position as well as CF and LF. But that’s not really about him moving off catcher because he’s not good as a catcher. That was just to give him some utility and the roster some flexibility so they could use him in more places given that neither of Jansen or Kirk are capable of other positions.
You might be thinking of Kirk as a guy who is destined to be primarily a DH. His bat plays there and he can still catch a backup’s workload that does free up a fair bit of DH days to get other guys off their feet.
I’d be stunned if Moreno was switched to DH. He should be a good bat for a catcher, but looses about his entire value if were switched to DH. And 1B is out of the question since Vlad is already there.
If any team thinks that one of their catchers should be a DH, they might as well trade them today.
Also Kirk is the one most likely to benefit from the shift being gone.as like you say he sprays the ball around.
Kirk is definitely the guy I want up from the Blue Jays with 2 outs in the 9th and runners on to win the game. I just trust him to have a professional at bat and make something happen.
@bjallday
Never pick your catcher based on their hitting. You’ll end up with Gary Sanchez. Defense is the primary quality you look for in someone who wears the tools of ignorance.
Totally agree Stymee. I was a catcher my whole baseball career. Kirk is a really good defensive catcher. His pitch framing is super elite and his blocking and throwing is well above average. Gary Sanchez is not a good comp here. Totally different catchers and hitters. Kirk’s bat is elite on any level for any position in the majors. I know guys who don’t see him a lot may see his body weight and have doubts but he is special. He will be the kind of guy to hit .320 or .330 in the next few years. More walks than strikeouts. He’s that good. Speed on the bases is his only weakness at this point.
Kirk, Bichette and Biggio for Burnes, Adames, and Urias
Danny Jansen is not an everyday catcher. He had a decent season this year bur his offense really isnt that good. If I were the Jays, I’d try and trade Jansen out of the 3, could mislead a team into getting some good assets back
Jansen is one of the better defensive catchers in baseball though, more so than the other two. I really wouldn’t be in a huge rush to trade any of the three of them, but Moreno might be my first choice to trade. That may be an unpopular take, but he is the most unproven of the three and may have the highest trade value due to his youth and being a recent top 10-20 prospect in baseball.
Sorry to tell you but Jansen is not the better defensive catcher he is actually the worst of the three and his ability to adjust in game is aweful. If you like stats pick a site any site that measures defensive metrics and you will find that, depending on the site and the metric you choose, there are anywhere between 30 plus to 90 plus catchers ahead of Jansen. Then there is the 7 errors and 4 catcher interference (I know that number would have been higher had the ball not been hit such as on Judges62 homer) all in just 63 appearances behind the plate..
Jansen was worth 2.9 WAR despite only having roughly 200 at bats. The other two are good defensively too, but there is a strong case to be made that Jansen may be the best overall of the three in my opinion. It’s definitely a “good” problem to have, as all 3 are great all around catchers.
Yes but Jansen’s WAR came from his offense which was nice but he was mostly an all or nothing guy that has reached his peak and does not seem like he will even benefit from the shift being gone. Both Kirk and Moreno are also better defensively than Jansen and have a lot more upside with more control.
Moreno, and perhaps another piece, for Corbin Carroll.
No way the DBacks trade Carroll.
They’ve got a logjam in the OF. They could trade another OF, but they wouldn’t get back a prospect of Moreno’s calibre. It’s certainly unlikely, but I don’t think it’s an outrageous offer.
It’s not an outrageous offer, but I just can’t see the DBacks trading him for anything less than a massive overpay.
Fair enough. He looks good.
I say hell no to that. I think people who don’t watch the blue jays won’t realize how elite Kirk’s bat is. He is one of the best all around hitters I’ve ever seen and I’ve watched and played a lot of ball. His plate discipline and contact abilities are elite. Like top 95% elite in the game. He just doesn’t have bad at bats and that’s pretty rare in the game today with all the swing and miss for power approaches. Carlson’s value as a prospect may have been way higher than Kirk but that has not transferred over to the majors for him, just like most prospects. Carlson is still a project and Kirk is a perennial all star. Big difference there.
That’s why I said Carlson +. Jays need rotation depth, Cards could send Hudson, Liberatore, Grecefo, Thompson, Montgomery, Matz, McGreevy. Take your pick.
My guys, we are not trading Carlson. We don’t have anyone else to play CF. Certainly not just throwing in Jack either. Maybe Libby and a corner OF. That’s like way more in the realm of reality.
O’Niell is probably a better CF then Carlson, he just has injury problems. They could use Nootbar, Walker or Edmonds in CF. MYbe even Donovan. Putting Edmonds out there would even allow them to pursue Swanson or add Bitchette to the package as Blue Jay fans are trying to get rid of him.
Even better throw in Flaherty with Carlson. Maybe Jack would decide to actually pitch for the Jays.
Can they get a couple of young mlb ready pitchers for Bichette? They need to load up on as many arms as they can and that seems to have been overlooked the past few years in the offseason. Jays need a major shakeup beyond moving a catcher…
And as far as the catchers go…between kirk and jansen, whoever can get a better middle of the lineup lefty bat back is gone…
Why do so many people seem to think the Blue Jays should trade Bichette?
I’m not in favour of trading Bo, but the complaints from some have to with his aggressive/free swinging approach, sketchy defense/arm, and pretty boy style.
I’m not in favor of trading Bichette either… but for the benefit of the team Espinal should be staring at SS and Bo at 2B.
Jays could be a dark horse team for one of the big SS in free agency. Payroll drops a lot next year so they could surprise and jump over the luxury tax line this year.
Package Bichette and Kirk to Saint Louis. Their offense could surely use the help. And they need young players who have shown they can hit in the majors.
I am ok with moving bichette. I would rather a shortstop who can play shortstop then a shortstop who rakes with the bat. He may bat 4 times a game but plays defense for 27 outs so I think defense at that position is more important.
Also this team needs a shakeup. I would be ok with the trade if the package coming back was really good.
Do any Jays fans here remember Aaron Sanchez. The Sanchize is what he was dubbed the year he had the ERA title. Apparently the Jays were offered some big deal for him and turned them down. I’m a huge Kirk guy but now is the time to trade him. it’s more likely that he doesn’t have a season like this again even I’m a believer but he’s who bring the most back
I think Moreno might have more trade value than Kirk. Aaron Sanchez and Kirk aren’t great comparisons here. What Kirk can do at the plate is sustainable. It’s an excellent approach. I don’t think you fluke your way into more walks than strikeouts over that big a sample. I have my doubts that his sudden upswing in defensive metrics is sustainable if he’s asked to take on more workload. The defensive end seemed to slip when they did up his usage. He also got injured when they leaned on him more. But the offensive end is a repeatable skill.
I like him alot and am a believer but I’m saying that while another ERA title for Sanchez was unlikely nobody thought his career was over after that. Kirk has always had a bat but if they can get a killer deal for him do it. I would like Kirk to be on the team going forward tho in a beat case scenario
I’m really uncomfortable with the lineup losing Kirk. He’s not the lefty bat that is always asked for, but he does give you the skill sets you often attribute to the prototypical lefty. He’s the one bit of balance to the sameness of the rest of the lineup. On the other hand, I really do think defense is where the priority should be at C and I did see that slipping when they started using him more. I couldn’t stand watching him try to catch the previous two seasons so I may just be having a hard time shaking that impression. He did improve a lot this year. I like the DH/part time catcher role for him.
It’s a tough, tough decision…. Jansen to me over
a full season healthy is as good as any catcher in baseball. With his power, maybe the absolute best in baseball. His approach at the plate over the last couple of years has greatly improved, he’s the best defender behind the plate as of now on the team… I like Jansen a whole lot. Only concern with him is durability, being able to stay healthy, other then that, he truly has what it takes to be the best overall catcher in baseball.
Kirk is a very good hitter, can control that strike zone like no other catcher in baseball, and definitely is a solid defender.
Moreno meanwhile is maybe the best catching prospect in all of baseball… has fantastic tools. Can see him spraying the ball all over the place. Truly has elite tools.
Me personally, it might sound crazy, but I’m keeping all 3. Moreno can move off the catcher position and play 3B when Chapman leaves. He has the ability without a doubt imo to play 3B. Jansen seems to go down with injuries a lot, but with his upside over a full season I’m not trading him. At all.. if he does go down though, Kirk is there behind him. But If anyone of them get moved, I think it would be Kirk.
With Jansen always getting injured, but too talented to trade away, and needing two catchers anyway, I genuinely would want them to keep all 3. Jansen and Kirk tandem, if either go down you have Moreno. And in 2024 Moreno starts at 3B. Jays need to save some payroll anyway in years to come. They’ll already have a record breaking payroll in team history going into next season without making any moves, just by arbitration raises.
I would not deal any of them if I’m honest, Jano is often hurt and I don’t think Kirk can be a bull load catcher. Moreno probably needs a year of seasoning, his tools are unreal but still raw and he lacks power.
Unless a team offers a bonafide star for Kirk or Moreno, I wouldnt move them for the sake of just because it’s a perceived area of strength. The would be one likely Jano injury away from a AAAA catcher starting 60 games.
Last year the jays had the same depth and Heineman and Collins started a bunch of games.
This would be an unpopular opinion, but I would deal Kirk.
I think he is at peak value and will only go down hill from here. Very rarely is a guy in his physical condition a long term option behind the plate. The only guy with his body type that had a long career behind the plate that I can think of is Mike LeVallier.
Jansen impressed me this season and apparently most pitchers like throwing to him. The Moroneo is a prospect, a highly touted one.
It’s a nice situation to have, but right now, I would say All-Star Kirk is at peak value. Deal him.
Gabriel Moreno is the most athletic catcher the Jays have ever had in franchise history, and it’s not even close. I’m not trading him. His quickness popping up to throw out runners is insane. His foot speed is I’m sure in the very top percentile for all players, let alone catcher, and he can even play the field. His hitting ability is well above average id say as well. Plus 6 years of control, he’s going nowhere.
One word…Pitching!
I can see a bounce back season for Kikuchi. He’s got the stuff but he lacked confidence in throwing his fastball for location. I think he was just under his own pressure from the deal he was given. Hopefully some time to reflect and move forward fresh is all he needs.
Jose Urquidy for Alejandro Kirk?
Carlson, Wynn, Liberatore, Flaherty and McGreevy for Kirk and Bichette?
Like how everyone forgets about the molina bros and how long they played for with the same body type as Kirk.
I commented on this article yesterday that I’ve been reading about the Jays trading one of their catchers for a year, and wish they’d get it over with.
“The Blue Jays have an enviable crop of talented catchers and are expected to use one of them in a trade this offseason, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network.”
This is a nothing burger. Clickbait. Same thing I’ve been reading for over a year. People getting bent out of shape for no reason.
Very interested in what the Jays do this off-season. In my eyes they were the most talented team in the AL east but never really found their way. Wouldn’t be shocked if they went out and signed some high character vets to get this bunch going.