Relics of 2002

A.J. Pierzynski has caught more games than Johnny Bench,
Yogi Berra and Gabby Hartnett -- or a lot of other people.

The Twins this month have seen a number of survivors of the 2002 Twins: Kyle Lohse with the Texas Rangers, David Ortiz with the Boston Red Sox, and this week A.J. Pierzynski with the Atlanta Braves.

Ortiz, having a big season, has declared, repeatedly, that this is his final season. Lohse made two starts with Texas this month (one against the Twins), fared ill in both, and has now been designated for assignment; it's possible that he's had his last chance.

And the 39-year-old Pierzynski, who hit .300 last season for the Braves, is hitting a career-worst .215 this year.

I've commented before on the remarkable durability and longevity of Pierzynski, who now stands ninth all-time in games caught and will match Jim Sundberg for eighth the next time he squats behind the plate and flashes signs to a pitcher. He has a realistic chance of rising to sixth before the end of the season (ahead of him are Brad Ausmus and Tony Pena).

But ... for next year, he'll be a 40-year-old catcher coming off a bad year at the plate. This may be his last season too.

We may be seeing the end of the 2002 Twins. Johan Santana apparently hasn't abandoned his ambitions of returning, but he hasn't taken the mound since 2012. LaTroy Hawkins, Michael Cuddyer and Torii Hunter hung 'em up after last season. Lohse, Ortiz and Pierzynski are all that's left from that legendary (at least in Minnesota) squad.

That realization makes me feel as old as I am.

Notes, quotes and comment

Josh Hamilton on Angels owner Arte Moreno:
 "He knew what the deal was when he signed me, hands down.
He knew what he was getting. He knew what the risks were.
 He knew all those things."

It's official: The Angels shipped Josh Hamilton to Texas for a player to be named or cash considerations. My assumption is that there will be no player, and the cash consideration is the Rangers' willingness to absorb a fraction of Hamilton's contract.

I've sounded off on the subject here and here, and see no need to repeat myself. But I will add this: Even through commissioner Rob Manfred has shown no interest in investigating the leak about Hamilton's relapse -- a leak that appears to have originated with the Angels -- the Angels are getting punished for it.

All they accomplished with the leak (and again, I assume it came from them, but that is not established) and their subsequent on-the-record statements denouncing Hamilton was destroy his potential trade value.

In the end, the Rangers get whatever Hamilton has left for a mere $6 million, and the Angels will have paid Hamilton $110 million for two seasons in Anaheim. Signing Hamilton wasn't bright; being surprised that he hasn't fully shaken his addictions is even less so. But saying good-bye to him didn't have to be that expensive.

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Two winters ago the Twins were linked to free agent catchers A.J. Pierzynski and Jarrod Saltalamacchia. They signed with Boston and Miami respectively, and the Twins settled for Kurt Suzuki.

The Red Sox released Pierzynski last summer. The Marlins on Monday designated Saltalamacchia for assignment; he hit .209 in one season plus a month.  The Fish have 10 days to trade or release him, and there probably won't be anybody eager to absorb almost two years of his contract.

Sometimes -- I dare say most of the time -- you're better off not signing the free agents you covet.

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The Baltimore Orioles game (against the White Sox) Monday night was postponed because of the civic unrest over the death of a black man in police custody. There are many more significant ramifications than a baseball game or two from this crisis, but it does create an intersection between politics and sports.

In that light, this quasi-statement from John Angelos, the son of the Orioles owner and the team chief operating officer, is fascinating reading. It was assembled by USA Today Monday from a series of tweets Angelos issued in response to a tweet from a local radio host after fans were kept from leaving the stadium because of the unrest Sunday.

Brett, speaking only for myself, I agree with your point that the principle of peaceful, non-violent protest and the observance of the rule of law is of utmost importance in any society. MLK, Gandhi, Mandela and all great opposition leaders throughout history have always preached this precept. Further, it is critical that in any democracy, investigation must be completed and due process must be honored before any government or police members are judged responsible. 

That said, my greater source of personal concern, outrage and sympathy beyond this particular case is focused neither upon one night’s property damage nor upon the acts, but is focused rather upon the past four-decade period during which an American political elite have shipped middle class and working class jobs away from Baltimore and cities and towns around the U.S. to third-world dictatorships like China and others, plunged tens of millions of good, hard-working Americans into economic devastation, and then followed that action around the nation by diminishing every American’s civil rights protections in order to control an unfairly impoverished population living under an ever-declining standard of living and suffering at the butt end of an ever-more militarized and aggressive surveillance state. 

The innocent working families of all backgrounds whose lives and dreams have been cut short by excessive violence, surveillance, and other abuses of the Bill of Rights by government pay the true price, and ultimate price, and one that far exceeds the importances of any kids’ game played tonight, or ever, at Camden Yards. We need to keep in mind people are suffering and dying around the U.S., and while we are thankful no one was injured at Camden Yards, there is a far bigger picture for poor Americans in Baltimore and everywhere who don’t have jobs and are losing economic civil and legal rights, and this makes inconvenience at a ballgame irrelevant in light of the needless suffering government is inflicting upon ordinary Americans.

That is a manifesto one would not expect from somebody in Angelos' position.

Pic of the week

Picked off without a throw: Bartolo Colon tags out
A/J. Pierzynski.

This play came in the top of the sixth inning Thursday. A.J. Pierzynski singled with one out for Atlanta. He was still on first base one out later when Bartolo Colon executed a spin move and caught him too far off the base. Colon ran at him and tagged him out without a throw.

The play was scored as a caught stealing, pitcher unassisted. Now, I've watched a lot of baseball over the past 45 or so years, and I've never seen a pitcher actually chase down a baserunner from the mound. I do remember Pasqual Perez used to bluff such a pick-off several times a game, but he seldom got completely onto the infield grass.

That it would be a pudgy, 41-year-old Colon who pulled it off is amazing. And even though Pierzynski is himself a 38-year-old catcher and thus almost by definition immobile, getting chased down by Colon (listed as 5-11, 285 pounds) adds to the embarrassment. But Pierzynski doesn't embarrass easy.

The wandering Pierzynski

I was reminded on Christmas Eve of the old baseball chestnut,  "The best moves are the ones you don't make."

What reminded me of that was the news that A.J. Pierzynski had signed with the Atlanta Braves.

The Twins, you may recall, were hot for their former catcher last winter, but he spurned their two-year offer to take a one-year deal with the Boston Red Sox. It was an understandable decision; Pierzynski was a well-used 36, the Sox were defending World Series champs, and A.J. was chasing another ring.

It didn't work for him in Boston. The Sox released him during the All-Star break with their typical reputation-smearing whisper campaign. He finished the season with the Cardinals and didn't hit with them either.

And now Atlanta, where he probably projects as a backup, although it's not easy to discern the Braves' direction this offseason. As I said last summer, Pierzynski's days as a No. 1 catcher appear to be over. He can probably milk a few more seasons out of his career as a backup, but he's not going to stick in any one place for more than a year.

The Twins settled last year for Kurt Suzuki, who is about six years younger than Piersynski and rewarded the Twins with the best offensive season of his career. Even so, he tailed off rather sharply in the second half, the slump seemingly coming after he signed a two-year extension, and we'll see if the Twins get their money's worth out of the new deal.

Their second choice last December was certainly better than their first choice.

Contemplating A.J. Pierzynski

A.J. Pierzynski's half-season with the
Red Sox, captured in one image.

A few days before the All-Star break, the Boston Red Sox designated veteran catcher A.J.Pierzynski for assignment. During the break, the Sox, having determined that there was no trade partner to be had for the remainder of Pierzynski's $8.5 million contract, released him.

Roughly a week later, Pierzynski remains eminently available.

At age 37, it's not difficult to see way he's had no takers. As a catch and throw guy behind the plate, Pierzynski has never been all that good, especially in the throwing aspect. As a hitter, he's fallen off tremendously with age. A slash line of .254/.286/.348, Pierzynski's stats with the Sox through 70 games, looks pretty good for Drew Butera, but it won't cut it for a below-average defender.

It's a pretty good bet that Pierzynski's days as a No. 1 catcher are past. And  his reputation as a jerk works against him if he's interested in hanging around as a backup.

Still, the Twins were interested enough in a reunion with Pierzynski to offer him a two-year contract last winter (he instead took Boston's one-year deal because he saw an opportunity to chase another ring). Perhaps they've changed their evaluation of him. But I can imagine them deciding that he's an upgrade over Eric Fryer as a backup to Kurt Suzuki -- or even, should they trade Suzuki, deciding to deploy Pierzynski as their main catcher.

Either way, I suspect Minnesota represents Pierzynski's best chance of continuing his playing career. I think it's more likely that he'll be behind the microphone than behind the plate.

Twins can't catch a veteran backstop

A.J. Pierzynski has caught
at least 1,000 innings in each
of the last 12 seasons, an
impressive feat.

It became obvious Tuesday that, while the Twins may have gotten the deals they wanted in the starting pitching field of free agency, they were missing out on the catchers.

A.J. Pierzynski, whose proposed return was welcomed by the sentimentalists in Twins Territory, opted instead to sign with the Boston Red Sox.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia, the Red Sox' No. 1 catcher last year and another reputed Minnesota target, moved on to his hometown (more or less) Miami Marlins on a three-year deal.

Which left Twins general manager Terry Ryan, during the Tuesday Ricky Nolasco presser, gamely declaring that the Twins are willing to go with Josmil Pinto as the No. 1 catcher.

Willing, perhaps, but not quite eager. This isn't the Twins after the 2003 season trading away Pierzynski to make room for Mauer. They wanted an established catcher to buy time to further marinate Pinto in the intricacies of catching.

But I infer from the apparent insistence on a short-term deal that the Twins believe Pinto can indeed become a capable defensive catcher. They don't want to block Pinto.

It's still early in the offseason. The Twins might still land another receiver. But I doubt they're eager to invest in the likes of John Buck, J.P. Arencibia or Kurt Suzuki. And I'm not particularly eager to see them in Twins uniforms.

The catching market

Ryan Doumit, seen in a 2012 mound conference, is
seldom mentioned in talk about the Twins catching situation.

Joe Mauer's not a catcher anymore. For the first offseason in more than a decade, the Twins don't know who's their No. 1 backstop.

They have four catchers on the 40-man roster — Ryan Doumit, Eric Fryer, Chris Herrmann and Josmil Pinto — and good reason to shy away from any of them as 100-game starters. This has them prominent in speculation about a fairly rich crop of veteran catchers, which is rapidly dwindling.

With the likes of Brian McCann (five years, $85 million, Yankees) and Carlos Ruiz (three years, $26 million, staying with the Phillies) reaching big-ticket free-agent deals in the past week, and such veteran backstops as Jose Molina, Geovanni Soto and Brayan Pena finding 2014 homes as well, the primary speculation is about Jarrod Saltalamacchia and ex-Twin A.J. Pierzynski.

 My thoughts:

• Importing a catcher probably means optioning out Pinto to work on his defensive skills. I'm pretty sure he can hit well enough to be a regular major league catcher right now.
• Pierzynski, who turns 37 next month, is probably a good candidate for a one-year deal. Salty, on the other hand, is likely to at least match Ruiz' deal, and having him block Pinto doesn't make sense — unless the Twins are already convinced that Pinto will never be good enough to be more than a backup.
• Doumit seems to be overlooked in all this.

The primary argument against Doumit as a regular catcher is, of course, his defense. He's a hit-first backstop — and, as it happens, so are Pierzynski and Saltalamacchia. But Doumit is regarded as less adept than the other two, and he didn't hit to his usual standards in 2013.

A secondary argument — and a good one — is that Doumit, who turns 33 in April, has a track record of injuries. He has just one 100-game season behind the dish in his career, and didn't catch at all in September after returning from an August concussion. He's not a good bet to carry the bulk of the load.

Doumit has one year left on his contract. If the Twins do bring in a established No. 1 catcher, Doumit isn't likely to catch as often as he has since joining Minnesota. If the Twins don't, then I would expect him to share the job with Pinto.

Which is my preference. I suspect Pinto will learn more about catching in the majors — especially with Terry Steinbach on the coaching staff — than in Triple A. The old Yogi Berra line about working early in his career with Bill Dickey — Bill is learning me his experience — applies.

The durable A.J. Pierzynski

A.J Pierzynski turned slugger in 2012, with his first
season with a slugging percentage above .500.

A.J. Pierzynski had one of his best seasons in 2012 with 27 homers, nine more than his previous career high, and a career best OPS+ (on-base plus slugging, adjusted for park effects and compared to league average).

He's also about to enter free agency and will be 36 before next season.

He's been a mainstay for the Chicago White Sox for eight seasons, and I fully expect him to remain on the South Side. But man, there's a lot of mileage on those tires.

Several years ago, as the Twins and Joe Mauer were hammering out his megacontract, I did a series of posts on outstanding offensive catchers and how rapidly they aged. The general rule was: The harder the catcher was worked in his early years, the shorter his career and/or effectiveness.

Pierzynski has had some good seasons as a hitter, but he's not really on the level of the men involved in my study. But it's worth noting that he has caught more than 1,000 innings in 11 straight seasons now, and that's rare. Yogi Berra, for example, had a total of nine such workhorse seasons (not consecutive). Ivan Rodriguez,who holds the career games caught record, has 11 such seasons, again non-consecutive. Carlton Fisk, who caught into his mid-40s, had nine 1,000 inning seasons.

That Pierzynski can not only handle so much work behind the dish and put up career-best numbers as a hitter in his mid-30s is impressive. It probably helped that he didn't become a regular until age 24 — he wasn't asked to take on such a workload at age 20 — but his career pattern is hardly routine.
 

Pierzynski, playoff pitching, poll stuff

A.J. Pierzynski was both hero and goat Sunday night, which seems apt considering how up and down his season has been.

Good game, bad game: A.J. Pierzynski was 3-for-6
Sunday night with two RBIs,
but his White Sox lost 9-7 in 11 innings.

The Tigers entered the ninth with a 7-3 lead, but Pierzynski led off the bottom of the ninth with a ground-rule double off Detroit LOOGY Phil Coke, and the White Sox scored four runs in the inning to force extra innings.

But in the top of the 11th, Brandon Inge struck out on a wild pitch and Pierzynski made a poor throw to first, with Inge taking third on his strikeout. The Tigers scored twice, and the Sox didn't have another comeback in them.

ESPN kept showing Pierzynski in the dugout, clearly replaying his miscue. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

The catcher Twins fans love to hate is is the final month of his contract, and it's hard to tell what the White Sox have in mind. He turns 35 in December, and he has a lot of mileage on him. He had a horrid April (.169/.229/.200) and a weak first-half (.247/.288/.376) but has been his typical self in the second half (.306/.321/.409).

Further complicating factors: Tyler Flowers, who's been groomed to be Pierzynski's successor, had a weak season at the plate in Triple A; and the White Sox may have budget issues this offseason.

My guess: Pierzynski will get a one-year deal to stick with the Sox. But he may be on the verge of being a nomad.

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The Star Trib's LaVelle Neal reports that the Twins shuffle up their rotation this week to set up an order of Francisco Liriano, Carl Pavano and Brian Duensing in the first three games of the playoffs.

That prioritizes talent and power over veteran composure. That's what Tom Kelly did in 1987 when he flipped Frank Viola ahead of Bert Blyleven.

The poll questions are about the playoff rotation.

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More poll stuff: We had 61 votes on the question of whether Johan Santana, as of now, is a Hall of Famer.

The heavy majority — 46 votes, or 75 percent — said no. The other 15 (24 percent) say yes.

Ex-Twin watch: A.J. Pierzynski

This always figured to be a crossroads season for A.J. Pierzynski. He's in the final year of his contract with the White Sox; he's 33, an age at which everyday catchers tend to crumble; the White Sox have at least one catching prospect (Tyler Flowers) marinating in the high minors.

The second point appears to be really strong right now. He's hitting .140 on the still-young season and adding to the deforestation of America with his broken bats.

Obviously, he's got to turn it around at the plate if he's going to remain a lineup fixture, on the South Side or anywhere else. Nobody's good enough defensively to carry a .140 stick.

Defense has never been Pierzynski's strong suit anyway. He's better than acceptable, but never a Gold Glove candidate. What he brings to the table are his competitiveness and his durability. He catches 130 games a year, he never goes on the DL, he grinds out at-bats, innings and seasons.

Looking at his immediate future ... he gets his 10-and-5 no trade rights (10 years of service time, last five with one team) in June, so if the White Sox want to flip him before his free agency, they are likely to act sooner rather than later. The Red Sox, as referenced late in the Monday print column, are having catching problems and might be a possibility.

Looking down the road ... I suspect that this will be his last season as a regular, even if he starts hitting closer to his career norms. Again: He's caught a lot of games over the years, and this takes a toll.

And I also suspect that he's not the type teams look to as a reserve catcher. He's more a hitter than a catch-and-throw guy, and the persona isn't exactly out of the clubhouse chemistry textbook. The "clubhouse cancer" rap from his season in San Francisco hasn't entirely washed away, not with Ozzie Guillen's witticisms ("If he's on the other team, you hate him; if he's on your team, you hate him a little less") echoing.

Nevertheless, there's a part of me that would like to see Pierzynski go out with the Twins, as Joe Mauer's backup. It's not likely to happen — besides the critique offered in the previous paragraph, the Twins have other options — but he did a good job for Minnesota early in his career, he brought a very nice return when the Twins traded him, and I think he deserves to hear cheers once more in Minnesota.

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Poll results: Not a lot of action on this one. Twenty-five votes on whether anyone will hit a fair ball completely out of Target Field. Ten said yes, 15 said no.

Me, I think somebody will drive one down the RF line and out the Puckett gate. Justin Morneau, Jim Thome, Jason Kubel — somebody's gonna do it this summer.

New poll up.