Okay. I think I know how to resolve the catching situation. Bear with me, though, because I don't think many of you will agree.
The Red Sox need to trade for Rangers catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
Alright, so start typing up your comments now, but just hear me out. There are a couple of factors at play here but there are two that I think are really important:
- He would die to be a Boston Red Sox. Don't believe me? He even said that.
- He would actually like to be a backup catcher behind Jason Varitek for a year or even two. Don't believe me? Well, you obviously didn't click that link at the end of No. 1.
Now you say: "But Randy, his numbers have pretty much sucked in the big leagues so far." Well, touche -- for the most part. But, as every scout will tell you, Saltalamacchia has a lot of potential that just hasn't been tapped into yet. What do you think a year -- or even a half year -- behind Varitek would do? I think that might kick up his spirits and allow him to really break out.
There's only one catch here: the Sox would need to re-sign Varitek. The Herald says Varitek badly wants to stay in Boston. It makes sense, of course, because he has said in the past how great it is to play here. However, there are some that think Varitek (or agent Scott Boras) is going to want big money. Big money. In the range of 4 years/$53M.
Um. No.
Perhaps Varitek will give a really, really good hometown discount. If the Sox could re-sign him for two years, I think they'll be in a great position. Then the Sox could trade for Saltalamacchia (the Rangers will want to drain the Sox's farm system, of course) and have Varitek just train Salty to be the future. I see Salty taking over full-time in less than a year -- once he learns the Way of the Varitek.
Ok. Lay into me...