Detroit Tigers Position Breakdown: Catcher

(Note: This is the first in a series that will predict the how the Detroit Tigers will do position by position for the 2015 season. To start off, we’ll look at the catching situation for the Tigers.)

Alex Avila has been holding down the catching duties for the Detroit Tigers since 2011, succeeding now Arizona Diamondback Gerald Laird.

Once Avila took over, he proved that he was a bonafide starter having an All-Star season in 2011 hitting .295/.389/.506 line, with 19 HR, 82 RBI’s and a .895 OPS.

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Since then, Avila has been less than stellar offensively only averaging 10 HR’s, 47 RBI’s and a .229/.332/.373 line for the past three years. To go along with this, Avila only had .226/.287/.302 line against lefties last year.

Although Avila is one of the better defensive catchers in the game, with 36 caught stealing (2nd in MLB) and 9 double plays turned (Tied for 3rd in MLB), his lack of offensive output is starting to irritate fans and wanting a complete overhaul at catcher.

Even with the freak injuries he had over the past few years, Avila’s defensive ability is too valuable over the other possible catchers right now to let him walk. Therefore, having a platoon with either young catchers James McCann or Bryan Holaday should be the solution for the Tigers for the 2015 season.

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For McCann, he’s one of the bright young prospects the Tigers have in their farm system (ranked 9th on the Tigers prospect list), hitting a .336/.396/.469 split against lefties in the minors last year and a .295/.343/.427 line against all pitchers last year in the minors.

McCann’s defensive ability isn’t the same as Holaday’s but his offensive potential is greater than Holaday’s. Holaday is a spitting image Avila, only a right-handed batter and a slightly better hitter, but a slightly worse fielder.

Holaday hosts a career .241/.280/.303 line, showing that he doesn’t really amaze you with the bat. However, he still shows the defensive capability that Avila has, which shows he’s worth an opportunity to platoon with Avila.

In an event that Avila is out for an extended period of time this season, Holaday would be a good fit as a backup catcher without losing too much defensively from what you get from Avila.

Like I said earlier, Holaday doesn’t show the offensive potential McCann does, and McCann will most likely become better defensively over time. Thus, giving the edge to McCann over Holaday for playing time against lefties in a platoon with Avila.

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Overall, the Tigers have to make a decision whether to stick with Avila or move on with a younger catcher in McCann. The way McCann plays this year with the time he gets, will dictate what the Tigers do with Avila for the years to come.

What do you think about the catching situation for Tigers for the 2015 season? Do you think it’s time to for the Tigers to move on from Avila? Should the Tigers have a platoon at catcher or have Avila keep the full-time job at catcher? Share your opinion in the comment section below.

Next: Part 2, First base

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