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Rangers GM: Front-line starting catcher is on bucket list

Mark J. Rebilas / Reuters

Texas Rangers general manager Jon Daniels has long been searching for a starting catcher, and nothing has changed as he continues to hunt for a "front-line starting catcher," during the offseason.

"It's a tough position to fill," Daniels told Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. "We have this industry-wide image of what you want and we do, too, but it's easy to overlook what you have. ... We want to be careful not to covet something that may or may not be out there."

The Rangers used five different players behind the dish in 2015, with Robinson Chirinos logging the most playing time with 78 games played, which makes him the current front-runner as the starter in spring training, but that won't stop Daniels from trying to find an upgrade.

"I think Robinson is a little bit of an underrated player," Daniels said. "Chris (Gimenez) did a great job for us, too. You can always look to get better, both in depth and if there is an upgrade out there. But we also want to take inventory of the pluses those guys we have."

CATCHER G HITTING
Robinson Chirinos 78 .232/.325/.438
Chris Gimenez 36 .255/.330/.490
Carlos Corporan 33 .178/.244/.299
Bobby Wilson 31 .221/.291/.325
Tomas Telis 6 .182/.250/.182

With Matt Wieters accepting a qualifying offer from the Baltimore Orioles, the market for free-agent catchers is thin, so Daniels has turned to trades, which hasn't panned out either.

"We've talked to clubs about some young catching, but for obvious reasons, they are reluctant to deal them," he said.

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