Report: Rays prioritize adding catcher this offseason
The Tampa Bay Rays have made it clear to other teams that adding a catcher is their offseason priority, reports The Athletic's Jim Bowden.
Tampa Bay currently has 23-year-old minor-leaguer Ronaldo Hernandez atop its catching depth chart. Hernandez has never appeared in the majors.
The Rays rotated between Mike Zunino, Michael Perez, and Kevan Smith at catcher during the 2020 campaign.
The trio combined to hit .174/.262/.321 and were worth a combined minus-0.4 WAR last season, according to FanGraphs. None of the three are currently signed with the Rays.
| PLAYER | PA | OPS | DRS | WAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevan Smith | 38 | .830 | -1 | 0.1 |
| Mike Zunino | 84 | .598 | -2 | 0.0 |
| Michael Perez | 93 | .475 | 0 | -0.5 |
Tampa Bay could also search for a catcher in free agency.
J.T. Realmuto, James McCann, and Yadier Molina are the top catchers available among a crop of backstops that also includes Kurt Suzuki and former Rays starter Wilson Ramos.