Table

[Corsi Combover]

Quote

Jarrod Saltalamacchia can't hide his excitement when he hears rumors of being traded to Boston.

Quote

"That would be a dream come true," said Saltalamacchia, 23. "I'd love to go there and either work under Jason for a year or two or just go there and catch full-time.

Quote

"I love watching Jason. He's like an idol of mine. I watch him and I learn from him and I'd love to be able to spend time with him. I saw him this year and we talked for a while and I learned so much from him in the short time we had."

Saltalamacchia is far from Varitek defensively, but a veteran scout who has watched both of them said, "They are very similar. Jason wasn't a finished product at 23 years old, either. It took a lot of work to get him where he is right now.

"Jason just made the decision that 'I'm going to pull this off' and he went about it by putting his nose in the sand and making it happen. Salty has a chance to get there, too. I think the difference might be that Salty is going to hit and hit for power. He's a big kid and he looks like he could be an offensive force."

Quote

When Saltalamacchia was apprised of those comments, he said, "Oh my God, that's so amazing. I just want to get my catching abilities where Jason is."

Teagarden might be the more accomplished defensive player now, but Saltalamacchia's upside is thought of as greater.

"I just need to play," he said. "When I was traded from Atlanta to Texas, I thought I was going to play every day, but we have a lot of catchers here and our season didn't go the way we wanted it, so I found myself playing first base a little bit, catching a little bit, and so I never had any consistency behind the plate.

"I work very hard on my catching and calling games, and trying to build a rapport with pitchers and throwing. When I'm not catching, I watch how Gerald and Taylor do things and just learn how different catchers do things. I just have to do it more."

Source: http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/arti...x_to_catch_him/

[Mystic Merlin]

Maybe I am a bit in the dark on this one, but isn't it kind of weird for a player to speak out so enthusiastically about a potential trade? This probably isn't a huge deal, but I can't recall a similar case of a player locked up 4-5 years saying something like this - at most, you usually come across "rumors" and "sources", not documented quotes to reporters.

[SoxFanPJ]

Mystic Merlin, on Nov 9 2008, 12:30 AM, said:

Maybe I am a bit in the dark on this one, but isn't it kind of weird for a player to speak out so enthusiastically about a potential trade? This probably isn't a huge deal, but I can't recall a similar case of a player locked up 4-5 years saying something like this - at most, you usually come across "rumors" and "sources", not documented quotes to reporters.

Maybe Salty is just trying to talk his way out of Texas so he can get more playing time somewhere else....It is certainly encouraging to hear players say they want to come to Boston, particularly if the interest is mutual.

Is he more Andy Marte or Adrian Gonzalez? Both guys where dealt a couple times, but Marte looks like he was an overhyped prospect and Gonzalez while he didn't excel in his first two exposures to the MLB once he got regular playing time he took off.

[Seabass177]

SoxFanPJ, on Nov 9 2008, 04:28 AM, said:

Maybe Salty is just trying to talk his way out of Texas so he can get more playing time somewhere else....It is certainly encouraging to hear players say they want to come to Boston, particularly if the interest is mutual.

Is he more Andy Marte or Adrian Gonzalez? Both guys where dealt a couple times, but Marte looks like he was an overhyped prospect and Gonzalez while he didn't excel in his first two exposures to the MLB once he got regular playing time he took off.

He's much closer to a Gonzalez type than a Marte, though I don't think either is the perfect comp. Saltalamacchia put up a .291/.391/.491 line in AAA this year, and .254/.354/.364 given sporadic PT in the bigs. He's much more developed than Marte was, and being only a 23 year old catcher, he's not really near his prime. And even if he only put up the line he had last year, he'd still out OBP Varitek by 50 points.

I really think this is a situation where Salty needs to be behind the plate 4-5 days a week so he can get accustomed to MLB pitching. Given his MiLB numbers, there's no real reason to believe he couldn't be a .280/.370/.460 type of catcher in his prime, possibly a bit better than that.

Of the Texas trio, he's my preference. His defense has reportedly been good, or below average according to Sickels earlier in the year - one of those things where it depends upon what day you see him. But, I think he's got the highest likelihood to be an above average catcher.

[bankshot1]

Quote

Maybe Salty is just trying to talk his way out of Texas

If we learn the lesson from the last time that happened, he'll end with the MFY and the Sox will win the WS.

I agree its a little strange that he sems to be so enthusiatically promoting this transaction. Maybe he thinks his playing time/progess wil be blocked in Texas by Teagarden.

[philly sox fan]

Mystic Merlin, on Nov 9 2008, 03:30 AM, said:

Maybe I am a bit in the dark on this one, but isn't it kind of weird for a player to speak out so enthusiastically about a potential trade? This probably isn't a huge deal, but I can't recall a similar case of a player locked up 4-5 years saying something like this - at most, you usually come across "rumors" and "sources", not documented quotes to reporters.

Maybe the kid is just plain dumb. And one of the reasons that both organizations he's played for have come to beleive that he can't handle the responsibilities of being a catcher is that he's not too bright.

Right or wrong - and listening to Buck Martinez for a playoff series, I'd at least say irrelevent - there's an idea that catchers are supposed to be relatively bright. The whole field general, only guy who sees everything on the field cliches.

[SoxScout]

Seabass177, on Nov 9 2008, 10:31 AM, said:

Saltalamacchia put up a .291/.391/.491 line in AAA this year, and .254/.354/.364 given sporadic PT in the bigs.

That was only 55 AB, his only at bats he has ever had in AAA...

Table

	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	BABIP	K%	BB/K	IsoP
Rk	46	134	23	32	11	2	2	14	28	33	.239	.370	.396	.766	.303	20%	.85	.142
A	91	323	42	88	19	2	10	51	34	83	.272	.342	.437	.779	.339	23%	.41	.158
A+	129	459	70	144	35	1	19	81	57	99	.314	.394	.519	.913	.367	19%	.58	.203
AA	114	394	48	97	25	1	15	52	68	88	.246	.363	.429	.792	.282	19%	.77	.180
AAA	15	55	10	16	3	1	2	13	7	15	.291	.391	.491	.882	.368	24%	.47	.182
MLB	154	506	66	132	26	1	14	59	50	149	.261	.327	.399	.726	.344	27%	.34	.136

I still think he is amazingly overrated by his one A+ season and his name recognition. I think he will be a competent hitter in time, and his numbers look better as a catcher, but he is adequate at best behind the plate and who knows what his future will hold.

[bsj]

philly sox fan, on Nov 9 2008, 10:54 AM, said:

Maybe the kid is just plain dumb. And one of the reasons that both organizations he's played for have come to beleive that he can't handle the responsibilities of being a catcher is that he's not too bright.

Right or wrong - and listening to Buck Martinez for a playoff series, I'd at least say irrelevent - there's an idea that catchers are supposed to be relatively bright. The whole field general, only guy who sees everything on the field cliches.

Let's not forget, however, he is only 23. He's young. There is a vast divide between the ability to be a field general and an ability to call a game and the ability to interact with the media and conduct oneself in a professional or appropriate manner publicly. I've heard him talk before. He seems like a genuinely good kid. But clearly lacks a little bit of real world knowledge of what the right thing to say may or may not be, which makes sense, as he's probably been playing baseball a lot longer than he has had to deal with big media and the public.

Additionally...let's not forget that while most catchers are considered to have a high baseball IQ, Jason Varitek was exceptional in not only his abilities on the field but in the way he conducted himself off of it.

FWIW, I LOVE the upside on this kid. L-O-V-E. I hope the Sox are aggressive in pursuing him.

This post has been edited by bsj: 09 November 2008 - 11:15 AM

[Manny's Hammies]

philly sox fan, on Nov 9 2008, 10:54 AM, said:

Maybe the kid is just plain dumb.

Or maybe the guy is just sick of sitting around waiting for his opportunity and sending a clear message that he wants to get an opportunity now.

My sense, reading this, is that the guy is saying, "Listen, I'm ready for this challenge. Varitek is my idol. I'm a switch-hitter like him. I have power. I'm willing to work as hard as I have to. I'm the catcher the Red Sox should go for." I'd love to know what our scouts think, but based on what I've always known about this kid (until this year's drop off), I say this looks like a deal with a ton of upside.

[OCD SS]

I don't think there's too much in what he's saying, MM. It might be out of context, but it really looks like he's talking more about Tek, and then expanding that to Boston. Also I think SFPJ might be onto something:

Quote

"I just need to play," he said. "When I was traded from Atlanta to Texas, I thought I was going to play every day, but we have a lot of catchers here and our season didn't go the way we wanted it, so I found myself playing first base a little bit, catching a little bit, and so I never had any consistency behind the plate.

[TheoShmeo]

That the kid is busting at the seams to play regularly, recognizes that he could learn a lot from Tek and is willing, for whatever reason, to express that he'd like to play for the Sox are all positives, in my opinion.

None of that should make the Sox any more or less focused on acquiring him, but if they do end up with Salty, I'll take these comments as a good sign about his make-up.

Despite Boras' typical bluster, my guess is that Boston will end up with Tek with a just beyond affordable two-year deal and Salty as the catcher in waiting.

[Rasputin]

TheoShmeo, on Nov 9 2008, 11:18 AM, said:

Despite Boras' typical bluster, my guess is that Boston will end up with Tek with a just beyond affordable two-year deal and Salty as the catcher in waiting.

Imo that is just about the best of all possible outcomes...depending on the price for Salty of course.

[grantb]

Well, Saltalamacchia has been a career backup/platoon player, so he's looking for playing time. It could just be he wants to convince Texas to let him play. However, coming to Boston, he would get a lot of playing time, even if The Captain were to stay.

philly sox fan, on Nov 9 2008, 10:54 AM, said:

Maybe the kid is just plain dumb. And one of the reasons that both organizations he's played for have come to believe that he can't handle the responsibilities of being a catcher is that he's not too bright.

Right or wrong - and listening to Buck Martinez for a playoff series, I'd at least say irrelevent - there's an idea that catchers are supposed to be relatively bright. The whole field general, only guy who sees everything on the field cliches.

His expression of a desire to learn is the most encouraging thing I've heard about Jarrod. Most players don't want to be catchers, he does.

[Maalox]

Mystic Merlin, on Nov 9 2008, 05:30 AM, said:

Maybe I am a bit in the dark on this one, but isn't it kind of weird for a player to speak out so enthusiastically about a potential trade? This probably isn't a huge deal, but I can't recall a similar case of a player locked up 4-5 years saying something like this - at most, you usually come across "rumors" and "sources", not documented quotes to reporters.

Sounds to me like the question Saltalamacchia answered was not the one that the story's lead implies he answered. Sounds like he was asked what'd he'd think about becoming Varitek's successor.

What he said isn't even really an answer to the question "what would you think about going to Boston?" When asked about Boston most players say stuff about the park, the fans, the atmosphere, the organization. Salty's zeroing in on Ted so much, I'm inclined to think Ted was the topic of the question. The lead was written later.

[geoduck no quahog]

The impression I get from those quotes is similar to what others have said.

In essence, he's saying, "consider me to be the upcoming catcher that you currently don't have in your organization".

"Now trade for me and I'll happily fulfill that role...I can wait a couple of years"

Great attitude.

[Papelbon's Poutine]

Maalox, on Nov 9 2008, 01:23 PM, said:

Sounds to me like the question Saltalamacchia answered was not the one that the story's lead implies he answered. Sounds like he was asked what'd he'd think about becoming Varitek's successor.

What he said isn't even really an answer to the question "what would you think about going to Boston?" When asked about Boston most players say stuff about the park, the fans, the atmosphere, the organization. Salty's zeroing in on Ted so much, I'm inclined to think Ted was the topic of the question. The lead was written later.

I kind of read it like that too, but there is the one line:

Quote

"That would be a dream come true," said Saltalamacchia, 23. "I'd love to go there and either work under Jason for a year or two or just go there and catch full-time."

I definitely think Cafardo took some liberties with the angle he took in the article and hopefully Salty doesn't get any heat from it.

Either way, he certainly sounds like a good kid and it certianly sounds like he's hungry - both for playing time and for making an impact in this league.


On side note, if we do trade for this kid, can we all agree that when the mods set up the filter on his name, that "Salty" is allowed through? That's a long friggin name...

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

SoxScout, on Nov 9 2008, 11:08 AM, said:

That was only 55 AB, his only at bats he has ever had in AAA...

Table

	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	BABIP	K%	BB/K	IsoP
Rk	46	134	23	32	11	2	2	14	28	33	.239	.370	.396	.766	.303	20%	.85	.142
A	91	323	42	88	19	2	10	51	34	83	.272	.342	.437	.779	.339	23%	.41	.158
A+	129	459	70	144	35	1	19	81	57	99	.314	.394	.519	.913	.367	19%	.58	.203
AA	114	394	48	97	25	1	15	52	68	88	.246	.363	.429	.792	.282	19%	.77	.180
AAA	15	55	10	16	3	1	2	13	7	15	.291	.391	.491	.882	.368	24%	.47	.182
MLB	154	506	66	132	26	1	14	59	50	149	.261	.327	.399	.726	.344	27%	.34	.136

I still think he is amazingly overrated by his one A+ season and his name recognition. I think he will be a competent hitter in time, and his numbers look better as a catcher, but he is adequate at best behind the plate and who knows what his future will hold.

The bulk of those AA numbers were put up as a 21-year-old, and those aren't really bad numbers for that age, level, and position.

I see him as having produced pretty consistently in the minors. Great numbers in 2005 (A+), slightly disappointing but not that bad numbers in 2006 given his level (AA), great numbers in very short stints in 2007 and 2008. The real question (aside from whether he sticks behind the plate) is whether his MLB struggles have been due to natural adjustment combined with inconsistent playing time, or whether there is something about his skill set and approach that just doesn't translate that well to facing better pitchers.

[Eric Van]

Morgan, on Nov 9 2008, 09:27 PM, said:

The bulk of those AA numbers were put up as a 21-year-old, and those aren't really bad numbers for that age, level, and position.

I see him as having produced pretty consistently in the minors. Great numbers in 2005 (A+), slightly disappointing but not that bad numbers in 2006 given his level (AA), great numbers in very short stints in 2007 and 2008. The real question (aside from whether he sticks behind the plate) is whether his MLB struggles have been due to natural adjustment combined with inconsistent playing time, or whether there is something about his skill set and approach that just doesn't translate that well to facing better pitchers.

MLEs from minorleaguelsplits, translated into Runs relative to MLB average C, including park-adjusted MLB numbers for the last 2 years:

age 20: 0
age 21: -13
age 22: +14
age 23: +6

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

Eric Van, on Nov 9 2008, 08:48 PM, said:

MLEs from minorleaguelsplits, translated into Runs relative to MLB average C, including park-adjusted MLB numbers for the last 2 years:

age 20: 0
age 21: -13
age 22: +14
age 23: +6

Thanks Eric.

Those numbers look pretty damn good to me.

[keving18]

The one concern I have about Saltamacchia is he's so tall. 6:4 is rather long for a catcher.