Quote:
Originally Posted by jthig32
Napoli just wasn't going to catch much, because he's terrible at it.
|
What's your basis for this? I know admittedly little about his catching abilities - all I know is Darren Oliver had good things to say about him as a catcher from his days w/ the Angels. I assume he will at least be adequate, given what the Rangers have had behind the plate in recent years at backup C, unless I see/hear otherwise. I didn't watch any Angels games last year, though.
If it's determined that Napoli is serviceable as a backup catcher, then Treanor has nothing really keeping him on the roster. Treanor wasn't going to give you anything at the plate or anything in terms of a throwing threat.. his primary value besides a smidge of vet leadership (which alone isn't worth a roster spot), was being CJ's favorite. And you get more plate apps for both Napoli and Young if Napoli jumps in as backup instead of Treanor.
I could be wrong, especially if Napoli is untenable as a backup catcher.. but I don't believe anybody said that was why LAA was losing games last year.