Pudge, 'Tek might flourish in bad market for catchers

Pudge Rodriguez and Jason Varitek have been All-Star starters, and World Series starters, too. They've won a Gold Glove (13 of them, in Rodriguez's case), and they've won Silver Slugger Awards.

And what do you know, they're both available on this winter's free-agent market.

Jason Varitek does a fine job managing Boston's excellent staff. (Getty Images)

But there's one other thing the two Scott Boras clients have in common.

"They were both awful last year," as one American League scout said this week. "Terrible."

So bad that even if you add their RBI totals together, they'd still finish fifth among major league catchers. Taken separately, they ranked 20th (Varitek) and tied for 28th (Rodriguez).

After the All-Star break, they combined for a .235 average, nine home runs and 21 RBI. That's combined.

Awful. Terrible.

And still good enough to get a job, and perhaps even a decent contract, for 2009. Even at 37, which both catchers will be by the middle of next April.

"I actually do think both of them have something left," another AL scout said.

The question, posed to those scouts and others this week, is which aging catcher has a better chance to help a team in 2009. The prevailing answer was that it depends what you want.

"Varitek does a better job handling the pitchers, and catching," one of the scouts said. "Pudge is adequate behind the plate. But Pudge may have a better chance to come out of it offensively. The only thing is, Pudge sometimes gets a little lazy behind the plate. You don't see that from Varitek."

Rodriguez has a better arm. The Rays showed little hesitation in running on Varitek during the playoffs, but the consensus was that he can still "throw out the runners he's supposed to throw out."

Varitek is better running a pitching staff, and the feeling was that the Red Sox pitchers will miss him quite a bit if he leaves. Rodriguez doesn't get as high marks there, but the last two years the Tigers' ERA has been about a run a game higher when anyone else is catching.

Varitek's catcher's ERA was 3.66 in 2008, but as one scout said: "When you have the pitching staff Boston does, I could go back there and call a game."

The Red Sox will make an effort to keep Varitek, who is valuable enough in Boston that one member of the organization called bringing him back "a no-brainer." But Varitek will turn 37 soon after opening day, which makes anything more than a two-year deal seem ultra-risky.

One scenario advanced by a rival executive has the Red Sox offering Varitek arbitration in December, and Varitek accepting. Varitek would then be in line to make $10 million-$12 million -- which he might have trouble getting on the open market -- but the Red Sox wouldn't be committed past 2009.

Varitek might agree, first because he very much wants to remain with the Red Sox, and second because he might well believe that he'll have a better 2009 and be better positioned as a free agent next winter. Varitek battled injuries in 2008, and it was also a trying year personally.

Ivan Rodriguez is generally considered to have a better arm. (Getty Images)

"That may be true, but he's been sliding year to year," one rival executive countered. "And whatever bothered him didn't seem to affect his catching, so why would it just affect his hitting?"

Rodriguez's 2009 team is harder to figure, because it's a given that the Yankees won't be bringing him back. He didn't play well for them after a midseason trade from the Tigers, and besides, Jorge Posada is hopeful of recovering from surgery in time to catch in 2009.

"If I were the Tigers, I'd try to get him back," one of the scouts suggested.

Some have suggested that the Tigers, who desperately need a catcher, could be a player for Varitek. That seems unlikely, because while owner Mike Ilitch hasn't demanded that the Tigers cut payroll, he hasn't authorized big spending for free agents, either.

The Mets could be a possibility, because they've liked Rodriguez in the past and may not be satisfied with Brian Schneider as their starter. Some Mets decision-makers are known to believe that Rodriguez can still be a front-line catcher for a contending team.

In any case, neither Varitek nor Rodriguez should have trouble getting a job.

"There's just not that much catching anywhere," one scout said. "The catching situation in baseball is brutal, absolutely brutal. I think you're going to start seeing teams rush young catchers to the big leagues, whether they're ready or not."

There aren't many quality catchers available in trade, either. The Rangers will talk about their catchers, and the Indians will listen on Kelly Shoppach, but there's little else available.

You can always go to the free-agent market and get an All-Star.

An awful, terrible All-Star.