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Minnesota Twins 2018 positional recap, part 1- Catchers

By Matt Smith

CLEVELAND, OH - AUGUST 29: Willians Astudillo #64 of the Minnesota Twins celebrates after hitting a solo homer during the third inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on August 29, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - AUGUST 29: Willians Astudillo #64 of the Minnesota Twins celebrates after hitting a solo homer during the third inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on August 29, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – APRIL 7: Manager Paul Molitor #4 of the Minnesota Twins along with a trainer check on Jason Castro #15 after a wild pitch during the eighth inning of the game on April 7, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Mariners defeated the Twins 11-4. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

Matt’s 2019 predictions

At this point, my preference would be to have Garver as the starter next year, with Castro backing him up and helping mentor him. If Garver can follow up his great 2018 performance with another good offensive year, plus improve his defense and game calling, he legitimately could become the best Twins catcher since Joe Mauer. I do like Astudillo, but I just don’t see room for him in the MLB to start the year. I’d start him off in the minors and have him be the first guy called up with Castro or Garver get hurt or need to miss time for some other reason. After all, this year proved that you can never have too much depth at catcher. At a position that takes such a big toll on the body, it’s never safe to assume someone will be able to play catcher for the entire season without injury.

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As for what exactly I’d like to see from each player next year, the biggest thing for Garver is continuing his development. The last 3-4 months of the season were fantastic for him offensively, and he really improved a lot all around over the course of the season. My goal for him in 2019 would be to continue that development, perhaps focusing a bit more on the defensive side of the game, to become a well rounded, all around solid catcher. Castro is pretty much going to be what he already is, but if he can buy in to being a backup to Garver and helping him develop, it will be really, really valuable for the Minnesota Twins organization. Astudillo will invariably get more time in the MLB at some point next year, for whatever reason, and I do hope he picks up right where he left off. The position is a bit crowded for 2019, but after Castro likely leaves next offseason, a Garver/Astudillo pairing for 2020 and beyond is pretty intriguing.

In conclusion

2018 wasn’t at all what we expected from our catchers, but the Twins were able to make the most of a difficult situation after Castro got hurt. We got a better idea of what to expect long term without sacrificing much catcher production in 2018, largely thanks to Garver’s emergence. Astudillo showed he’s worth considering as an option, too. Wilson and Graterol are no longer with the Twins, and Gimenez is considering retiring, leaving Castro, Garver, and Astudillo to compete for 2 slots on the active roster.

Next. The Twins search for manager is becoming more clear. dark

Catcher has been a bit of a void for the Minnesota Twins since Mauer switched to first base, but the future is once again promising at the position. We’ll enter 2019 with 3 quality options at catcher. After the 2019 season, Castro and the Twins will likely part ways, leaving us with Garver, Astudillo, and further down the road, perhaps prospect Ryan Jeffers. The Twins have a lot of questions to answer and areas of need to address in 2019 and beyond, but catcher is one spot that shouldn’t need much work.

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