Bryan Anderson was drafted in 2005. He was a much hyped offensive potential for a backstop who others thought would develop power down the road. When that power projection didn’t come to fruition, Anderson took a big hit in the eyes of analysts. Each year, it seems like I make an obligatory “Bryan Anderson is still good/useful/prospecty” post regarding his value.
Acknowledging that Bryan Anderson is a valuable commodity or future MLB backstop didn’t always translate to advocating him in the majors. It did always advocate for him being ahead of Matt Pagnozzi on any proverbial depth chart though. It seems like the Cardinals have firmly committed to that decision — whether that was always the internal ranking or if all parties involved believed in that assessment is a different story and not one I’ve been privy to — with their release of Matt Pagnozzi, per Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
This winter the club intends to seek more from the role after Jason La Rue announced he would retire following three years in the role. Left unsaid is a desire for the next backup to take on more of the catching load; Yadier Molina has ended the last three seasons with knee issues.
If ever there was a prescription for giving Anderson some playing time it’s the above quote combined with a very good 2010 performance in Memphis. Anderson’s spent time working with Mike Matheny and while he won’t win any gold gloves, he’s not such a liability that he can’t catch a game or two a week.
Anderson is a left-handed hitter. Molina is a right-handed hitter. While Molina’s past offensive production and superb defense argue against a strict platoon, the opportunity to leverage off days in ideal situations both for starts and late inning pinch hitting is ideal.
Anderson’s heaviest workloads came in 2006 & 2006 when he accumulated over 400 PAs as the primary catcher for Quad Cities & Springfield. (Anderson skipped Palm Beach altogether.) Since then he’s seen significant though pronounced split time behind the plate with a co-catcher at Springfield & Memphis. So while no one would expect him to take on a full catching load in 2011, he’s also used to being in the game sporadically.
The downside is that Anderson might benefit from more playing time than he’d see with Yadier Molina. The manager and many of the pitchers would almost certainly have a definitive preference for Molina, who has shown little desire to remove himself from games even when it is prudent to do so. If the concerns regarding Molina’s knee are significant (and based on his missing time in 2010 and reduced offensive production, there has to be some concern even if it’s inappropriate to decisively link his offense to an injury), the task falls to the manager to effectively integrate a young catcher who is still learning how to call a game but who also has as much offensive potential as any backup catcher since Yadier Molina was protege to Mike Matheny.
Anderson put up a .270/.341/.448 line in Memphis last season over 300 PAs. That’s a tick better than average offensive production without regard to position. Anderson’s climb to the majors would likely reduce that production at the beginning and it would be misleading to indicate that he’ll be better than a .290-.300 wOBA hitter in a good season. But a .290 wOBA hitter is better than the Cardinals have had as a backstop since 2004 with Yadi when he hit .267/.329/.356 behind Matheny. A .290 wOBA hitter is 1 WAR player from the catcher position over a full season (assuming neutral defense).
The bar simply isn’t set high for offensive production from a backup catcher.
| Year | Player | wOBA |
| 2010 | Jason LaRue | .270 |
| 2009 | Jason LaRue | .279 |
| 2008 | Jason LaRue | .286 |
| 2007 | Gary Bennett | .269 |
| 2006 | Gary Bennett | .262 |
| 2005 | Einar Diaz | .236 |
| 2004 | Yadier Molina | .294 |
So getting increased offensive production, even if your not a Bryan Anderson believer, is a very low bar relative to recent catching performances. If Anderson puts together a .270/.315/.360 he’s achieved a .290 wOBA performance. Anderson has a history of hitting for average and drawing walks. If the bulk of his opportunities are against right handed pitchers, there is a strong case to be made that he can achieve these levels of production.
None of this is meant to indicate that Bryan Anderson is a world beater. He’s a useful role player right now and the Cardinals would be prudent to see what, if anything, he can be long term. Yadier Molina’s team friendly contract is up in 2012 (option year at $7M) and the team may wind up looking for more than a backup catcher. It’s still an open question how productive Anderson will be at the majors but he’s tailor made for the Cardinals current needs. He comes at minimal monetary cost and, potentially, could play a larger role on the team in the future. 2011 should be the year of Bryan Anderson, backup catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals.
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Mo has also publicly stated that he wants more offense from his backup catcher. Anderson should fit that bill. The big thing in my mind is to give Anderson a shot to know if their is any possibility of him taking over if they deem extending Molina too expensive.
I like it! I think it would be prudent to give an invite or two to some of the FA catchers out there if any don’t garner a new contract. The team has an opportunity to make a big statement this offseason as to how much they trust their farm system!
It’s just odd. The Cards gave a bunch of starts to Pags in Sept (12 starts) to the detriment of Anderson, Pags knocks the snot out of the ball, then he gets taken off of the 40 man roster. One would assume Pags was playing in Sept for his 40 man roster spot. Why give him the stats otherwise? I’m for the decision but it should have never have gotten this far. Anderson should have gotten those 12 starts in Sept. of 2010. If the organization as a whole thought it was a close competition between the two (as allocation of MLB starts indicates), then one would think Pags’ performance in Sept broke the tie. Obviously there is a disconnect between the Cards co-manager (LaDunc) and the GM. So far this low intensity war has been waged through the little chess pieces: Marty Mason, Barry Weinberg, now Pagnozzi. I wonder how long the facade of a united front can be maintained?
Einar Dias … um, glad I forget 2005.
jjray–
Seems like a pretty obvious case of Tony wanting one thing and Mo wanting something else. We have seen this film before (Anderson himself, earlier in the year; Allen Craig out of spring training; Jess Todd the year before, IIRC). Tony has been winning the game. But it looks like Mo is beginning to assert himself and may even get Tony to buy into his ideas.
“But it looks like Mo is beginning to assert himself and may even get Tony to buy into his ideas.”
I doubt that. Tony has consistently been Tony. He really doesn’t change for good or bad. Perhaps what is more likely is that DeWitt is empowering JMo to assert himself. Maybe I’m wrong and Tony gets together with JMo to kick it with a bottle of wine while singing kumbaya. Maybe Joan Baez is a new friend of Tony and she is teaching him to connect with his inner peaceful, nonconfrontational self. Or maybe not and sooner or later JMo & Tony are going to the mat.
I agree that this was Mo’s decision despite what Tony may have wanted, not because of what Tony may have wanted. If Tony wanted Anderson to be the backup, he’d have gotten the starts to which jj referred. Instead they went to Pagnozzi. This move was clearly one in which Mo was asserting his authority despite what Tony’s preference was.
I certainly agree that Tony doesn’t change. But he has actually been one of the most embracing managers of lots of new ideas. Okay, his ideas, but consider: the “modern” closer; pitchers batting eighth; the LOOGy; batting the clean-up hitter third, etc.
I’m not sure why he can’t become accepting of the idea of a backup catcher who can actually hit. It turns a wasted roster space into a great pinch-hitting opportunity. The problem I see right away, though, is his insistence on a stupid “emergency” catcher. Because you don’t want Molina playing first unless you have a big lead late in the game (not a situation when you would pinch for him anyway), I don’t think Tony can commit to letting Anderson pinch-hit unless there is some third-level backup. Brandon Inge would have been great for this role last year. Anyone else like him floating around (besides Motte, of course…come to think of it…)?
I think that all of this stuff ties in together. The age gap between coaches/managers and players is getting bigger, good job in bringing in a coach who is familiar with most of the players that will be brought up and willing to help them to make adjustments.
For all of you that don’t like Mo, just think about what a difficult job he must have. From what I hear, he is most respectful of his future HOF manager and staff, but changes need to be made, the future of STL is in the farm and the draft, not used up vet players and 15 year+ managers. The manager remains, then you need your coaches to help bridge the gap between old and new, if not, changes have to be made.
Just my perception of things that may have gone wrong and trying to fix it and make everyone (players, coaches, managers) happy. You can’t win games or championships with unhappy campers.
I’m all in favor of the idea of filling the backstop role from within, but is it so obvious that Anderson is the guy to fill it with? The fact that they sent Tony Cruz, not Anderson, to the AFL, and Cruz has been raking there (even by the offensively-inflated standards of the AFL), makes me wonder if the organization sees him already as the solution to the LaRue problem, not Anderson.
Either way, this seems like the ideal year to start getting TLR used to the idea. Mo can always plead (quite validly, IMO) that he’d rather spend the free-agent money on something more important, like an upgrade at 2B or even 3B, or a second LOOGY who can actually get hitters out — not to mention retaining certain key people.
In 2011, Anderson will be competing to make the Memphis roster, against Hill and Cruz. The Cards will probably sign a veteran replacement for LaRue. If Molina or the backup are injured, then Anderson could play in StL. From a Cards standpoint, its nice to have catching depth at AAA.
The reason Pagnozzi got the AB’s in September was because Anderson got hurt. Or am I mis-remembering?
I think you are right, didn’t he get mowed down by that idiot that went after Marlins Chris Volstad?
“mowed down” is a little harsh from what i remember. he got taken out on an un-needed play, but i don’t think he got hurt on the play from what i remember. he was not blocking the plate but the DB felt necessary to run into him but it was more of an un-necessary harsh ‘bump’ than a take out
Shouldn’t Steven Hill be in the discussion? Is his defense that bad? Because the dude rakes. I agree with Gruntosaurus, I don’t think it’s so obvious that Anderson is handed the back up job, not when there are two other guys coming off of excellent seasons
I’m completely on board with giving Anderson his shot. In my opinion, he’s earned it. He took care of that ‘No power’ rap by hitting 12 dingers in under 300 at bats this year. Bryan has always hit well when healthy so I have no problem with him as a backup. Plus we’ll have Cruz and Hill in Memphis and I think those two will be capable of backup roles if needed in 2011. I have faith in Bryan Anderson, so I look forward to him succeeding in St.Louis.