While last year actually happened, West Virginia is going to do their best to forget it and call it a lost year. Knowing that, there will be some positions that are up for grabs this spring training. One of those positions will be catcher. With 2 catchers on the 40 man roster, one would think that the position is settled, but it is not. Management has promised both Gi-Hyuk Paek and Sozen Tanaka fair shots at earning spots on the major league roster. Whoever has the worst spring out of the 4 will most likely be cut and the person placing third will head back to AAA.

Let’s look at the 4 catchers and at the end this reporter will try and make a prediction:

Derek Daniels started a majority of the games at catcher last year and didn’t have a good season. He wasn’t able to do much at the plate besides the occasional home run (13 total) and his CERA was pitiful. About the only good things are he threw out 35% of the baserunners that tried to steal a base and his FRM was a 5.4. If Derek is to make the team, he will have to hit better than .170.

Masashige Hamada had been the started the last 4 years until last season when he took a backseat to Daniels. Like Daniels, Hamada had a hard time hitting with an OPS of only .609 and not much defensive effort last season. While the team gave him an extension this offseason, if he doesn’t perform the way he usually has in the past, he will find himself looking for a change of scenery.

Gi-Hyuk Paek is a catcher who has never gotten out of the minor leagues and has usually always been just a backup catcher. He has the ability to hit for average and not hurt the team defensively. If there is a major hole in his game, it would be his arm is not as strong as the team would like. Having been with the organization since 2035, this might be Paek’s last chance to make the PEBA squad and if he fails to, is most likely to be cut.

Sozen Tanaka has been in the WIL the last 5 years and was a starter over the last few. Tanaka is a rare lefty hitting catcher, who has good gap power that will work well in WV. He showed competency in the WIL and wanted to come back to the PEBA after being released his first year by Palm Springs. The Alleghenies figured it was worth a chance, and they are hoping that he can have a great spring and force his way onto the 40-man roster or at least a platooning spot in AAA.

So, what will the Alleghenies catching situation look like? No one knows at the moment, but this reporter thinks that Tanaka’s lefty bat will make his way onto the roster and Hamada will be his platoon partner. Why? Derek has an option left and gives some flexibility to management, meanwhile Paek has a huge task ahead of him to crack a spot especially when he has never been a starter.  Though there may be a dark horse to enter the race as this reporter has heard rumors of 1 more catcher coming into town.  Are the rumors true and if so who will it be?