Cleveland Indians: How the starting catcher role could play out in 2018

Steven Kubitza

(Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)

The Cleveland Indians have three players who could realistically see time behind the plate in 2018, bringing up several scenarios for the season.

The Cleveland Indians decided against making any major changes this offseason. Yonder Alonso was brought in after Carlos Santana‘s departure, but it seems as if the front office has a great deal of faith in the current group in town.

There is also a lot of money invested in said group.

One interesting, and cheap, position group features three individuals who could earn playing time in 2018. That would be the catcher position.

Yan Gomes, Roberto Perez and the young Francisco Mejia all made appearances in 2017, although Mejia’s time in the majors came after the rosters expanded in September. But 2018 is a new year and there are several possibilities for how the catcher position could play out during the upcoming season.

There is still plenty of time for the team to make a trade, or the plan may be to keep things the same and hope that a weak AL Central division allows another easy path to the playoffs, where the team hopefully won’t falter in the ALDS this time around.

But things change and it is still early in the year, so anything can happen with the group.

Let’s take a look at several scenarios that could play out with the catchers during the 2018 season.

The easiest option is to not change a thing.

Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez split playing time in 2017, with Gomes starting in 96 games and Perez starting in the other 66. This was a new high for Perez, while it was the second-best mark in Gomes’ career next to his 129 starts in 2014, his Silver Slugger season.

Both catchers are known for their defense and that remained true in 2017 as Gomes slashed .232/.309/.399, while Perez finished with the marks of .207/.291/.373.

This scenario would involve the team sticking with a similar plan in 2018. Gomes gets more starts, but the rather similar offensive numbers means Terry Francona may decide to ride the hotter bat at times throughout the season.

This strategy didn’t produce great results on offense in 2017, but it does allow both players to remain fresh throughout a long regular season. It is nice to have a catcher start 129 games as Gomes did in 2014, but that may not be best for one’s long-term health.

Perez is under contract through at least 2020 and Gomes is here through at least the 2019 season, so this scenario could continue on beyond 2018.

This isn’t the most flashy scenario, but it could be the one that Terry Francona trusts the most at least at the start of the season.

Having two elite defensive catchers on the roster is a luxury, and the Indians could look to explore just how valuable both Gomes and Perez are to other teams seeking an upgrade at the position.

Gomes is set to make just over $6 million this season, before his salary increases to just over $7 million in 2019, with a $9 million team option in 2020 and an $11 team option in 2021.

Perez is set to make just $1.625 million this season, with that increasing to $2.625 million in 2019, $3.625 million in 2020, followed by a team option of $5.5 million in 2021 and finally a $7 million team option in 2022.

Having Perez under team control for cheap for so long makes him a valuable target for other teams, while it also means the Indians could choose to keep him over Gomes because of that great value.

Gomes’ salary is a bit high for Cleveland standards, but that would be nothing for a big market team looking to add some talent at the catcher position. Gomes has more experience as a starter and could bring some nice talent in return in a trade.

As for the timing of a trade, I imagine it would take place during the season and not in the next few months. And it would only occur if Mejia was playing so well that having him stay behind Gomes and Perez no longer made sense, meaning a trade would be done to clear a spot for the young star.

This is the most unlikely scenario, but crazier things have happened.

Francisco Mejia made a cameo during the 2017 season, but his 13 at-bats were just the beginning of what will hopefully be a long career in Cleveland.

His situation is interesting because while he is a catcher now, the team may want to move him to another position eventually, such as third base. However, it may be best just to keep him behind the plate for now.

It is highly unlikely Mejia makes the Indians’ roster out of Spring Training, unless the front office surprises us and trades either Gomes or Perez before then. I simply don’t see it happening.

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Mejia’s time likely wouldn’t come until the summer, when a trade may become more likely. If he is tearing it up in the minors the front office may decide it is time and bring him up to spark the team.

So much would have to happen for Terry Francona to entrust his pitching staff to a 22-year-old, so I don’t see this scenario as a likely one.

It would only occur if the team gets out to an extremely slow start, and both Gomes and Perez are having dismal seasons.

It is essentially a worst-case scenario, which is no offense to Mejia.

Rather, this Indians team may not want to make drastic changes to how this elite pitching staff is managed midway through a season where there are championship aspirations.

I have to go with the first scenario and say that the Indians will keep things simple and go with the combo of Perez and Gomes in 2018.

Francona will keep playing time close to even, with Gomes continuing to get the majority of the starts, given he doesn’t have a terrible time on offense.

Mejia is going to be a fixture on this team in the near future, but we may be a year or two away from that being a reality. Remember, he is only 22 years old. He should see some playing time again in September of this year, but fans will not be seeing him in a full-time role just yet.

The catcher position is perhaps the most important one on the field, which is why I was against the Jonathan Lucroy deal a few years back. Not only did it involve losing top prospects for Lucroy, but it meant bringing in a new leader with just two months left in the season.

Gomes and Perez are not the best on offense, but they know how to manage a game and remain two of the best defensive catchers in baseball. The Indians are simply lucky to have both on the roster.

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Mejia will get his time eventually, but don’t expect any major changes in 2018. It will be the Gomes and Perez show behind the plate once again.

Steven Kubitza

Steven Kubitza is a diehard Cleveland sports fan trying to stay sane.