2022 Cleveland Guardians trade targets: catcher edition

William Contreras (Atlanta Braves)

Some fans may get upset that I’ve decided to target William and not Wilson Contreras, but hear me out. Older brother Wilson is about to turn 30 this upcoming May and is slated to make $8.5 million (or more) via his final season of arbitration. Meanwhile, William just turned 24 and won’t even be arbitration-eligible until 2025. He’s only appeared in 56 game to date, but in 2021 he did manage 13 XBH and a slash line of .225/.303/.399 in 185 plate appearances.

So why would the the Braves even consider trading him? Well, for starters they have Travis d’Arnaud, Manny Piña, and Chadwick Tromp on their current 40-man roster. Couple that along with the fact that their number-two prospect Shea Langeliers is waiting in the wings in Triple-A and it makes sense.

If the Braves want to repeat as World Series champs, they again similar to Toronto, they would likely want to add some pitching depth or potentially a middle infielder for their bench. The Guardians would and should be able to help in each of these departments. For instance a player like Yu Chang could be a nice compliantly piece to what the Braves already have established.

Eric Haase (Detroit Tigers)

Boy, would a reunion with Haase be nice, and yet  kind of weird. Would the Tigers be willing to trade Haase back now that he has established himself? Possibly. But then again, why would they want to make it potentially more difficult to reach the playoffs, granted they are still likely a few years away from being true contenders?

Detroit just acquired Tucker Barnhart from the Reds and would seem to get the bulk of playing time this upcoming season. Jake Rogers and Dustin Garneau also find themselves on the Detroit 40-man roster. The Tigers also have Dillon Dingler, a top prospect, who looks to contribute possibly as soon as next season.

So what would it take to land Haase? Well, when Guardians radio announcer Tom Hamilton calls your club “Miggy and the Mudhens” probably anything, except for maybe shortstop – the Tigers did just sign Javier Báez. The Tigers do have a number of prospects on the verge of making it to the bigs, but having a few extra lottery tickets only helps their cause.

Haase is 29 and probably doesn’t truly fit Detroit’s contention timeline. However, he isn’t arbitration-eligible until 2024, and this past season, he hit 22 home runs in just 98 games. Granted, up to this point in his career, Haase never played more than ten games in an MLB season, so those numbers may be more of an aberration, too.

Victor Caratini (San Diego Padres)

If there is one roster (besides their own) that the Guardians front office knows inside and out it has to be the Padres. It seems like the two clubs have made half a dozen trades over the past two seasons.

Austin Nola is likely to be the Padres primary catcher in 2022, and they acquired Jorge Alfaro from Miami earlier this offseason. The Padres number-two prospect, Luis Campusano, reached Triple-A last season as well. All of this makes Caratini a perfect trade target.

This year will see Caratini playing his age-28 season while making $2 million in his second season of arbitration. In part-time duty over the past five seasons, Caratini has slashed .243/.322/.356.

A quick glance at the Padres 40-man roster and it’s evident the Padres have deficiencies in the outfield as well. Though this could potentially make a trade with the Padres a bit more difficult, the intimate knowledge each club has gained by striking deals over the past few years may mean that a lower-level prospect is all that is required to swing a deal such as this.

Luis Torrens (Seattle Mariners)

It has been too long since the Guardians/Indians took advantage of the Mariners via trade (the jury is still out on the Jake Bauers deal), and I’m hoping this could be one of those situations. Torrens may be my most coveted target on this list; this past season he slashed .243/.299/.431 with 33 XBH (15 home runs) and 47 RBIs in 108 games. He also played some third base and first, as the Mariners looked to gain some versatility and keep his bat in the lineup.

Tom Murphy, Cal Raleigh, and José Godoy are all on the Seattle 40-man roster. They also have prospect Harry Ford, who they just drafted in the first round of this past year’s draft. Torrens will turn 26 early during the season and is set to make $1.5 million during his first year of arbitration.

Due to the logjam at the position and Torrens not being the greatest defensive catcher, there have been ample rumors about his availability. I have to imagine Seattle would love to get their hands on some pitching depth. Not only would pitching help them continue to solidify their place in the AL West, but given the moves/established bats within the division, it will be much needed.