WEDNESDAY MINORS FINAL 6/2/21; Three more Langeliers HR

[Russ2dollas]

Or move Contreras to LF.

he doesn't have the bat to be plus at another position IMO.

[McCann'sCans]

Feels like Contreras has slowed down a bit at the plate of late. Would love to see him tap a bit more into that right-center power that he has shown a few times. I don't want to be Chip and act like every ball hit to left field is a terrible sin, but I do think he gets a little pull-happy at times in his early career.

[rico43]

I love that kids potential. I'd be open to that considering Shea is doing it all at this point offensively and defensively. Of course I think Contreras can be good defensively but he needs a lot of work. Can Ron Washington train catchers?

The Braves have two of the most respected developers of catching in the game -- Eddie Perez and Sal Fasano.

[CyYoung31]

The Braves have two of the most respected developers of catching in the game -- Eddie Perez and Sal Fasano.

Braves have never had a problem finding good catchers in their history. They’re to catchers what the Steelers are to wide receivers.

[50PoundHead]

It's a (possibly) nice dilemma to have both Langeliers and Contreras (we'll have to see if they will both develop). One possibility with the DH coming is that you don't go with a full-time DH but cycle guys through that role. One scenario is to have a utility guy with some catching experience to serve as the emergency catcher when both Langeliers and Contreras are in the line-up. Twins (the most disappointing team in the majors thus far in 2021) have been doing that with Astudillo as their super-utility guy the past couple of seasons.

[Deester11]

Braves have never had a problem finding good catchers in their history. They’re to catchers what the Steelers are to wide receivers.

True tale

[clvclv]

Not to get too far ahead of things at this point, but how often has it happened that a team has two young, starting caliber catchers on the roster at the same time? Most catching tandems tend to include at least one veteran -- good young catchers don't grow on trees. It would be a pretty unusual arrangement to have, say, a 24-year-old Contreras splitting time with a 24-year-old Langeliers.

Which isn't to say we shouldn't do it -- just kind of musing on the rarity of the situation. If they both legitimately end up being starting caliber MLB catchers, it's obviously tempting to cash in one of them for a juicy return at an area of need.

The problem here is that you have to describe what you're looking for in such a tandem in better detail. One of the two is likely always going to be the better hitter while the other will be thought of as the "defensive guy". Tucker Barnhart is a Gold Glove guy and master framer that can't hit, and Tyler Stephenson has a bat that would play at several positions (probably even 1B most of the time), the aggregate numbers for the two pairs would probably compare pretty favorably at the end of the day if all 4 were deployed correctly.

There are still tons of people that miss the point the numbers-folks keep trying to explain - if Smyly can be really good for 4+ innings, who gives a *uck which innings those are? Just make sure that's when he's on the mound.

For as long as they are property of the Braves, Contreras will ALWAYS be "the bat", and Langeliers will ALWAYS be "the defensive guy" no matter how the games started for each shakes out.

[Southcack77]

I'm just not sure having two plus catchers is the best use of resources if you could move one for quality and pay a vet the minimum to catch a two games a week.

I guess it depends on how well they hit but I assume neither is going to hit 40 hr.

[Enscheff]

There are plenty of catcher PAs to go around for 2 good catchers. The Dodgers have shown precisely how to do it for years now.

In the unlikely event one of them turns into the next JTR, maybe it makes sense to clear space for him. Outside that, keep both of them and enjoy the quality depth at the hardest position physically in baseball.