Reds catching 2013 and after

[kaldaniels]

I don't disagree. But there is nothing wrong with letting a rookie catcher be the short side of a "platoon" until the situation becomes more clear.

And that was what I was getting at.

This situation is not as simple as "I thought the plan is to win as many games as you can". There are nuances involved.

To a point you are right, but the plan at least for me, is to win as many games over the long haul, not just the ones being played right now.

[kaldaniels]

I guess my thing is that I view Mes as a top notch product. If that is the case there needs to be a plan to get him to be the regular catcher as soon as possible and have an exit strategy in place for Hanigan.

I'm not saying trade Hanigan, but if Mes is ready to grab the reigns, give him a fair shot at being the main guy. And if he works out, figure out the best thing to do with Hanigan.

I'm willing to listen to all opinions as this is tricky and no side is totally out of bounds here.

[Wonderful Monds]

How do you define if he's playing better than Hannigan? How long does he have to play better than Hannigan? How much better than Hannigan does he have to be?

Better is better. It's pretty cut and dry to me. Better overall numbers over a significant sample. Being a good enough catcher that he's an asset to the pitchers.

I'm not sure why belaboring the point is necessary. It's not hard to find out when one player has better numbers than another.

[Wonderful Monds]

I guess my thing is that I view Mes as a top notch product. If that is the case there needs to be a plan to get him to be the regular catcher as soon as possible and have an exit strategy in place for Hanigan.

I'm not saying trade Hanigan, but if Mes is ready to grab the reigns, give him a fair shot at being the main guy. And if he works out, figure out the best thing to do with Hanigan.

I'm willing to listen to all opinions as this is tricky and no side is totally out of bounds here.

I do not understand this at all. Why are we trying to devise a strategy to ditch a consistently quality player in favor of a player who (while having a lot of potential) is not only not a sure thing, but has not played well in the MLB time he's received?

Scheme the exit strategy once Mesoraco warrants it.

[kaldaniels]

I do not understand this at all. Why are we trying to devise a strategy to ditch a consistently quality player in favor of a player who (while having a lot of potential) is not only not a sure thing, but has not played well in the MLB time he's received?

Scheme the exit strategy once Mesoraco warrants it.

If you think Mes will be an upgrade from Ryan it makes sense.

[Raisor]

Better is better. It's pretty cut and dry to me. Better overall numbers over a significant sample. Being a good enough catcher that he's an asset to the pitchers.

I'm not sure why belaboring the point is necessary. It's not hard to find out when one player has better numbers than another.

Won't sample size be an issue?

9 games a month will make it a long time before we can figure out what we have in Mes.

[Wonderful Monds]

Won't sample size be an issue?

9 games a month will make it a long time before we can figure out what we have in Mes.

Yeah, it'll take a while. Them's the breaks though.

[Scrap Irony]

That's my problem with the whole situation. If Mez gets 65 at bats by the end of May and has a few hits fall in, that means he's ready? It's an arbitrary way of deciding the fate of a player that's pretty important to the future of the franchise. Hanigan's not exactly getting younger.

Aren't those "few hits" the reason why he should be playing more?

Success may indeed be arbitrary; however, isn't it the best way to gauge playing time when one is looking for wins?

Success in Mesoraco's case would hinge on not only his own success, but that of Hanigan and the starting pitchers both catchers handle.

[Wonderful Monds]

If you think Mes will be an upgrade from Ryan it makes sense.

Why would we think that though? I don't particularly remember a prospect at any other position given such a big assumption to how well they are going to produce, in favor of an established quality player.

I'm not sure why it is that it's shaken out that way for Mesoraco and Hanigan. Maybe if Hanigan was older and conceivably about to bottom out as a player, or about to get expensive/in a walk year, I'd get it.

But neither is the case. And yet a lot of us just want to give him the reigns no questions asked and say tough luck to a player who's a quality hitter and probably a top 3 defender at the most important defensive position.!

[Wonderful Monds]

Aren't those "few hits" the reason why he should be playing more?

Success may indeed be arbitrary; however, isn't it the best way to gauge playing time when one is looking for wins?

Success in Mesoraco's case would hinge on not only his own success, but that of Hanigan and the starting pitchers both catchers handle.

Yeah I mean if he's playing well, give him more time, whatever, not a big deal. Sit Hanigan a little more often, go Hanigan 3 times through the rotation one time, alternate to Mes 3 times the next go around in the rotation.

But just naming Mes the starter outright at this point is borderline crazy IMO.

[kaldaniels]

Yeah I mean if he's playing well, give him more time, whatever, not a big deal. Sit Hanigan a little more often, go Hanigan 3 times through the rotation one time, alternate to Mes 3 times the next go around in the rotation.

But just naming Mes the starter outright at this point is borderline crazy IMO.

Hanigan starts opening day for me. Then I'd try to go 60/40 Mes as a start.

[Wonderful Monds]

Hanigan starts opening day for me. Then I'd try to go 60/40 Mes as a start.

Why though? What possible reason is there to do that? I'm not trying to develop Mesoraco at the expense of the entire rest of the team.

[Scrap Irony]

Mesoraco isn't as good as Hanigan yet.

And it's not really close.

Mesoraco was below replacement level last season. Hanigan was very good.

[Raisor]

So no one wants to go out on a limb and give us a straight answer on what Mes needs to do?

I give you the following:

After two months, Hannigan is playing to his career averages. Mes is OPSing 850 and is an average defender. What happens next?

[kaldaniels]

So no one wants to go out on a limb and give us a straight answer on what Mes needs to do?

I give you the following:

After two months, Hannigan is playing to his career averages. Mes is OPSing 850 and is an average defender. What happens next?

Loser Leaves Town cage match?