Yadier Molina, The Top Free Agent Name At The MLB Catcher Position

By Jordan Long

The hot stove for MLB free agency is heating up this offseason.  One of the top names out there in the free agent market at the catcher position is Yadier Molina who has spent his whole career with the St. Louis Cardinals.  He just finished a 3 year, $60 million contract with the Cardinals and would like to play at least 2 more seasons.

                Molina is one of the best catchers to ever play the game.  His batting numbers don’t show how good he is.  He is a career .281 hitter with 932 RBI’s and 160 home runs, pretty good for a catcher.   Molina’s defense is what sets him apart.  He can throw runners out trying to steal a bag and fires the ball to first base on a bunt attempt.  Molina rarely makes an error.  He won 9 Gold Gloves for his work behind the plate.

                This past year in a shortened season, Molina could still hit the baseball with a batting average of .262 with 4 home runs and 16 RBI’s.  On defense, he caught 5 runners trying to move up a base.  He committed 5 errors, far too many for a Hall of Fame type of catcher.  With his play, St. Louis went to the postseason but lost in the Wild Card Series to the San Diego Padres. When that series was over, Molina was a free agent for the first time in his career.  

                St. Louis tried to keep him because there aren’t many catchers who play the position like him.  They offered him a contract but according to cbssports.com, Molina balked at the “ridiculous” offer from the Cardinals.  The terms of the proposal weren’t announced.

                Molina is seeking a deal of at least $10 million with an option for 2021.  That would make him the 4^th highest paid catcher in MLB behind Salvador Perez who plays for the Kansas City Royals.  It doesn’t seem like much money to give him.  Molina knows he is not the All-Star player he once was and isn’t looking to be the highest paid catcher in the league.

                It is still possible he stays with St. Louis.  The Cardinals don’t want to see him go because of the way he plays the position.  Plenty of teams will be interested because Molina is an upgrade.  The problem is his age.  He is 38 and will be 39 during the season.  Not many teams are willing to spend that much money for a veteran player.  Molina will be playing baseball this season.  It is just a matter of which uniform he will put on.