Monday saw the Red Sox take another step to strengthen their organizational catching depth.
Boston acquired Jhonny Pereda from the Cubs to complete a trade that took place more than two months ago. Right-handed pitcher Travis Lakins was sent to Chicago for future considerations, and those turned out to be the 23-year-old international signing from Venezuela.
Pereda played in 98 games at Double-A last season and received the 2019 Minor League Rawlings Gold Glove Award for his performance behind the plate. He threw out 44 of 132 attempted base stealers and made just three errors in 833 total chances. Pereda also made seven of his 90 starts at first base.
Pereda’s bat lags behind his defense – he slashed just .241/.336/.305 with two home runs and 16 doubles last season. His OPS of .641 was down from the .710 he posted in 122 games at Class A in 2018. Pereda played his first game in the Cubs system as a 17-year-old in 2013.
The Red Sox received a breakout year from Christian Vazquez in 2019, as he emerged as the franchise’s clear No. 1 option behind the plate. Vazquez set career highs with 26 doubles, 23 home runs, 72 RBI and 33 walks. His .798 OPS in 138 games represented a huge jump from the .540 he posted in 2018.
It was a cloudy picture behind Vazquez, as Sandy Leon slashed just .192/.251/.297 in 65 games and was traded to Cleveland in December. Blake Swihart was designated for assignment in April after just 12 games and eventually traded to Arizona for minor league outfielder Marcus Wilson. Juan Centeno also appeared in seven games for Boston.
The Red Sox brought in two external candidates this spring to compete for the backup job behind Vazquez. Five-year veteran Kevin Plawecki signed a one-year deal with Boston in January and was placed on the 40-man roster. Jonathan Lucroy was signed as a non-roster invitee in February, and the 10-year veteran has ties with interim manager Ron Roenicke dating to their shared time in Milwaukee from 2011-15.
According to SoxProspects.com, Swihart and Vazquez were among the organization’s top 10 minor leaguers in June 2014. Swihart checked in at No. 3 after being selected in the first round of the 2011 draft, while Vazquez was slotted at No. 9 after the Red Sox tabbed him in the ninth round of the 2008 draft. The immediate future at the position appeared to be quite strong from an internal perspective.
Boston is in a far different place at the moment. Catcher was arguably the organization’s weakest position group entering this offseason, and the Red Sox have now made several moves to address it. Connor Wong was one of the pieces returning from the Dodgers in the trade that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to Los Angeles, and SoxProspects ranks him 12th overall.
Kole Cottam was set to be Boston’s top returning catching prospect in the minor leagues. He was selected in the fourth round out of Kentucky in the 2018 draft and played in 87 games at Class A last season. Centeno and Oscar Hernandez split the bulk of the time at Triple-A Pawtucket in 2019 while Jhon Nunez, Jake Romanski, Austin Rei and Charlie Madden each appeared in at least 24 games at Double-A Portland.
Lakins has since been waived by the Cubs and was claimed by the Orioles in late January. The 25-year-old made his Red Sox debut and appeared in 16 games, pitching to a 3.86 earned run average and striking out 18 in 23-1/3 innings. Lakins was selected by Boston out of Ohio State in the sixth round of the 2015 draft.
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