We don’t know what Francisco Cervelli’s health is like right now. Concussions are highly unpredictable. That said, I hope that Cervelli chooses to sit out the remainder of the season. After four concussions, he will at some point be risking permanent damage with any quick return. No matter how severe or minor his concussion, there is now a significant chance that the Yankees will need to make up a postseason roster without him, which poses an interesting challenge.
We all know that Russell Martin will catch the overwhelming majority of postseason innings this postseason, if not every single one. We’re lucky enough that Martin is a very well-rounded catcher: there are almost no foreseeable situations where it would be prudent to substitute him for a pinch hitter, pinch runner, or defensive replacement. You can’t say that about every postseason starting catcher, which gives the Yankees some flexibility in postseason roster decisions. The Yankees will only need another catcher in the event of an emergency. Here are some of the different Cervelli-less combinations that the Yankees could try:
Option A: Russell Martin, Jesus Montero, Jorge Posada
This is probably, at this point, the default option. Jorge and Montero essentially platoon at designated hitter, while Montero spends most of his time on the bench as the backup catcher. Its comfortable for a lot of reasons: Posada doesn’t have to be embarrassingly left off the roster, the Yankees have some extra insurance in case of a Russell Martin injury early in the series. Of all the options, it probably gives the Yankees to weakest bench, thanks to the dual lack of versatility on the part of both Montero and Posada. Essentially, they are both emergency catchers and platoon DHs. Andruw Jones, Eric Chavez, and Eduardo Nunez give the Yankees a strong bench even with a little dead weight, but I think the Yankees could do better.
Option B: Russell Martin, Jesus Montero, Austin Romine
This is a variant on the previous lineup. Austin Romine essentially fills Francisco Cervelli’s spot and limited responsibilities. Jesus Montero functions as your primary designated hitter, although the Yankees may choose to slot in Eric Chavez against some right-handed pitchers. Romine says on the bench unless Russell Martin has to leave the game. In that case, the Yankees can be more comfortable with the defense his provides if called into service, where as they might be a little nervous relying on Jesus Montero to block balls in a big spot. They sacrifice a little offensive capability, and hold a similarly weakened bench like Option A.
Option C: Russell Martin, Jesus Montero + 1 Other Player
This is my preferred option. The Yankees take a little bit of a risk, but not a huge one. Jesus Montero is certainly capable of manning the catcher position if Martin goes down with an unlikely injury, even if his defense may be inadequate at times. He spends his time primarily as a designated hitter, although he may ride the bench in some games. The Yankees use the roster spot vacated by a third catcher/DH to beef up either their bench or bullpen – allowing them to keep someone like Chris Dickerson, Hector Noesi, Phil Hughes, Luis Ayala, or whomever on the roster. Posada sits with the taxi squad, and Romine goes home. Option C gives the Yankees the best roster given a healthy Russell Martin. The downside is that if Montero were forced into catching duties in the middle of the game, the Yankees would lose the designated hitter. That’s a risk I’m willing to bite.
Option D: Russell Martin, Austin Romine, Jorge Posada
This is the other side of Option B. The Yankees carry a designated hitter, a backup catcher, and Russell Martin. Jorge Posada would simply slot into Montero’s spot, sharing time with Chavez and Jones. It seems to me the weakest option – the Yankees not only limit their bench choices, but also slot in a likely inferior hitter with Posada. Its a very conservative, risk-averse way to construct the roster.
But that’s just me. The Yankees have a ton of choices to make in these next few weeks, above and beyond what to do with their backup catcher. How would all of you construct your postseason roster? If you go with something like Option C, who would you add in the extra catcher’s place?
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I would go with Option A. Romine barely has any MLB experience and is further away from being an MLB player than Montero even though he was called up shortly after Montero was. Romine was called up only because Cervelli got hurt.
I truly believe that this is the last time we see Cervelli in pinstripes. Not just this year but in general. I am not seeing his career is over because I hope that he makes a full recoverly. With that said, I believe that now we will see Austin Romine as the back-up catcher the rest of this year and into next year. He has look good so far behind the plate. Even if Romine doesn’t make the postseason roster, I believe that this time up here will be very benefical to his future. Making him the back-up next year will be a good way to break him into a full big league season.
I really hope and believe this is the case because for as much as I hope Cervelli is ok his act has worn thin on me. I can’t stand seeing a back-up catcher who is way too into himself and think he is bigger than he really is. All the taunting and over celebrating he does annoys the living hell out of me. I also can’t stand how he alway show up the umpires. When ever he thinks its a strike 3 and the ump doesn’t call it, he either sits there forever holding that spot or start to throw the ball around the diamond. I believe that there have been a lot of time were he has cost our pitchers strikes from doing that. While I hope he is ok, Cervelli better find a place to live in scranton and get to know the pitching staff there because thats the only place he is catching next year.
We’ll see. Scranton’s better than Nuthin’. What does a Scranton Yankee make per year?
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If Posada is going to be on the post season roster as a third catcher don’t you think he should get a little time behind the plate down the stretch when they have a playoff spot locked up?