Pudge to Land in Queens?

The Associated Press reported Sunday night that catcher Ivan Rodriguez may sign with the Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, or New York Mets. Pudge is a 14 time All-Star, 13 time Gold Glove winner, and won the AL MVP in 1999. He played for Detroit in 2008 before being traded to the Yankees the final two months of the season.

My instant reaction when seeing Pudge list the Mets as a possible employer for the ‘09 season was, why not? The Mets have been floating Ramon Castro’s name around in trade talks, so Pudge Rodriguez would seem to be a perfect fit as a backup catcher. The biggest hurdle aside from parting with Castro would be getting Rodriguez to agree to a limited role of maybe 50-60 games behind the plate. 

There’s no question Pudge is right about at the end of his career but he is still a major presence behind the plate. He is still a strong defensive catcher who threw out 31% of base runners last season, the 6th highest percentage in baseball. Offensively he is very similar to Castro, though has much less power but should hit for a better average. 

Pudge also has the intangibles GM’s love, the veteran experience along with 153 postseason at bats. Castro has yet to reach the postseason. Aside from Pudge’s monetary demands I don’t see a reason why the Mets shouldn’t pursue him. He seems like the perfect fit for this veteran team that needs to win now. If I’m Omar Minaya I unload Castro and bring Pudge into camp ASAP.

Robb Lennahan