Marlins Designate Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia For Assignment
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The Miami Marlins raised some eyebrows on Monday when they designated catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia for assignment.
Saltalamacchia, 29, was signed by the Marlins to a 3-year deal worth $21 million prior to the 2014 season. He's due to make $6.16 million through the rest of this season and another $8 million for next season.
Considering he still has over $14 million owed to him over the remainder of his contract, it's highly unlikely that any team will claim him off waivers.
There is a better chance of Salty being moved via trade, but the Marlins will probably have to absorb a good amount of his salary in order to do so.
During his time with the Marlins, Saltalamacchia has been mostly disappointing.
He's made 468 plate appearances with Miami, hitting just .209 with 12 home runs, and hasn't been very good defensively either. In 2014 he led all catchers with 15 errors and had already committed two in his nine games this year.
Meanwhile, prospect J.T. Realmuto has taken the job and ran with it since being inserted as the Marlins everyday catcher.
Manager Mike Redmond, who played catcher in the majors for 13 years, has fully supported Realmuto's promotion.
"With the emergence of J.T. [Realmuto] this was the best decision," said Redmond on Monday afternoon. "J.T.'s done a great job and handles our pitching staff well. It's best for us going forward."
Realmuto is batting .265 in his 11 games this season, with two doubles, a triple, two RBI's and five runs scored. He's also provided Miami with solid defense behind the plate, with several pitchers commenting on how well he's called their games.
"It sure is no coincidence that our pitching [staff] has pitched a lot better with [Realmuto] behind the plate," said Redmond.
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