Comments on: Brewers agree to deal catcher George Kottaras to Athletics

By: gustavov8

gustavov8 — Sun, 29 Jul 2012 15:38:40 +0000

I don’t think they will go with three catchers…i see Beane ditching Suzuki and his salary to go with Norris and Kottaras, and in case of injury the A’s still have Donaldson and Recker in Triple-A!

By: zippythesquirrel

zippythesquirrel — Sun, 29 Jul 2012 00:20:14 +0000

Have watched Kottaras during his time with Milwaukee. An “average defensive catcher” is a bit generous. He has to hit to be worth anything. Pinch hitting is his best role. Low average but some pop in the bat with decent OBP with the BB’s. Basepath clogger though.

By: teaspoon1731

teaspoon1731 — Sat, 28 Jul 2012 23:26:09 +0000

So do all Red Sox cast offs end up in Oakland? I mean I know they actually traded Reddick there, and that Coco wasn’t always with Boston. But Coco, Reddick, Moss and now Kottaras? Sox give up on Sabermetrics, A’s benefit. Seems fitting.

By: jimtron11

jimtron11 — Sat, 28 Jul 2012 20:31:26 +0000

Nice snag by Billy Bean and the A’s (I can’t imagine they gave up any minor leaguer of substance in the deal). Kottaras has .754 career OPS, along with 15 HRs in 400 career at-bats versus right-handed pitching. He’s an average defensive catcher who can play first base in a pinch, as well. As far as what this means for Kurt Suzuki; I would tend to think the Athletics will simply opt to go with three catchers on the 25-man roster. Obviously, catchers tend to get dinged up over the course of 162, so the Kottaras acquistion could prove invaluable in the event of an injury to either Suzuki or Derek Norris. It’s also nice to add a left-handed-hitting catcher to a pair of righties.

Funny to see the Athletics acquire a Scott Hatteberg clone on the eve of, you guessed it, ‘Scott Hatteberg bobble head doll night,’ in Oakland next month.