Pirates Catchers Are Basically Brick Walls Behind Plate This Season
A good catcher in Major League Baseball is a lot like a good cornerback in the NFL. When they are good, you barely hear their name during a game, but when they're bad they are all you talk about. For the Pittsburgh Pirates, their catching has been very good for a number of years and has been consistently good dating back to when Russel Martin was the catcher in 2012. Since that season, the Pirates have had just three primary catchers, Martin, Francisco Cervelli, and Jacob Stallings, with a few back-ups sprinkled in there. Last season, Jacob Stallings was nominated for a National League Gold Glove award and finished second in voting. To compliment him, the Pirates brought in Michael Perez, who was the back-up on the 2020 World Series runner-up Tampa Bay Rays.
Together, the two catchers have teamed up to be one of the best defensive duos in all of baseball. After 72 games played this season, Perez and Stallings are the only catching tandem that has yet to allow a passed ball this season. They are also middle of the road in terms of wild pitches given up 28 and are 6th in baseball with 8.1 defensive runs saved this season. Overall, it has been about a 60-40 split in terms of playing time for the two catchers, with Stallings getting most of the starts and Perez filling in for day games, Sunday games, and other special circumstances. Today, we look at this catching duo from a defensive standpoint and see what makes them together one of the best catching groups in baseball.
Jacob Stallings Leading The Way
They say a group is only as good as its leader, and the Pirates catchers have a good one in Jacob Stallings. Stallings finished second in voting for a 2020 Gold Glove Award and is right back where he left off so far in 2021. Stallings has caught 50 of the Pirate's 72 games played this season and once again has a high fielding percentage at .993. He currently sits three points higher than he was at last season and committed just three errors in 425 innings of work this season. For Stallings, the biggest part of his game is pitch framing, as he helps manage this young staff. It is what has earned him praise from guys like Jameson Taillon, Joe Musgrove, and Chris Archer and he is excelling at it once again.
He once again ranks in the top 10% of catchers this season in strike rate, with 47.8% of his pitches being called strikes. He really excels on the corners, but one place he has taken a step forward in is getting that low strike. Last season, Stallings had a strike rate of 29.9%, 60.5%, and 33.3% across the three parts of the lower half of the strike zone. Balls that are middle-low he is about on pace with where he was last year at 55.4%, but the area he has improved most is that down and in the zone against left-handed hitters. Being that Stallings is right-handed, the ump is usually over his glove side. This makes it harder to bring pitches that are on his arm side back in the zone. However, Stallings has raised his strike rate on those low and in pitches on his arm side up to 32.3%, which is more middle of the road.
One thing Jacob Stallings has always been good at is controlling the run game and getting traffic off the base paths. So far this season, Stallings has a caught stealing percentage of 26.6%, 8-30. This is right along the lines of his career numbers catching runners, as his career caught stealing percentage is 30.2% (28-92). Typically, a caught stealing percentage of 30% is one of the higher numbers in the league. Stallings has been solid at controlling runners throughout his career, and even though he got off to a slow start this year, he is getting back to normal as we near the season's halfway point.
Michael Perez Following Suit
Coming into the 2021 season, there was no question about what you were getting with Jacob Stallings. He proved himself in 2020 and came into camp with the position locked down. However, after him, there were several questions as to who his backup would be. It came down to a battle between free agent signings Tony Wolters or Michael Perez and in the end, it was Perez who won the job. While Perez's offensive numbers have been far from impressive, his defense has held up its end of the bargain. His fielding percentage sits at a clean .989 this season, and he has committed two errors in his 196.1 innings of work behind the plate this season.
However, Perez has not been as dominant as Stallings has in the run game, which is one of the biggest differences between the two. While Stallings has caught nearly 30% of would-be base stealers, Perez has been on the opposite end of the spectrum. So far this season, Perez has a caught stealing rate of 8.3%, catching just one in 12 tries. However, he does not allow runners to move up as he has only allowed one passed ball in his first four years in the Big Leagues, with his last coming in 2020 with the Rays. Perez just doesn't get out of his crouch quick enough and opposing runners have been taking advantage.
As for Perez's pitch framing, it is the middle of the road for catchers and is three percent lower than Stallings at 46.9%. However, Perez has made significant improvements to that area of his game, especially on the corners of the plate. His glove side is his better side, with a strike rate of 65.7%, which is a few ticks better than Stallings's number. However, Stallings has Perez beat on the arm side, with Perez's strike rate sitting at 60.4% on his arm side. Perez's bat has earned him more playing time as of late, as he had two big hits to help the Pirates win games. Both Pirates catchers have been strong defensively, and are helping to lead this young pitching staff into the future.
The Pittsburgh Pirates (26-46) head back to National League Central play when they take on the St. Louis Cardinals (36-38) at 8:15 pm. Chad Kuhl (1-4, 5.66) is on the mound for Pittsburgh after his first win of the season against Carlos Martinez (3-8, 6.62) for the Cardinals. You can watch the game live on AT&T Sportsnet, listen on 93.7 The Fan, or follow along with us on Twitter by following @Buccos_Cove.
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