Washington Nationals: Five catchers that should be targeted

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WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 12: Matt Wieters #32 of the Washington Nationals tags out Chris Iannetta #22 of the Colorado Rockies who tried to score on Ian Desmond #20 (not pictured) ground ball in the fifth inning during a baseball game at Nationals Park on April 12, 2018, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Francisco Cervelli – Pittsburgh Pirates

The Washington Nationals and Pittsburgh Pirates are no stranger to each other when it comes to deadline deals. Back in 2016, the Nats acquired Mark Melancon to be their closer down the stretch.

Now it could be Francisco Cervelli‘s turn to be the main piece in a deal between the clubs.

Cervelli is arguably having a career year in 2018, hitting .256, with an impressive .876 OPS and nine home runs. The long balls are noteworthy as the most he had hit in a season before this year was seven in 2015.

Cervelli also has the second highest WAR in baseball among catchers, behind J.T. Realmuto. His 2.3 figure is the same as Trea Turner and Kris Bryant, to give you an idea of how good that is.

With only a year and a half left on his deal, he’s going to require a reasonable prospect in return. The Pirates also like to go for major league ready talent as we saw when they acquired Felipe Vazquez.

So perhaps a package of Raudy Read, whose bat seems big league ready, and Jefry Rodriguez who has shown flashes in two major league starts. Brian Goodwin could also make some sense, but the Pirates already have an outfield logjam to deal with.

While the name doesn’t necessarily grab the headlines, he would be an immediate upgrade on Pedro Severino and Spencer Kieboom. Even when Matt Wieters returns, the two could split time behind the plate, so he’s certainly one to keep an eye on as we move into July.

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