Nationals sign Blake Swihart, implement catcher by committee

By signing Blake Swihart to a minor league contract, the Washington Nationals have brought in another veteran catcher to compete for a spot on the roster.

As the days until pitchers and catchers draw nearer, the Nationals seem more and more content on sticking to their original plan at the catching position. The Nats brass has stated they are comfortable with Yan Gomes catching 90-100 games this upcoming season.

While the Willson Contreras trade rumors continue to swirl, third and fourth tier free agent catchers are being snatched up by other teams almost daily. Yesterday, Talk Nats reported catcher Blake Swihart had been signed to a minor league contract as the Nationals continue to add depth at the position.

When Kurt Suzuki entered free agency at the end of last season the Nationals knew they were in need of reinforcements behind the plate. While they were tied to J.T. Realmuto, signing him away from the Philadelphia Phillies was going to be a long shot. As was the prospects the Lerner’s would open their checkbook and give the veteran catcher what he felt he was worth.

Realmuto returned to the Phillies at $115M over five years, and the Nats have countered with signing Swihart. Swihart, who was selected with the 26th pick in the 2011 draft, has played sparingly over the course of five major league seasons, mostly with the Boston Red Sox.

Swihart is a .243 career hitter with an OPS of .656, spanning 696 plate appearances. The versatility he offers is somewhat intriguing as he’s played 53 error free games in the outfield in his career and logged some innings at first base as well. He’s primarily a catcher though, and would only be used elsewhere in case of emergency.

Aside from Gomes, Tres Barrera is the only other catcher on the 40-man roster. Welington Castillo is back on a minor league contract and Raudy Read, who was outrighted off the 40-man roster a few months ago, remains with the organization as well.

As fans hold out hope a more reliable option will be signed to backup Gomes, I am beginning to think the Nationals will ultimately go with a catcher-by-committee. We’ll set the number of catchers used this season in a game at four, and lean on taking overs. Reminds me of the 2012 season, when the Nationals were forced to use six catchers during the season (Jesus Flores, Kurt Suzuki, Wilson Ramos, Jhonatan Solano, Sandy Leon, and Carlos Maldonado).

While we can’t account for injuries, we can assume a laundry list of guys without a proven track record in recent history, will lead to a revolving door at the catcher position this season.