Stark: Marlins Could Be Big Players This Off-Season UPDATE: All Big Names In Play

[Jay]

I count 6 players caught as many (or more) complete games as Buck this year and had a better WAR.

[Bobbob1313]

Oh my effing God.

But you think he's an obvious candidate to be gotten for free...

[HUGG]

The real issue is that the end result would be John Lackey starting games for us.

I don't want that to happen under almost any circumstance.

[Erick]

Oh my effing God.

No, seriously, I'm dying to know.

If you're trading John Buck, you need a catcher to replace him.

The best catchers on the free agent market are Ramon Hernandez and Rod Barajas.

Yaaaayyy.

[Swifty]

But you think he's an obvious candidate to be gotten for free...

Mmmmmmm

[Erick]

The real issue is that the end result would be John Lackey starting games for us.
I don't want that to happen under almost any circumstance.

The Red Sox are bending over backwards and paying his whole salary though, so he's basically just a Spring Training invitee!

[HUGG]

Rod Barajas.

sign me up for Barajas (as Buck's backup)

[Ramp]

there's an awful lot of smarm going on in this thread right now

[Swifty]

The real issue is that the end result would be John Lackey starting games for us.

I don't want that to happen under almost any circumstance.

The end result is John Buck never getting another paycheck from the Marlins.

[HUGG]

I promise you we'd be worse with Lackey giving up 6 runs every 5th day and what other fantasy catcher you have in your mind who would probably be worse than Buck than we will be with Buck and whoever ends up in the rotation besides Lackey.

[Erick]

I promise you we'd be worse with Lackey giving up 6 runs every 5th day and what other fantasy catcher you have in your mind who would probably be worse than Buck than we will be with Buck and whoever ends up in the rotation besides Lackey.

John Lackey would only be a Spring Training invitee!

And Rod Barajas can carry Bonifacio when he gets tired after running around the bases! John Buck sucks; he can't do that!

[Bobbob1313]

I don't know why I'm doing this, because I know it'll be ignored entirely, but...

2012 free agent catchers

Rod Barajas LAD - 36 years old; can't catch full time
Henry Blanco ARI - 40 years old
Ramon Castro CWS - 75 plate appearances last year
Ryan Doumit PIT - .830 OPS; can't catch full time
Ramon Hernandez CIN - 36 years old but certainly an upgrade
Jason Kendall KC - I don't know why someone put him on this list
Gerald Laird STL - .641 OPS over the last 5 years
Jose Molina TOR - .630 career OPS; never more than 300 PAs
Dioner Navarro LAD - Only 28! .578 OPS last three years
Jorge Posada NYY - 40 years old; can't catch full time
Ivan Rodriguez WAS - .679 OPS last 4 years; .295 OPS last 4 years; 40 years old
Brian Schneider PHI - .657 OPA last 6 years
Matt Treanor KC - 36 years old; career .623 OPS; is Matt Treanor
Jason Varitek BOS - .702 OPS last 4 years, which is not bad; 81 OPS+ last 4 years, which is bad; 40 years old

So, we could hope we get Ramon Hernandez and hope his age doesn't catch up with him. He's legitimately the only upgrade in next year's free agency class barring a few guys with options not getting picked up.

So yeah. We could get AJ Burnett, John Lackey, AND Brian Schneider this offseason.

Coolest Offseason ever.

[Erick]

Ramon Hernandez is best available and he's arguably not even a starting catcher anymore. If he's the catcher, you need a good backup as well.

He's averaged ~90 games per season the last 3 years.

[Mainge]

Someone hacked Swift.

[Bobbob1313]

Clearly...