The late 70’s, early 80’s were my wheelhouse for attending Cubs games. I was just starting to go to Wrigley Field on my own or with a cousin or buddy. Although I still attended more games with Dad than anyone else. Back in the day, teams played only teams in their league. As a result, kooks like me knew out league (the NL) better than our neighbors.
Forty-forty-five years later, I can call up far too many NL rosters while misremembering what I had for lunch Monday. Moe, Larry, and Curly might have been the most inept doctors in TV history but serve as the perfect analogy for poor ML catching trios.
The 1980 Atlanta Braves trotted out the memorable trio of catchers (Bruce Benedict, Biff Pocoroba, and Bill Nahorodny) and still managed an 81-80 record. The fourth catcher, Joe Nolan wasn’t much better. Why was I thinking about this crew? Because I have a screw loose and because they were more than no-hit wonders.
Actually, the White Sox recent acquisition of Matt Thaiss, from the Cubs, sent a shiver up my spine. It didn’t have anything to do with how quickly the Cubs got rid of him, but rather how confused the current Sox catching situation is. After unburdening themselves of Chuckie Robinson, they still have Korey Lee, #2 prospect, Kyle Teel, and #6 prospect, Edgar Quero. Talk about throwing darts and hoping something sticks.
Finding decent catching is almost as much a crap shoot as finding relievers that have more than one good year in them with a specific team. Look at the guys the Cardinals have drafted to succeed Yadier Molina.
Earlier today, I had the opportunity to chat with Sox GM, Chris Getz. As I’m not a Sox beat reporter, I didn’t think it would be good to cross-examine him about his offseason. I’m trying to develop a rapport that might lead to something better. No reason to antagonize a guy before he reads to his daughter’s class.
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