Royals: Positional battle, Salvador Perez needs a backup

Now that the all-star catcher will return to his spot behind the plate, the Kansas City Royals will have to find a backup to fill in as needed.

Kansas City Royals fans can rejoice in knowing that the beloved all-star, Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, catcher, Salvador Perez, will be back behind home plate for the 2020 season. After sitting out for all of 2019 recovering from Tommy John surgery, Perez will hopefully get back to work, calling great games and hitting into the stands.

When thinking about a positional battle that may take place for the Royals in spring training, it’s likely that many fans wouldn’t think about the catcher’s spot first. This is understandable, as there is nobody in line to take Salvy’s spot.

One question that will have to be answered, though, is who will be the backup for Salvy when he returns to Kauffman. With Salvy out in 2019, the Royals had a great chance to look at the young catching talent they have in the organization. While veteran catcher Martin Maldonado was initially picked up as the starter, a trade and an injury to backup Cam Gallagher had the Royals going deep to see what their minor league players could do.

As the organization got to see much of what they have in line for the catching position, it is likely the backup role will be filled by one of these players. All three in-house players put up decent numbers in 2019, but two of them continue to run similar in both offensive production, and defensive ability. So the question remains, which option deserves to be the backup?

One young option for the Kansas City Royals may take the position, allowing fans to see if he can continue his great defensive production.

Meibrys Viloria

Meibrys Viloria is another likely option along with Gallagher. After a short 10 game stint during the 2018 season, Viloria saw action in 42 games during 2019. He is very young at only 22 years old, but he has great defensive ability and could grow into a starting catcher someday.

To be a starting catcher, though, Viloria will need to work on his offense. In his 42 games in 2019, Viloria slashed .211/.259/.286. with 15 RBIs, 7 runs, and 1 home run. These numbers aren’t great, but Viloria has seen very limited major league time so there is a chance he could turn things around if given the opportunity.

Defensively, Viloria was spot on. He carried a .997 fielding percentage and had a caught-stealing rate of 41 percent, a very Savly-like number. This number could go down as he gets more playing time, as he converted 9 of13, but with his stellar defense and ability to move, he could likely keep his percentage in the high 20s-30s.

Viloria is a solid option for backup catcher, but with his young age, he may still benefit from some time in the minor leagues, allowing him to grow and learn everything he can before being set free in the majors.

The Kansas City Royals have another in-house option, but he hasn’t seen near the major league time as other players in the organization.

Nick Dini

Nick Dini is another option the Royals have in-house for the backup catcher role. While he has not had near as much major league time as the above two options, he deserves a spot on this list. Dini got the call to play in 2019, and though his time was short, he got to see time in 20 games.

Dini struggled with strikeouts, slashing .196/.270/.357 with but did manage to score 11 runs, and record 2 home runs and 6 RBIs over his short 20 game run. He needs to strengthen his discipline at the plate and learn some patience, but this is something that may come with more major league time.

Though the sample is small, Dini managed to put up decent numbers defensively as well. His .992 fielding percentage is a little lower than some of the others, but he managed a 40 percent caught-stealing rate, though this was over only 6 stolen bases.

Dini’s sample is too small to really know if he will be a viable option as the backup catcher in 2020, but it’s likely he will get a look in spring training, and it’s possible he will see some major league time if there are injuries next season.

There are free agent options for the Kansas City Royals backup catcher spot, but the players that are the best options are likely too expensive.

There are multiple free agent catchers available for the Royals if needed, but it is likely in their best interest to focus their money elsewhere. If a free agent catcher was to be picked up for a backup role, Martin Maldonado is available again.

Maldonado is another option that struggles offensively, slashing .220/.298/.391 for the entire 2019 season, with 46 runs, 12 home runs, and 27 RBIs over 101 games. Defensively, though, the Gold Glove catcher has a history of competing with the best and would be an outstanding option as a backup.

Another name that rings some bells is Drew Butera. Butera continues the trend of catchers with offensive struggles, slashing .163/.229/.233 in the 16 major league games he saw in 2019. He has a good history of defense, though, and a good reputation among many Royals fans.

There are a lot of options for the Royals, and even more free agents to dive into if the team decided to go that route. The money would be better spent elsewhere, though as there are multiple options already within the organization and much great need in other positions.

Dini is a possibility, but it is likely the battle for backup catcher will be between Viloria and Gallagher. They are both great catchers defensively and have similar numbers when batting. Gallagher has seen more major league time and could have a slight edge, but nobody will know who gets the spot for sure until both can make their argument come spring training.