Moving Cal to 1B?

[Nosferatu]

The Athletic has an article on trades they would like to see. One of them is us trading Ford for 1B Josh Naylor. Their reasoning was that Ford was blocked behind Cal and that we need a better hitting 1B. Well, Naylor is better but he's a free agent after this season and that's a high price for a half season player. I imagine the front office has to be thinking about moving Cal to 1B in the long run. Lots of 1B started at catcher and then moved to (a) avoid wear and tear to produce better longevity and (b) allowing players like Ford to come up and play.

Personally, I wouldn't trade Ford for Naylor but that could just be me.

 

[Sperrydogg]

Cal is amazing as catcher. I’d rather see ford play first base

 

[sutz]

The catcher to 1B move usually happens late in a player's career. Cal is in his prime. Maybe in 4-5 years or so, but not now. Not to mention I think our pitching staff would go on strike.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

WAY too early to be thinking of moving Cal to 1B, imo.

 

[Chapow]

The catcher to 1B move usually happens late in a player's career. Cal is in his prime. Maybe in 4-5 years or so, but not now. Not to mention I think our pitching staff would go on strike.

This.

It would be monumentally stupid to waste an elite defensive catcher in his prime.

Anyone seriously considering this is drastically underestimating the value and importance of what Cal does behind the plate.

 

[Sperrydogg]

Just to play devils advocate, what if him moving to 1st base meant a difference of 20 hrs and 40 RBIs

 

[Chapow]

Just to play devils advocate, what if him moving to 1st base meant a difference of 20 hrs and 40 RBIs

What if it affects his hitting and passion for the game in a negative way because Cal loves being a catcher?

What if he refuses to give up catching and won't play for a team that won't let him play catcher?

 

[Stanton Sucks]

They say Ford is too short to play 1B yet Solana is listed at 5'8" and Ford at 5'10". Play him at 1B, DH and backup catcher. I don't see how he, or anyone else, could be worse than Garver and/or Solano.

It is ironic to me that we lost two of three vs a team that has three brand new rookies in the lineup and playing for a playoff while we say we can't fit in our rookies even though our vets are trash. I mean their head dude is smarter than ours and he traded his best player for next to nothing.

 

[sutz]

They say Ford is too short to play 1B yet Solana is listed at 5'8" and Ford at 5'10". Play him at 1B, DH and backup catcher. I don't see how he, or anyone else, could be worse than Garver and/or Solano.

It is ironic to me that we lost two of three vs a team that has three brand new rookies in the lineup and playing for a playoff while we say we can't fit in our rookies even though our vets are trash. I mean their head dude is smarter than ours and he traded his best player for next to nothing.

You do realize that we're playing 3 rookies as well, right? Williamson, Young, and Canzone is a virtual rookie.

 

[bileever]

While I'm not in favor of moving Cal to 1B fulltime, I think that the best way to keep Cal fresh and healthy is to limit his time behind the plate. If we have another good catcher available in Ford, then it would make sense to have Cal catch 40-55% of the time, and then split the other times at DH and 1B. If Ford is as good as he seems to be, you would have to give him some time at DH as well to keep him happy.

That's only if the 1B situation isn't figured out. If we're good at first, then Cal can DH part-time when he's not catching. But Ford is too valuable a commodity to just give away.

 

[Sperrydogg]

How long did it take to move Joe mauer to first base?

 

[Stanton Sucks]

You do realize that we're playing 3 rookies as well, right? Williamson, Young, and Canzone is a virtual rookie.

2 rookies. Canzone has had experience the last couple years. Big difference vs making your debut. And it took dire need to finally call up Young and Williamson while Boston called up their 3 because they felt they provided a need. Difference in philosophy. So