Rangers acquire veteran Catcher Molina

The Rangers believe that they have solved their catching issues- in the short term at least. This afternoon a deal was finalized to send RP Chris Ray and Minor League Pitcher Michael Main to the Giants for 35 year old Catcher Bengie Molina. Molina gives the Rangers a veteran presence behind the plate, as well as the stability they've lacked. Molina has proven to be a superior defensive catcher, and one of the top game callers in the National League. His greatest asset should be helping this young pitching staff progress forward similar to the way Pudge was expected to help last year. 

Molina, a career .275 hitter, has dropped off offensively this year significantly. He is hitting only .257 with 3 home runs and 17 RBI. Molina has hit at least 15 home runs in each of the past 5 years with an average over .270. Although Molina's power and average has dipped, his K/BB ratio has remained consistent. His 19/14 ratio is consistent with his career ratios, and is one of the best contact hitters at the catcher position. Molina, 5'11" 225 Lbs, is also amongst the league leaders every year in GIDP's. 

Molina is an obvious upgrade over Treanor or Max Ramirez at the Catching position. He provides excellent defense with advanced game management skills. Even with his .257 batting average he still provides a significant improvement offensively over the light hitting Matt Treanor. 

Molina is an upgrade at Catcher but what did we give up? Chris Ray was the first piece that was mentioned in the deal. Ray is a completely dispensable reliever. He was a favorite of most fans to get optioned to AAA yesterday to make room for spot starter Omar Beltre. Ray has decent numbers- 3.41 ERA, 7 holds, but had a 16-16 K/BB ratio and a 1.25 Whip which aren't promising signs. He is not a guy who holds down a vital role and can be replaced immediately with Alexi Ogando who has looked extremely good in his first 10 innings with the big league club. Ray is a league average relief pitcher who I'm not unhappy to see go. 

The other piece in the deal, the Player to be Named Later, I am more upset to see leave the organization. Michael Main, a former 1st round pick by Texas in 2007, has an immense upside that was just now beginning to show. Main has been slowed by injuries in his first few seasons, but has been healthy all year putting up good numbers for hitting heavy California league. Main, 5-3 with a 3.45 era and a 72/21 K/BB ratio, was promoted to Frisco on Tuesday just before he was announced as the 2nd player of the deal today. Main's biggest issue has been the long ball, 14, but in the Cal League thats not that unexpected for a fly ball pitcher. 

Main has a chance to be a very good MLB pitcher. He's been mentioned as a top 10, if not top 6 or 7, Ranger prospect ever since he was drafted. Main is considered by most to have a #2 or #3 SP ceiling. 

This is a lopsided deal in terms of talent. An aging, declining 35 year old catcher on a 1 year deal isn't worth a league average reliever and a high-upside prospect like Main. The only reason the Rangers were forced to move such a high-upside guy is our lack of money. In order to convince the Giants to pay the remaining portion on Molina's contract, the Ranger were forced to give them a legit prospect in return. This is unsettling to most Ranger fans that we were forced to give us such a quality prospect to rent Molina for the year. It's not a good situation to be in as a team, but finding a quality Catcher for a playoff run is very important. 

I have been on an emotional roller coaster since the trade was announced as a close last night. My initial emotion was excitement. I loved the idea of having a veteran catcher like Molina for the stretch run. It seemed like a perfect fit. This afternoon, after finding out Main was the PTBNL, my emotions turned to disgust. I couldn't believe that we dealt such a good prospect for a rental catcher who, although he is better than Treanor, isn't an All-Star caliber player anymore. Now my emotions have evened out and I'm ok with the deal. I know Main has a lot of ability and what looks to be a bright future. However, that description fits a large number of Ranger pitching prospects. Does Main really have more upside than guys like Beaven, Wieland, Font, Kirkman, Pimental, Boscan, Alvarez, Thompson, Erlin, Ross, Tullis, or Roark? I'm sure most people would say yes to some of those guys, but my point is that the Rangers have a plethora of good pitching prospects with high ceilings. The Rangers have built their system to a point that losing a guy like Main doesn't hurt as bad as it should. Main may blossom into a superstar and we will all curse Jon Daniels for another horrible deal. But I know Molina is going to help us this year, and I have a feeling that we will have plenty of pitching coming up over the next 5 years to offset the loss of Main. I think this was a smart move by Daniels knowing what he had on the farm and what he needed in the Bigs. Now let's welcome the eldest of  the Molina brothers to the Jet-stream we like to call- The Ballpark in Arlington!