The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed catcher Kevin Plawecki to a minor league deal, the team announced this morning. They also made the signing of LHP Caleb Smith official.
Plawecki is in his age 32 season this year, and is coming off a year where he caught in the majors for Boston and Texas. He’s spent parts of eight seasons in the majors, putting up backup catcher production led by his defense. He had stronger offensive years in 2020 and 2021, but wasn’t able to replicate that in 2022.
While with Boston, Plawecki caught several starts from left-handed pitcher Rich Hill, who the Pirates signed to their rotation earlier this offseason.
The Pirates have Austin Hedges as their starter. The backup spot is up in the air, and Plawecki will join Tyler Heineman and Jason Delay in that battle. Delay is the youngest of the group, turning 28 next month. Plawecki’s addition will mainly boost this immediate depth.
The Pirates also have Endy Rodriguez, Henry Davis, and Carter Bins in the minors. Of that group, Rodriguez is the most likely to make the biggest impact this year, while Bins could boost the backup depth.
