After the Texas Rangers inked veteran catcher Geovany Soto to a one-year deal on Tuesday worth $3.05 million plus incentives, Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said he would be the guy for the Rangers moving forward behind the plate.
Soto is a good game manager and handles pitchers well, as evidenced by his good rapport with Rangers ace Yu Darvish. His bat leaves some to be desired, but down the stretch this past season it seemed every time Soto got a chance at the plate, he came through. Only Nelson Cruz had more home runs of three runs or more than Soto did. He seemed to step up in key situations.
So, having Soto as the everyday catcher with another veteran brought in to be his backup wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but don't take Daniels' statement as 100 percent set in stone.
Daniels did say that if a big-money free agent becomes available, this signing of Soto wouldn't prohibit them from making a move, and of course, one of the biggest free agent names out there this winter is Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann, who the Rangers are apparently the favorite to land.
"We had a player that the more we talked about it, the more we liked what he brings to the table," Daniels told reporters. "You don’t want to ignore what’s under your nose or put all your eggs in one basket from someone outside that you can’t control. But we haven’t ruled anything out."
So yeah, for now, Soto is the guy and A.J. Pierzynski is gone after his one year in Texas, but don't put it past the Rangers to bring someone else in that could push Soto back to the backup duty like he had this year.
