James McCann 2023

[Jim'sKid26]

Talk about a dude that has stepped up down the stretch! Props to McCann. 

[emmett16]

1 minute ago, Jim'sKid26 said:

Talk about a dude that has stepped up down the stretch! Props to McCann. 

He has fulfilled the role of backup catcher almost perfectly.  He seems like a good dude.  The D plus occasional pop has been a blessing. 

[banks703]

JM’s defense has been superior to Adley’s defense this year, albeit in less games. HIs game-calling has been a big contribution this year. That’s what sticks out to me the most.

This isn’t to suggest that he is better than Adley or that he should be the number 1 catcher, yadda yadda but even while he wasn’t hitting, JM’s work behind the plate has been really good and it’s allowed them to not catch Adley 140 games.

I do wonder if Adley is nursing something that hasn’t been disclosed because he’s looked very different to me behind the plate the last two months or so. He’s not getting in front of as many bad pitches, relying on back-hands and scoops and he hasn’t looked quite right on the base paths. Bumps and bruises in August are to be expected but I wonder if there’s some soft tissue stuff somewhere that isn’t more than nagging but enough that won’t go away until he can take a month away from baseball activities. 

[MCO'sFan]

3 hours ago, emmett16 said:

He has fulfilled the role of backup catcher almost perfectly.  He seems like a good dude.  The D plus occasional pop has been a blessing. 

I was down on him earlier only because I thought Hyde was playing him too much and he was hurting the O’s offensively. If he was playing only once a week like most back up catchers, I could live with that. But, he certainly has gotten hot at a good time. 

[Sanity Check]

Several Hangouters were critical of this acquisition in the offseason.   Even recently, someone suggested in a thread that we should look to upgrade the backup catcher for next year.  My opinion is that a "backup catcher" that is better than McCann is a Starting Catcher on most teams.  Honest questions here.....

1. How many teams have a better backup catcher - offensively AND defensively than McCann?

2. What backup catchers would anyone prefer over McCann?

[Malike]

I've always been a fan of McCann. Watching a lot of Mets games I knew what to expect, a solid catcher who is going to hit sometimes. He's exactly as I thought he'd be, he's a leader when he's on the field and quite a bonus when the bat is going.

[foxfield]

McCann has been a good get for us.  And while many here didn't see the value and were probably right to be skeptical...it is just another example of a good GM decision which we have rightfully grown to be wary.

Elias is not perfect, but he is right at a pretty damn good clip and is earning my respect along the way.  I know it has been so long since this organization made good decisions regularly...but for those of you who are too young to remember...it looked a lot like this.

[forphase1]

Picking him up has turned out way better than I expected.  Last year he was a .539 OPS player.  That's roughly what I expected this year with slightly above average defense.  All of which is acceptable for a backup catcher,  and certainly ok from the time of Severino from the past few previous years and last year with Chirinos.  But McCann had been very good,  honestly better than I had realized after diving into his numbers from this season a bit more.   He started off pretty cold with the bat,  and that impression hadn't left me,  and July was rough with a .526 OPS, but overall it's not a complete black hole in the lineup when he's penciled in.   Not sure I want him DHing or anything, but he's more than adequate to give Adley a breather now and then. 

[Baltimorecuse]

McCann has flat out earned a lot of respect.  Purely as a defensive catcher he can give AR lessons.  

[kaj21206]

57 minutes ago, Baltimorecuse said:

McCann has flat out earned a lot of respect.  Purely as a defensive catcher he can give AR lessons.  

I think AR has been overworked especially earlier in the year which has caused some defensive problems.  He needs more days off.  No DH or PH.

[dedwretched]

I think it's great to finally have a real backup catcher. Who else couldn't stand watching the Fernando Lunars and the Paul Bakos of the world play behind Fordyce, Hernandez, and Wieters?

 

I didnt follow the team when Lenny Webster was around, sadly.

[Frobby]

McCann is right on his career numbers now.  .243/.283/.405 this year, .243/.295/.381 for his career.  Basically, we’ve gotten what we paid for.  It took a long time to get his bat going and it’s been fun watching him rake since the all star break.  His .295 wOBA is still well below his .330 xwOBA, so maybe he’s got room to continue moving up.  

The nice byproduct of this is that Hyde has been able to rest Adley a little more often.  
 

[LA2]

23 hours ago, Malike said:

I've always been a fan of McCann. Watching a lot of Mets games I knew what to expect, a solid catcher who is going to hit sometimes. He's exactly as I thought he'd be, he's a leader when he's on the field and quite a bonus when the bat is going.

I too have been a supporter of the acquisition of McCann since the beginning. I was very glad to see that such a good catcher was available and fully expected that he would return to his pre-2022 hitting numbers. From watching him here in NY and remembering his performance with the White Sox, I felt that 2022, not 2015-2021, was the anomaly.

Edited August 21, 2023 by LA2

[MCO'sFan]

10 minutes ago, LA2 said:

I too have been a supporter of the acquisition of McCann since the beginning. I was very glad to see that such a good catcher has also returned to his earlier career hitting numbers, as I fully expected he would.

I was happy when they got McCann. But, he was so bad at the plate that he was nearly an automatic out. Then you'd have him and Mateo in the same lineup and geez, it's like starting every other inning with two outs. I clearly gave up on him too early. It be great if he could be a little more consistent throughout the year. I guess it's better to be hot at the end than the beginning though. 

[LA2]

1 hour ago, MCO'sFan said:

I was happy when they got McCann. But, he was so bad at the plate that he was nearly an automatic out. Then you'd have him and Mateo in the same lineup and geez, it's like starting every other inning with two outs. I clearly gave up on him too early. It be great if he could be a little more consistent throughout the year. I guess it's better to be hot at the end than the beginning though. 

I understand, but he's 33 and it's a grueling season and position. Something like his 2021 season with the Mets, when he hit .232, 10 HR, 46 RBI in 412 PAs (.232/.294/.349/.643) would be fine with me, as long as he can maintain his defensive prowess and fine handling of pitchers.