The Arizona Diamondbacks<\/a> have in Daulton Varsho a player type that does not come around every year. Varsho might not even be the type of player who comes around every decade<\/em>, in fact. He is a catcher with the speed and reaction time to also play center field. With his contact skills and running ability, he is someone managers make sure to keep in the lineup.<\/p>\n Catchers get more days off than the other positions, simply due to the demand it places on the body. Varsho, however, is not the type of player managers like to give days off to. Furthermore, since Carson Kelly is a steady presence at catcher, Varsho is already the backup.<\/p>\n Varsho struggled at the beginning of 2021. Entering the Sunday, July 11 game against the Los Angeles Dodgers<\/a> at Dodger Stadium, his season slash line was .138\/.250\/.175 (11-for-80) with three doubles, a .207 wOBA, and -8.2 wRAA. His first two at-bats resulted in outs, dropping his slash line to .134\/.245\/.171 (11-for-82). He had not homered since September 15, 2020. His third at-bat in that July 11 game snapped the homerless drought. From that game onward, he slashed .289\/.347\/.539 (59-for-204) with 14 doubles, two triples, 11 homers, 33 RBI, and 33 runs scored. This gave him a .370 wOBA and 10.3 wRAA over that span. General manager Mike Hazen, in the end-of-season press conference, said that Varsho was one of the team\u2019s most dynamic players.<\/p>\n As mentioned before, Varsho is someone the Diamondbacks want to keep in the lineup. There were other catchers who had entered the league with speed and contact ability. Two from the 80s and 90s are Craig Biggio and Jason Kendall. Biggio entered the league in 1988 as a catcher for the Houston Astros<\/a>, then part of the National League. In 1990, Biggio split time between catcher and the outfield, playing around 2\/3 of his games at catcher. He caught almost exclusively in 1991 before moving full-time to second base in 1992. For the 16 remaining seasons of his career (1992\u20132007), Biggio played second base in 14 of them. In the other two, he was in the outfield. This move preserved his health for his career, leading him to the 3000 Hit Club (3060, to be exact) and a 2015 Hall of Fame induction.<\/p>\n Kendall debuted with the Pittsburgh Pirates<\/a> in 1996, beginning a 15-year career. He was a catcher for his entire career, one that saw him play for the Pirates (1996\u20132004), Oakland Athletics<\/a> (2005\u201307), Chicago Cubs<\/a> (2007), Milwaukee Brewers<\/a> (2008\u201309), and Kansas City Royals<\/a> (2010). Kendall was a threat to hit triples and steal bases, at least while he was with the Pirates. Once he joined the Athletics, his numbers dropped. Speculation arose that the 10th-year player, who turned 31 in June of that season, had taken too much of a beating behind the plate \u2014 especially his knees, from all the squatting.<\/p>\n This raises a career question for Daulton Varsho as to whether he will follow the template of Biggio or Kendall. When asked about this in late September of 2021, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said of this of Varsho. \u201cWe’re still trying to figure out what the best path forward is for him. He’s a special player \u2014a young, talented player that has a chance to be very special. And we want to maximize his potential to be as good as he can possibly be.\u201d Lovullo added that Varsho is a \u201cvery, very fast baseball player\u201d and that the coaching staff was \u201cvery well aware of the fact that, at some point in time, the legs might wear down a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked if he sees Varsho in the mold of either Biggio or Kendall, Lovullo thought and then smiled a bit. He replied, \u201cI\u2019ve thought a lot about Craig Biggio when I’ve watched (Varsho). Biggio ran extremely well, and they maintained his speed by putting him (at second base and then) in center field. Jason Kendall was a very good runner for the majority of his career. Brad Ausmus is another one that comes to mind. But I’ve connected him a lot to Craig Biggio because it’s two premium positions in center field and catcher.\u201d<\/p>\n Shortly after the press conference where Lovullo said this about Varsho, then-catching coach Robby Hammock was asked about Daulton Varsho and moving positions to save his knees. Hammock said, \u201cA lot of it is probably going to be offensive. If Daulton\u2019s numbers can keep up, then you’re basically going to put him wherever he\u2019s needed.\u201d<\/p>\n Hammock added that some of it will depend on what happens with injuries and off-season signings. If the team picks up another catcher that can back up starter Carson Kelly while still producing from the plate, Varsho could go to center field. And if the team finds an outfielder, Varsho could catch more. However, Hammock warned that it\u2019s still early in Varsho\u2019s career. \u201cNone of this stuff’s set in stone,\u201d he said, \u201cand I still think it’s too early to even try and make a decision on it right now. It has to play itself out to really make any plans. I do understand that, historically, guys who catch slow down and their offensive production wavers a little bit, aside from a few anomalies. But it’s going to depend on need and what can transpire.\u201d<\/p>\n First-base coach Dave McKay, who also works with the outfielders, agreed with Hammock. It\u2019s still early enough in Varsho\u2019s career that he can be used defensively wherever he\u2019s needed to provide the best offensive matchups. McKay said that the defensive decision on Varsho will probably come \u201ctwo, three years down the road.\u201d He added, \u201cYou need to keep yourself thinking about it. When you start realizing that there’s a real upside to his offense and running, and that he\u2019s a great outfielder, then you have a decision to make. Because down the road, there could be some wear and tear. You hear of catchers losing their legs after catching a lot.\u201d<\/p>\nHistorical Comparisons to Daulton Varsho<\/h3>\n
Which Career Template \u2014 Biggio or Kendall?<\/h3>\n
Input from Coaches<\/h3>\n
Dave McKay<\/h4>\n