White Sox add catcher Jonathan Lucroy on a minor-league deal

Jonathan Lucroy

Somebody is better than nobody, right?

The White Sox added a potential option as a backup catcher on Thursday when they agreed to terms with Jonathan Lucroy on a minor-league deal.

Lucroy, 34, was one of the best hitting catchers in baseball from 2011 to 2016. His career peaked in 2014, when he finished fourth in National League MVP voting as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers. He slashed .301/.373/.465 with a league-best 53 doubles and 13 home runs that season.

Obviously, Father Time has been knocking louder the past few seasons. Lucroy only appeared in one game in 2020 with the Boston Red Sox. In 2019, he split time between the Los Angeles Angels and the Cubs, batting .232/.305/.355 with eight home runs and 36 RBIs in 101 games.

I don't know how much Lucroy has left, but the Sox very clearly need a veteran backup to Yasmani Grandal. We all knew James McCann was going to leave for greener pastures this offseason -- and a full-time starting job -- and he's with the New York Mets now.

That left the Sox with Zack Collins, Yermin Mercedes and Seby Zavala as catchers on the 40-man roster. All are deeply flawed, and none of them can be trusted for a couple of weeks if, say, Grandal's back acts up -- as it did at one point during the 2020 season.

The hope has to be that Grandal is healthy to catch 125 games, and Lucroy can slot in there for 35 to 40 games, bat .230 and give the Sox credible receiving skills. The Sox don't need much offense from their backup catcher -- they have plenty of other people who are supposed to hit -- but they do need someone with a decent defensive reputation who can handle pitchers.

Lucroy has been that guy in the past. Fingers crossed he can do it for one more season. Wouldn't have been my first choice, but again, somebody is better than nobody.