Is Austin Barnes as Bad as You Think?

I am just going to jump right into this one: In 2023, the best Caught Stealing Rate by Catchers was +9. That means that the best catcher was good for +9 Runs Over League Average. Will Smith was -1 Run Below Average and Austin Barnes was -4 Runs Below League Average. If Austin Barnes is one of the worst throwing catchers in MLB, then Will Smith is right there with him. Is that what you think?

That is, unless you want to consider that these figures don’t tell the whole truth. You see, the Dodgers do things a bit differently. Simply put, the Dodgers don’t want their pitchers (and catchers too) to be overly concerned with baserunners. They want them to focus on the batter and not get overly concerned with keeping a runner close. GET THE BATTER OUT – FORGET ABOUT THE RUNNER! The Dodgers subscribe to the theory that keeping runners off base and focusing on getting the batters out. If you try and focus on both the hitter and the runner, you are going to be conflicted and do a bad job at both. The Dodgers catchers will always be much less effective against baserunners but their pitchers will almost always be near the top in ERA. It’s a tradeoff… a smart one at that!

Austin Barnes started out last season 0-16 and was batting .142 at the halfway point, but he had a bit of a resurgence in the second half. His second-half splits were improved. This was an important turnaround for the Dodgers who had seen Will Smith’s offensive production decline down the stretch. Would it surprise you to know that in the second half of 2023, Austin Barnes had a higher Batting Average and OPS than Will Smith? Smith hit .242 to Barnes .268 and Barnes OPS’ed .708 to Smith’s .701. Will Smith was more of a problem the second half of last year than Barnes, because Will Smith is in there for his bat. Barnes is there for his glove.

Why Austin Barnes is still the Dodgers’ Backup Catcher is explained by The LA Times Jack Harris:

It didn’t take long at the start of his career for Austin Barnes to know what the Dodgers valued in their backup catchers.

“When I came up here, I realized early they weren’t gonna let you catch here unless you knew how to handle the defensive side,” he said. “They don’t just trust you out there.”

So, he went about trying to earn their faith with his play behind the plate.

And nine years later, he hasn’t yet lost it.

Harries goes on to write this about Barnsie:

But for a respected veteran with an outsized influence in the clubhouse — not to mention another season remaining on the two-year, $7-million extension he signed in July 2022 — Barnes’ turnaround has nonetheless been a welcome sight.

“Barnsy’s a winner,” said teammate Clayton Kershaw, the only current Dodgers player who has been with the club longer. “Obviously, his offensive numbers, when you look at it on paper aren’t great. But that’s not what he’s here to do. He’s here to help us win. And he does that behind the plate, the way he calls games, and the way he competes. He’s really good at it. It’s hard to describe.”

Indeed, Barnes has always made his biggest marks under the radar.

He has long been one of the majors’ better catchers at framing pitches and stealing strikes.

Oh, and one last thing, which is likely the biggest:

He has met the Dodgers’ lofty game-planning and pitch-calling demands from their backstops, serving as the primary catcher in all three of their recent World Series trips.

He has built a strong rapport with a star-studded list of battery mates, as well, his bond with Kershaw — whose 81 regular-season starts with Barnes are topped only by former Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis — most of all.

“He’s fun to be around,” Kershaw said, before stopping himself with a chuckle. “Well, I don’t know if he’s fun to be around, but he’s entertaining.”

Meaning?

“One of his skills is, he can call people out, but people think it’s funny,” Kershaw explained. “When other people do that, they take offense. But Barnsey has a really good feel for making fun of guys, or giving people a hard time, and them taking it well. It’s a skill. It’s a personality trait.”

That has proved particularly valuable this season, giving the Dodgers an experienced — yet approachable — presence in their “run-prevention” department amid a rash of early-season injuries and injection of young arms.

Danny Lehmann says this about him: “There’s a lot of value [he brings] to the type of team we have now. To be able to trust him, and have the pitchers trust him and understand that he knows what he’s doing back there, that’s just big for our team to not skip a beat.”

The Dodgers need more out of Will Smith, and if they get what he is capable of, well… Austin Barnes will be just fine doing what he is capable of doing: Running the Lockerroom, calling players out and being the longest-tenured Dodger next to Clayton Kershaw. Trea Turner called Austin “the Captain”. The Dodgers don’t have one, but if they did, Austin Barnes would be in the running!

BTW, I think Barnes will be Yamamotos catcher this year. There’s a reason…

Dodger News & Notes

• According to Dave Roberts, there is a “very good possibility” Kyle Hurt is in the Dodgers bullpen for the team’s opening series against the Padres at Gocheok Sky Dome. Hurt, whom the team acquired from the Marlins in February 2021, has looked sharp so far this spring. 
• The Adames rumors aren’t dying and I won’t remind you who has been saying for years that Gavin Lux was not a SS, because it makes Patch angry! 😉 However, I think for the near future, Betts is the SS and Lux is at 2B (except against tough LHP).
• Taylor will play 2B against tough LHP and Kike will play CF against tough lefties (just don’t call it a platoon).

Early Morning Baseball

I will be up at 6 AM EDT/3 PM PDT as the Dodgers will match up with Team Korea on March 18 at 6 a.m. ET. Bobby Miller goes for the Dodgers.