John Jaso

2013

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2012

The signing of veteran Jose Molina coupled with a pair of young catching prospects ready to contribute in Tampa Bay made Jaso expendable, and he was traded to Seattle. Jaso cooled off in his full second season, seeing his batting average drop 39 points to a paltry .224 and a decreased walk rate led to a 74-point drop in his OBP. Jaso should see a slight boost in those stats but is an endgame filler given his new home ballpark and backup role with the Mariners.

2011

Jaso was one of the bigger surprises for the Rays last season, taking advantage of an early injury to Kelly Shoppach and a slumping Dioner Navarro to become the team's primary catcher. Jaso ended up hitting leadoff most nights when he was in the lineup, using an outstanding batting eye (59:39 BB:K ratio) to a .372 OBP. He'll share catching duties with Shoppach now after Navarro was non-tendered and should get the lion's share of playing time out of that platoon. He's a decent choice as a No. 2 catcher (especially if your league uses OBP); just be sure to realize the likelihood for limited power and speed numbers.

2010

Jaso has a solid batting eye (46:48 BB:K ratio) but isn't as good defensively as Shawn Riggans or Jose Lobaton. With the addition of Kelly Shoppach and the glut of catchers on the 40-man roster, it will take a couple of injuries for him to get a shot at time with the Rays.

2009

Before his September cup o'joe with the big club, Jaso held his own in a relatively tough hitters' environment at Double-A Montgomery and also did well at the plate in a brief Triple-A stint. We'll see how much of a challenge Jaso gives Shawn Riggans for the backup catcher job in the spring; the Rays like Jaso's bat, but they love Riggans' defense more at the moment.

2008

Jaso's bat really blossomed last season. His defense is still holding him back, however; as a catcher, he's a heck of a DH. Still, the Rays don't yet have long-term solutions in place at the major league level at either catcher or DH, so Jaso is still in the organization's plans. He could fill a role as the left-handed part of a DH platoon, especially if he can also convince folks that he could enter the game as a third catcher and not contend for the league lead in passed balls. Jaso likely starts 2008 at Triple-A Durham for the Rays, with a chance for a big league callup before season's end.

2007

Jaso has great on-base skills and good left-handed power, but injuries have really held him back. He also may not be a catcher much longer. Still, a bat like this will find a chance somewhere. Likely a year or more away from the bigs, he’ll take more time if asked to learn a new position.