Wednesday the Washington Nationals announced they had acquired catcher Dan Butler from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for LHP Danny Rosenbaum. Butler was designated for assignment last week and the Nationals seized the opportunity to add some additional catching depth behind Wilson Ramos, Jose Lobaton, and third catcher Sandy Leon.
Butler, 28-years-old, is a testament to perseverance, as he was an undrafted free agent out of the University of Arizona in 2009 and has steadily worked his way through the Red Sox minor league system. After a breakout season in 2013, hitting .262/.350/.479 in 282 at-bats at Triple-A Pawtucket, Butler regressed in 2014, batting .241/.317/.350 in 83 games played. That said, 2014 saw Butler reach the major leagues, playing 7 games and receiving 19 at-bats for the Red Sox. A career .256/.349/.416 minor league hitter, Butler is a right-handed batter with excellent on-base skills and occasional pull power.
Defensively Butler has developed a strong reputation, possessing a strong throwing arm in addition to good blocking and receiving skills. Butler has thrown out 31% of opposing baserunners in the minors. Furthermore, while I attended SaberSeminar 2014 in Boston last summer, I specifically remember the Red Sox scouting and development people gushing about Butler’s defensive chops, especially his game-calling and “baseball IQ”. Butler now takes a spot on Washington’s 40-man roster, and stands as the 4th catcher on the depth chart.
For additional thoughts on Butler, I reached out to Baseball Prospectus Prospect Team leader and SoxProspects.com Founder Chris Mellen, for his thoughts on Butler as a prospect.
“Solid-average-to-better glove; quick release; plus arm; good instincts behind the dish; firm glove hand; bat a bit on the limited side; average bat speed; tends to have trouble keeping hands above good velocity; sneaky pop; can muscle up on mistakes. Butler is an excellent makeup and clubhouse guy. Completely buys into the team aspect and will do whatever asked. It could work as a backup type in the right situation. Probably destined to be more of a Triple-A/insurance type of depth catcher within an organization.” – Chris Mellen
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Rather than the usual cash considerations for a player designated for assignment, Washington was willing (or forced) to part with Rosenbaum, a crafty left-handed pitcher currently rehabilitating from Tommy John surgery. Prior to his injury, Rosenbaum had spent six seasons in the Nationals minor league system, after being selected in the 22nd round of the 2009 draft, posting a career 3.12 ERA and 6.5 K/9 ratio. Rosenbaum only made 4 appearances in 2014 becoming having to undergo surgery and according to reports, was cleared to begin throwing last month. He should return to the mound around midseason and will be a minor league free agent next winter.
On the surface, this is a slightly peculiar trade, as Washington has three quality catchers already on their roster and Boston insisted on a recovering pitcher rather than cash or a “healthy” prospect. That said, Wilson Ramos has extensive injury history and Sandy Leon is out of minor league options, meaning he will be exposed to waivers if he does not make the team out of spring training – so while it appears on the surface the Nationals have depth behind the dish, this could be depleted swiftly this spring.
Both teams are jettisoning obvious spare parts in this trade, but I think both Washington and Boston did well in this minor swap. Boston is gambling on a prospect with strong minor league numbers rather than settling for the standard cash, while Washington covers a potential area of weakness by parting with someone unlikely to help them in 2015 or beyond. I much prefer Dan Butler as a prospect and potential contributor to the Nationals than Rosenbaum, making this trade a Harold Miner-type slam dunk for Washington.
NatsGM Overall Grade -> A-/B+