{"id":94919,"date":"2025-09-18T09:16:58","date_gmt":"2025-09-18T09:16:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=94919"},"modified":"2025-09-18T09:16:58","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T09:16:58","slug":"twins-backstop-drama-the-backup-catcher-role-is-turning-into-a-showdown-between-pereda-and-gasper-a-quiet-competition-that-might-shape-minnesotas-roster-balance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=94919","title":{"rendered":"TWINS BACKSTOP DRAMA: The backup catcher role is turning into a showdown between Pereda and Gasper a quiet competition that might shape Minnesota\u2019s roster balance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Are Jhonny Pereda and Mickey Gasper Competing to Be Ryan Jeffers’s Backup Next Season?<\/span><\/h3>\n
Are the two catchers competing to become Ryan Jeffers’s primary backup to begin next season? If so, who has the upper hand?<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Image courtesy of \u00a9 Denny Medley-Imagn Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Entering the 2025 MLB regular season, catching depth (behind veterans\u00a0Ryan Jeffers\u00a0and\u00a0Christian V\u00e1zquez) was one of the most significant short- and long-term areas of concern for the Minnesota Twins. When the season began, Triple-A catchers\u00a0Jair Camargo\u00a0and\u00a0Diego Cartaya\u00a0were the primary high-minors fallback plans. Both possessing 40-man roster spots, either could have been called up to the majors if one of the two veterans had missed extended time early in the season.<\/p>\n

Yet, following Cartaya’s significant struggles at the plate and in the field and Camargo undergoing\u00a0Tommy John\u00a0Surgery in June, both players were designated for assignment and have since parted ways with the organization. Interestingly, catcher was one of the few positions relatively unaffected by the trade deadline’s mass exodus in the short term, as neither Jeffers nor V\u00e1zquez was traded. Yet, the organization seemingly gained a long-term solution at the position, acquiring top catching prospect\u00a0Eduardo Tait\u00a0alongside starting pitching prospect\u00a0Mick Abel\u00a0in the deal that sent star closer\u00a0Jhoan Duran\u00a0to the Philadelphia Phillies.<\/p>\n

Regardless, the position remained unchanged at the major-league level until V\u00e1zquez was placed on the 10-day IL with a left shoulder infection in early August. Since V\u00e1zquez was placed on the IL, 29-year-old rookie\u00a0Mickey Gasper\u00a0has supplanted him as Jeffers’s primary backup, earning nine starts at the position. Gasper remained in this role until Jeffers was placed on the 7-day concussion IL retroactive to Sept. 5. In return, fellow 29-year-old backup backstop\u00a0Jhonny Pereda\u00a0was recalled from Triple-A St. Paul, inserting himself into the catching mix.<\/p>\n

With Jeffers and V\u00e1zquez both on the IL, Gasper and Pereda have become Minnesota’s catching tandem since early September, with Pereda earning five starts to Gasper’s three. This Saturday, MLB.com’s Patrick Donnelly\u00a0reported that V\u00e1zquez is hoping to return before Minnesota’s final road trip, which begins Sept. 23. Yet, given the fact that Minnesota is out of playoff contention, there is reason to believe both Jeffers and V\u00e1zquez could remain sidelined for the rest of season, with eyes on advancing their respective recoveries into the offseason and entering next Spring Training healthy.<\/p>\n

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Do you approve of the job Rocco Baldelli is doing as Twins manager?<\/h3>\n
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That being the case, Gasper and Pereda could finish the 2025 regular season as Minnesota’s catching tandem. These two being the only two options at the position is a rather bleak reality for the final month of the season. Yet, with V\u00e1zquez expected to depart the organization this offseason, there’s at least some chance that Gasper and Pereda are in an active competition to become Jeffers’s primary backup next season.<\/p>\n

Obviously, the competition won’t be won or lost over the next month. Offseason training, Spring Training performance, and overall recency bias (which will manifest next March) will be the deciding factors. Presumably, the team will also explore external additions at that spot over the offseason. Yet, strong performances from one or both of Gasper and Pereda could function as a springboard toward earning the upper hand. Let’s take a look at how both players have performed since Jeffers was placed on the IL on Sept. 5:<\/p>\n

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  • Gasper – .154\/.214\/.154, 14 plate appearances, two hits, zero doubles, zero home runs, one walk, 14.3% strikeout rate, 5 wRC+<\/li>\n
  • Pereda – .400\/.471\/.533, 17 plate appearances, six hits, two doubles, zero home runs, two walks, 23.5% strikeout rate, 184 wRC+<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Obviously, 31 combined plate appearances is an exceptionally small sample. Yet, Pereda has significantly outperformed Gasper at the plate over the past two weeks. Pereda has driven the ball hard (54.5% hard hit rate) for extra bases, while posting a respectable 23.5% strikeout rate. On the other hand, Gasper has performed at a subpar rate, continuing the season-long trend of being one of the least effective hitters in baseball.<\/p>\n

    When assessing the defensive acumen of both backstops, Pereda again has the edge, generating 1 Defensive Run Saved (DRS) over 44 innings at the position compared to Gasper’s -1 DRS over 92 innings. Pereda has the upper hand in FanGraphs’s framing metric, sporting -0.1 FRM (which is effectively average) compared to Gasper’s -0.8 FRM. Pereda also sports better blocking, pop time, and caught stealing metrics than Gasper, lending merit to the idea that Pereda is the overall superior option and possesses the inside track on Gasper heading into 2026.<\/p>\n

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    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Are Jhonny Pereda and Mickey Gasper Competing to Be Ryan Jeffers’s Backup Next Season? 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