James McCann Could Lead Mets Pitching to Promised Land
The veteran backstop's strides in pitch framing and getting the most out of his staff have been noticeable
Image via New York Mets
When the New York Mets signed catcher Wilson Ramos to a two-year, $19 million deal ahead of the 2019 season, they did so with the intent of boosting the position’s offensive production.
That was arguably a mistake. A team built around pitching, as the Mets were and still are, needs a quality receiver to maximize those returns. Unfortunately, a Gold Glover, Ramos was not.
Entering the 2021 season, the Mets have turned to a new backstop, one who could turn things around substantially for New York behind the plate.
James McCann, 30, signed a four-year, $40 million deal with the Mets relatively early in the offseason. Despite J.T. Realmuto’s presence on a mostly bare catching market, the Mets felt they had their man and made the move.
Value-wise, it’s a solid deal. McCann is a pitcher’s catcher (more on that in a sec) who should make this staff better. Though, in hindsight, Realmuto would have made this a virtual All-Star roster. Alas…
Following his being non-tendered by the Tigers in 2018, McCann landed on the south side of Chicago, sharing time with Wellington Castillo through 2019.
A combined .240/.288/.366 slash line (75 wRC+) over his first five MLB seasons gave way to a sparkling .273/.328/.460 line with 18 homers and 108 wRC+ over 118 games his first season in Chicago, but McCann’s effect behind the dish was what stood out the most.
McCann’s advanced receiving metrics in 2019 were nothing to write home about — like, at all.
His -15 runs via extra strikes ranked dead-last in baseball among qualified catchers (64th of 64) and his 44.9% overall strike rate was 57th among the same group.
His framing work on the edges was average (65.3% strike rate on the left paint was 29th, 63.4% on the right was 46th; catcher’s perspective) but his strike rate on low pitches ranked poorly (44%, 51st).
The subsequent work McCann put in to improve not only himself but the guys he was catching is likely what landed him a contract in Flushing this winter.
Right-hander Lucas Giolito — an immense talent derailed early on by injuries — struggled over his first full season in 2018 (6.13 ERA, 125 strikeouts, 90 walks, 1.48 WHIP over 32 starts; 173.1 IP).
Giolito’s own developmental progress combined with McCann’s arrival the following season led to special things happening for both players in 2019 — a 3.41 ERA over 29 starts, including his first All-Star nod, for Giolito and the aforementioned breakout year for McCann.
But it wasn’t just Giolito that felt the McCann Effect. In 2020, in addition to catching Giolito’s first career no-hitter in August, McCann appeared to get the most out of a few of the White Sox's more prominent arms.
Giolito’s 2.61 ERA throwing to McCann paled in comparison to his 5.66 mark pitching to Chicago’s high-profile free-agent signing last winter, Yasmani Grandal.
Left-hander Dallas Keuchel enjoyed success pitching to both backstops (1.36 ERA to Grandal, 3.06 to McCann), but young right-hander Dylan Cease saw a dramatic increase in effectiveness throwing to McCann as opposed to Grandal (2.39 ERA over five starts to 5.06 ERA over seven starts).
Not to mention — albeit, in an extremely small sample — McCann’s framing metrics skyrocketed in 2020, posting +2 runs via extra strikes (ninth in MLB), a 51.4% strike rate (eighth), the best strike rate on the right side of the zone in the majors (75.5%) and a 61.8% strike rate on the bottom edge (sixth in baseball).
Reports out of Port St. Lucie have already noted Jacob deGrom and McCann as inseparable this spring, and Mets right-hander Marcus Stroman has expressed his excitement to work with McCann this season on social media multiple times.
A promising development for this staff in Queens, no doubt.
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Nice to see some credit being given to McCann on his improvements behind the plate and his relationship with the pitching staff. McCann seems like a really good character guy and clubhouse guy too. Everyone's seemed impressed with him so far with how he's reached out to every pitcher on the team and being the first one to reach out to newly signed pitchers. Not only did the front office bring in some really talented players this offseason, but also really good character guys. As mentioned here, Stroman has expressed his excitement to work with McCann, but McCann has also expressed his excitement to work with Stroman. Really excited to see the chemistry between McCann and his pitchers.