MIAMI -- So which catcher is out when Travis d'Arnaud makes his expected return to the majors during the Oakland series at Citi Field on Tuesday and Wednesday?
A team insider said there still needed to be internal dialogue about the fate of Anthony Recker versus Taylor Teagarden.
Teagarden
Recker One thing that potentially is material to the discussion:
• Recker (.198, 2 HR, 8 RBIs, 101 ABs) has an option remaining, and therefore can be freely sent to Triple-A Las Vegas.
• Teagarden (.143, 1 HR, 5 RBIs, 28 ABs) is not only out of options, he also has been outrighted to the minors before. So if the Mets attempt to demote Teagarden, he would have to pass through waivers. And if he does clear, he still could declare free agency rather than report to Las Vegas.
Would the Mets lose Teagarden? And does it matter?
On the first question, it's hard to say, although San Diego heavily recruited Teagarden this past offseason and might again be interested. On the second question, having a third catcher with major league experience at Triple-A is beneficial in case d'Arnaud or the major league backup becomes injured.
So perhaps that tips the scale in favor of Teagarden remaining in the majors, especially since their performances have been roughly equivalent (except for a throwing edge going to Recker).
The other wild card is whether the Mets would not mind losing Teagarden because it would allow them to move prospect Kevin Plawecki from Double-A to Triple-A.
Plawecki, the 35th overall pick in the 2012 draft out of Purdue, through Saturday was hitting .329 with six homers and 43 RBIs in 219 at-bats with Binghamton.
On whether Plawecki's promotion to Las Vegas would coincide with d'Arnaud's return to the majors, a team insider said that would be "somewhat coincidental," not a chain reaction.
"In this particular circumstance, we have to take the opportunity for playing time into account because of the position," the insider said. It might be a happy coincidence that Plawecki is ready for Triple-A as soon as there is a legitimate opening for at-bats in Triple-A, but that has not yet been determined."