Cody Snavely
The 2023 Dodgers season can be described in a variety of ways. Whether good or bad, the team has stayed afloat and is currently 15 games over .500 and atop the NL West standings. While we fans have complained about the bullpen, starting pitching, or a boom-or-bust offense, LA’s most significant issue is their backup catcher.
Will Smith, who made his debut in 2019 taking over the starting role and has been playing at an all-star level since has been the bright spot for the Dodgers regarding catching. While he may not blow you away defensively, he certainly holds his own while hitting at an elite clip since entering the league. In 2023 Smith made his first All-Star team hitting .285 with 13 HR and an OPS+ of 137. Due to this production, it has gone unnoticed how awful Austin Barnes has been up until this point.
How bad has it been?
Offensively, Barnes has never been an elite hitter, even in terms of backup players. However, Barnes in 2023 is putting new meaning to terrible, and it is starting to hurt the Dodgers as we enter the dog days of summer. Barnes is batting a measly .102 with only 10 hits in 98 AB and an OPS+ of -13. For those who don’t understand, OPS+ 100 is considered average, so anything under 100 is below league average. Barnes is so bad that he is in the negative in terms of the stat.
However, in the past, Barnes’s most significant asset was his defense and ability to call games behind the plate, although even that is starting to crack. Barnes, who has been a favorite of Kershaw and other aces on the staff, has had his staff ERA balloon. A recent example of this is Julio Urias, who gave up eight runs in 5 IP yesterday compared to when Julio started against the Mets with Smith behind the plate, where he had six innings and no runs on just one hit.
A few other stats where Barnes has struggled this year are Blocks Above Average at -2, CS Above Average at -3, and ranked 56 out of 69 catchers for pop time at 2.01. To put it simply, Barnes is negatively impacting this team, and when Smith needs an off day, LA has an automatic out and a liability behind the plate.
What can the Dodgers realistically do?
Regarding catchers, it is infrequent for one to be moved during the mid-season trade deadline as there is a lot of work between pitchers and catchers. The Dodgers, in my opinion, are snake-bit in terms of answers. They could always have a Phantom IL stint and trade for another backup or promote one of the two best catchers in the system in Diego Cartaya or Hunter Feduccia. They could also cut ties with Barnes entirely and DFA him if a trade is reached or a minor leaguer is promoted. Or the most likely scenario is that the Dodgers continue to ride it out with Barnes and look to this off-season to segway to another option.
