Detroit Tigers' Bryan Holaday Has Earned A Big League Job Somewhere In 2016

When Alex Avila left the Detroit Tigers for the division-rival Chicago White Sox last November, it seemed that the coast was perfectly clear for Bryan Holaday to serve as the Tigers’ No. 2 catcher and back up James McCann in 2016. Then, a short time later, Detroit inked veteran catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, which complicated things a bit.

Saltalamacchia, who signed a reported three-year, $21 million deal with the Miami Marlins after a 2013 season in which he was part of a World Champion Boston Red Sox club, had a rough 2014 campaign with the Fish and was released last May. Upon catching on with the Arizona Diamondbacks, his bat seemed to perk up a bit, and he hit .251/.332/.474 with eight homers and 23 RBIs through 70 games. Saltalamacchia has also had a nice spring with the Tigers, hitting .290/.353/.581 with a pair of homers through 11 games.

That being said, Holaday has surprisingly been one of Detroit’s top offensive performers this spring, hitting .438/.455/.969 with four homers and 12 RBIs through 16 games. While many fans were ready to hand the job to Saltalamacchia before the season even began, Holaday’s hot spring has certainly made for an interesting story.

Of course, it is spring training, so this level or production isn’t sustainable and there really isn’t anything on Holaday’s minor league or MLB resume to suggest that he could be a huge offensive threat. At the very least, though, he could be a very solid No. 2 catcher. Holaday spent most of last year in the minors, but hit .281/.292/.453 in 24 games with the big league club. He did a very serviceable job as Avila’s backup in 2014 as well.

It is also worthwhile to note that the 28-year-old is out of minor league options, meaning that the Tigers could lose him on waivers if he doesn’t make the team and they try to send him back to Triple-A Toledo. It probably wouldn’t make too much sense for the Tigers to carry three catchers either, as they have other options that would give them more flexibility in the field. It does, however, seem plausible that the Tigers could look to trade Holaday before the start of the season.

All in all, it may still be too hard for the right-handed heavy Tigers to pass on the switch-hitting Saltalamacchia’s left-handed bat, and understandably so. One thing is for sure, however; Holaday has earned the right to be given a big league job somewhere in 2016, whether it happens to be in Detroit or elsewhere.