The catching position league-wide consists of a small group of the elite guys and then a big group of mediocre guys and platoons that may or may not add up to decent production. The Braves have been fortunate to have been getting as much out of the catching platoons they have employed over the last several seasons, but now they have a pair of the game’s best catching prospects knocking at the door of the big leagues. Lets take a look at one of them, Shea Langeliers, and see what we should realistically expect.
What went right? It is hard to draw too many conclusions about information from 2020 on prospects since there were not real games played, but there has been a lot of positive information coming out of the alternate training site particularly regarding his work at the plate. Given that he is already regarded as one of the better defensive catchers in the minor leagues, if he can also be at least an average hitter, that would be a huge boost.
What went wrong? Again, the same ‘no actual 2020 season’ caveat from above applies here. However, that was also probably the biggest negative for Shea in 2020 as well because if there was one thing that he needed in 2020, it was reps both at the plate as well as in calling games. He did not call his own games in college and while a lot of the game-calling guesswork has been taken out with analytical game plans these days, handling that workload and implementing game plans takes practice. Sure, it is likely a lot of that was done at the alternate training site, but it is different in real game situations against a wide variety of competition.
What to expect from him in 2021: Shea is firmly in the top two catching prospects for the Braves right now. Given that he was a college draftee when the Braves made him a top 10 pick in 2019, we can realistically expect him to be in Double-A for the 2021 season and forgo high-A given the work he put in in 2020 and the fact that there is so much in flux with the Braves’ high-A affiliate. As for the Braves’ big leagues catching situation, we don’t expect him to be in the mix there for a couple of reasons. One, there is no reason to rush him especially given that he isn’t on the 40 man roster. Travis d’Arnaud was a revelation for the Braves in 2020 and is under contract for 2021 with him getting the lion’s share of the starts being the most likely scenario. William Contreras is Shea’s catching competition in the prospect ranks and is likely to get the first crack at a major league spot given that he has already debuted and is on the 40 man roster already. Expect Shea to perform well in Double-A and probably get moved up to Triple-A in 2021 before forcing the Braves to make a decision in 2022.