Jarrod Saltalamacchia Called Up By Boston Red Sox

Jarrod Saltalamacchia, acquired by the Boston Red Sox from the Texas Rangers in a deadline deal for two minor leaguers, has been called up. C Kevin Cash will go on the disabled list to make room for Saltalamacchia on the roster.

Salty, once regarded as one of baseball's premier prospects, has struggled to establish himself as a major leaguer. After being traded to Texas from Atlanta in the Mark Teixeira deal, Saltalamacchia hit only .243 with 19 home runs over parts of four seasons. His OPS was a paltry .692.

The switch-hitting catcher/first basemen has only appeared in two games in 2010, but will likely see a lot more playing time with the Red Sox.

Boston is still desperate for catchers who can hit with Jason Varitek still on the disabled list and no attractive options in the minors. Saltalamacchia, despite struggling against major league pitching for most of his career, is still an improvement for the offensively challenged likes of Kevin Cash and fellow catcher Gustavo Molina. 

Saltalamacchia, who can also play first, will likely platoon with current first basemen Mike Lowell to take the stress off Lowell's injured hip. He should also get a look behind the plate for several games, although Terry Francona would be hard-pressed to take Victor Martinez's bat out of the lineup.

His playing time could be reduced if and when the Red Sox call up the recently signed Carlos Delgado. But at the very least Saltalamacchia will be the back-up catcher until Varitek returns.

The next few weeks should reveal a lot about Salty's future. If he performs well then he could be looked to as a starter in 2011 at either catcher (with Victor Martinez departing as a free agent) or first base (with Kevin Youkilis shifting over to third and Adrian Beltre departing as a free agent). Or he could be a useful role player off the bench.

If he stinks then the Red Sox will likely be back on the market for another catcher. But considering the other options out there (Colorado's Chris Iannetta, Pittsburgh's Chris Snyder, any of Toronto's catching prospects), it would be an immense boost to the organization if Saltalamacchia lives up to his hype.