Should the St. Louis Cardinals re-sign Yadier Molina?

Since the start of the ’05 season, St Louis Cardinals fans have known who would be their primary catcher every single spring, but will he be back in 2022?

Since the beginning of the 2005 season, the St. Louis Cardinals and their fans have known who was going to be their primary catcher every single spring, but will he be back in 2022?

With 10 All-Star selections, nine Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger, and a couple of top-five MVP finishes – and votes in three other seasons – the answer to “Who’s catching for the St. Louis Cardinals?” has been Yadier Molina, one of the most endearing, enduring stars in the franchise’s long, storied, proud history.

But Molina, or Yadi to so many fans, turned 39 in July. He’s not the hitter he was in his prime, though he’s still solid at the plate, especially for a catcher, a position that traditionally sacrifices hitting prowess for defensive skill.

And speaking of his defense, Molina is still terrific. For example, he’s gunning down runners attempting to steal with great frequency, leading the majors with a 43.6% caught-stealing rate. But age catches up to everyone, and he isn’t as spry behind the dish as he used to be.

Given the big picture of not just Molina but the Cardinals’ other options at catcher, their competitiveness within the division, and their financial picture, the time is fast approaching that a call will need to be made (again) about whether to re-sign Molina or go in another direction.

So, what’s the correct decision?

Well, going back to Molina present-day performance, obviously he’s past his prime, but he’s still a solid player. He hits for an acceptable average, takes a decent number of walks, and will pop the occasional home run. Sure, he’s among the slowest players in the majors, but speed has never been part of Molina’s game – despite his three stolen bases this year without being caught.

Maybe his biggest contribution is how Molina works with pitchers. They love to throw to him, and he knows his opponents very well. Shake him off? It happens, but he’s been around and effective long enough that the bulk of the time the men on the mound trust him to guide them through an opposing lineup. Cardinals pitchers may be the only people who love him more than Cardinals fans.

What about St. Louis’ other options? Well, staying within the organizations, the first place to look is Andrew Knizner. And it doesn’t take long to realize he’s not likely to be the next great (or even acceptable) Cardinals catcher. While sporadic opportunity has prevented Knizner from getting into a groove, he’s failed to make much of the playing time he’s gotten.

Ivan Herrera is touted as the catcher of the future, but the future is not 2022. Displaying good patience and solid power, Herrera is doing well…in Double-A. Yes, a fair number of prospects have made the jump from two levels down to the big leagues, but not too many catchers. A reasonable time frame for Herrera to reach the big leagues is late next year, but the best-case scenario is for him to be eased into the starting role over the next couple of seasons.

The top free agent options this winter include Buster Posey – as likely to play for another team as Molina – and Travis d’Arnaud. Making a trade for the Cubs’ Willson Contreras or another starting catcher is possible, but few teams are likely to part with a player of real skill.

The 2022 season should be another competitive one for St. Louis. Sure, Milwaukee will be tough again next year, and the Reds certainly have been making noise the last couple of seasons. But the Cubs and Pirates are unlikely to be in the running for the division, leaving only two other teams in the race. Having a good catcher would be quite valuable as the Cardinals battle for the NL Central title.

And then there’s money, which the Cardinals should have plenty of this offseason after Matt Carpenter, Dexter Fowler, Carlos Martinez, and Andrew Miller depart – or at least have their big-dollar contracts come off the books. And of them who happen to return won’t earn a big salary in 2022.

A good percentage of those funds will need to be allocated to other areas of improvement, with starting pitching an obvious target. Additional depth in the bullpen, infield, and outfield certainly couldn’t hurt, but will there be enough money to bring Molina back? Absolutely.

The choice seems obvious, and recent news of contract negotiations indicates Molina returning to St. Louis in 2022 is growing ever more likely.

Can they bring him back? Definitely. Should they bring him back? Undoubtedly. The heart and soul of the franchise over the last 17 seasons – and a likely Hall of Famer a few years after he retires – Yadier Molina needs to be wearing a birds-on-the-bat jersey in 2022, for the sake of the team, the fans, and the player himself.