Who would get call if Blue Jays need emergency catcher?

TORONTO — Alejandro Kirk was back behind the plate on Wednesday and his return was greeted with more than a few sighs of relief in the Toronto Blue Jays clubhouse.

Most importantly, everyone was happy that the starting catcher was healthy and that he didn’t sustain a concussion when he was struck on the head by a backswing during Sunday’s game in Seattle.

Beyond that, though, there was relief that the Blue Jays didn’t have to resort to deploying their emergency catcher. That role belongs to infielder Ernie Clement and when manager John Schneider confirmed it to reporters on Tuesday, he was asked if Clement even knew he was the third-string backstop.

“He does,” Schneider replied with a laugh.   

Backup catcher Tyler Heineman started Tuesday’s contest and played all nine innings while Schneider said that Kirk was available off the bench if needed. And yet, even if worries about the Blue Jays’ emergency backstop proved unnecessary, they did allow for an interesting thought exercise.

What would have happened if Clement had been called to duty?

“It would be a grind,” Clement says. “I don’t think I’d do a whole lot of blocking. I’d probably just try to pick everything.

“It would be interesting.”

Clement began this season primarily playing third base but has shifted over to second in the absence of Andres Gimenez. He’s built a reputation as an excellent defender and has played every position except for catcher, centre and right field during his five seasons in the majors.

That’s 2,106 defensive innings between six defensive positions — including pitcher. Add in his time in the minors and college and Clement has checked off the other two outfield spots. Catching remains elusive, though, and Clement says the last time he’s done that in a game was when he was 10 years old.

Nonetheless, the Blue Jays didn’t just randomly bestow the emergency tag on Clement. For one, he’s got great hands and is arguably the most athletic player on the MLB roster. Secondly, he’s held the role, at least in name, before.

The 29-year-old was the third catcher during his time with the Cleveland Guardians and even spent a few games as the backup. Over the years, he’s caught bullpens and has recently squatted down to receive balls from a pitching machine.

Blue Jays infielder Michael Stefanic is also an option to catch, according to Schneider, but he’s pretty much in the same boat as Clement. The 29-year-old journeyman, who was called up last week when Gimenez was placed on the injured list, was 12 the last time he caught in a game.

In 2020, the Los Angeles Angels tried to convert Stefanic to a catcher but the experiment was short-lived. That offered Stefanic a closer look at what the job entails and he came away with a deeper understanding of its challenges.

“I think you just gotta have the tenacity,” Stefanic says. “Managers around the league tend to try to avoid (using an emergency catcher) as much as possible because it’s very, very hard. Not to mention we’re not used to catching 97 (m.p.h pitches). You can break your thumb and all that stuff.

“It would literally be just trying to survive back there.”

Luis Hurtado, bullpen catcher and catching coach for the Blue Jays, acknowledged the difficulty in asking a position player, or anyone else for that matter, to get behind the plate to receive major-league pitching. His advice to an emergency catcher would be to keep it simple.

“Just try to catch the ball first because that’s the biggest thing,” Hurtado says. “You’re not going to do anything without catching the ball.”

The coach noted that during his time in professional baseball, he’s never personally seen a team throw an emergency catcher into the fire. Yet, if it did happen, Hurtado said the player’s load would at least be eased in the sense of game-calling.

An experienced pitcher would likely determine his own pitch selection, while in the event a younger hurler was on the mound, the catcher would be able to rely on easily digestible scouting reports. Hurtado says Blue Jays catchers are given wristbands that contain recommendations for how to pitch to opposing hitters.

A third-string catcher would at least have that as a guidepost, but Clement envisioned a simpler solution.

“I would just put down one finger for fastball every time,” he says. “If it’s going to be a slider, make it a strike. Don’t make me go down and block anything.”

Clement doesn’t own a catcher’s mitt and would have to borrow one from Kirk, Heineman or Hurtado. However, he’s not in any rush to find one.

“We’re not going to get to that point, I promise you,” said Clement with a grin. “We’re going to put it out in the universe that that is not going to happen.”

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