This story was excerpted from Adam Berry’s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Meet the new catchers, same as the old catchers.
The Rays have been in search of stability behind the plate since Mike Zunino’s All-Star campaign in 2021. They’ve cycled through the likes of Francisco Mejía, Christian Bethancourt, René Pinto, Ben Rortvedt, Alex Jackson, Danny Jansen and Matt Thaiss. Their performance often exacerbated the frustration felt by anyone who’s witnessed the franchise’s long-running pursuit of a front-line backstop.
The front office remade the Rays’ catching tandem before last year’s Trade Deadline, bringing in Nick Fortes from the Marlins and Hunter Feduccia from the Dodgers. Both are back and poised to keep those jobs on Opening Day, hoping a little more consistency and familiarity will go a long way.
They certainly think so. Both had been with their original organizations from the time they were drafted in 2018 until last July, then they had to learn a new staff and system on the fly down the stretch last season.
Not being the new guys has been a nice change of pace.
“Last year was a challenge. It was my first time ever getting traded, so it was an adjustment,” Fortes said. “Tough to do middle of the season, but I feel like now, getting to have a full spring -- getting to know everybody on a personal level, too -- it's been a big help.”
Fortes and Feduccia -- “Forty and Feddy” for short -- were hardly hurting for information about Tampa Bay’s pitchers when they joined the team last summer. Pitching coach Kyle Snyder and others guided them through scouting reports and game-planning strategy. The pitchers know what they like to do.
But there’s a difference between having that information and understanding everything behind the numbers. That comes with time and experience. To that end, Feduccia said the catchers dove deep into analytical information early in Spring Training, and both tried to get live reps with as many different arms as they could.
There’s an even bigger difference between knowing the pitcher and knowing the person behind the pitches. Fortes said his goal this spring was to develop relationships and friendships with the pitchers, which will only make it easier to figure out how they can navigate games together.
“All the information we get and the numbers and stuff like that, it's easy to adapt pretty quick,” Feduccia said. “But as you go on, you start learning what makes the pitcher click and stuff like that, which helps out a lot. Having this full head start this year is a lot better.”
Manager Kevin Cash said the playing time will be split “very much close to 50/50” between Fortes and Feduccia to start the season. The right-handed-hitting Fortes will start against left-handed pitchers, and the lefty-swinging Feduccia will play against tough right-handers. But Fortes is generally regarded as a stronger defender, so he could find himself in the lineup against some right-handers, too.
What they do behind the plate is the Rays’ biggest concern, considering their belief that their best teams are built on run prevention. But there’s no denying the team would benefit from getting more from their catchers at the plate, too.
Last season, Fortes hit .213/.307/.348 (84 OPS+) with three homers and 11 RBIs in 38 games for the Rays. Feduccia batted just .151/.265/.209 (36 OPS+) with five doubles and eight RBIs in 36 games.
Fortes has had a good spring, batting .280 with an .877 OPS and two homers in 11 games. Cash noted that hitting coach Chad Mottola is “really excited [about] where he’s at and the work that he’s put in.” It’s been more of the same for Feduccia, batting just .115 with a .502 OPS.
But Feduccia has consistently shown solid strike-zone awareness, and he doesn’t chase pitches outside the zone. Those traits have led to plenty of walks, and they helped him hit .271/.376/.432 in his career in the Minors. The Rays still believe that version of Feduccia is in there, and he thinks the same.
“Just the reassurance, it goes a long way, so I think that's what I needed,” Feduccia said. “Get more comfortable in this situation and really tell myself, like, 'I could be the guy. I could find success in the league.' Going forward, I'm super stoked and excited to show everyone what I'm capable of.”