Chicago Cubs: Catching trio has been otherworldly so far in 2019

Chicago Cubs: Taylor Davis, backup catcher and crusher of Cardinal dreams

The newest, and probably most unlikely head of the Cubs’ three-headed catching tandem in 2019 is Taylor Davis. Yes, the staring guy. Davis, a guy better known for staring into cameras than catching in the major leagues, has had an eventful start to his 2019 season with the big-league club.

Check that – Davis has had one super-eventful swing for the Cubs this year.  On the big-league club for cups of coffee as a third option the past two seasons, Davis has been pressed into the backup role this spring as Caratini works back from hamate bone surgery.

This guy is never going to be a starting catcher in the big leagues. He’s not really known for his hitting ability (although he does sport a career .281 average and .349 OBP in the minors), and he doesn’t even have the same rocket arm that Contreras sports on his shoulder. However, there does seem to be a likability and “it” factor with this guy that is hard to quantify. And, after Saturday afternoon, there’s a little more for fans to quantify after he demolished a pitch from Michael Wacha that landed in the back of the left-field bleachers and knotted up a game that had the Cubs trailing 5-1 before he stepped to the plate.

While Davis is really just a placeholder providing a couple of days off for Contreras while Caratini is on the IL, he has already made his mark on the season in the early going and endeared himself to Cubs’ fans. With a 1-for-8 start to 2019 and a career .231 MLB average, we certainly can’t expect grand slams every time he steps up to bat (and in fact, he actually looks overmatched by MLB pitchers pretty often). However, anything Davis does offensively at this point while giving Contreras a breather is the proverbial icing on the cake. For a Cubs’ squad that is just trying to do a better job in keeping its starting catcher fresh in the hopes that he can continue to rake all summer long, anything Davis provides is a blessing.

Every day that passes where Davis is on the big league ballclub (and giving the Cubs adequate and competent catching services) is a day the Cubs aren’t in a precarious position of need where they have to trade limited high-end assets for an MLB-caliber catcher. If he wants to be more than adequate, keep hitting dongs and staring into cameras for post-game interviews, we’ll take that too.