Cubs: Is Jorge Alfaro a trade target if Willson Contreras gets moved?

The Chicago Cubs shored up their catching depth in a big way with the Yan Gomes signing. But if Jed Hoyer comes out of the lockout by trading Willson Contreras, there’s a glaring question mark behind Gomes on the depth chart.

That’s not to say there aren’t guys capable of seeing reps in the system: the recently-signed John Hicks will compete for time with P.J. Higgins, Erick Castillo and Tyler Payne this spring. But I wouldn’t feel all that great about any of them as my go-to backup catcher if Gomes is the starter, especially given his age (he turns 35 in July).

All this to say – if the Cubs trade Contreras prior to Opening Day, don’t be surprised to see the team add another backstop to the mix. Enter veteran Jorge Alfaro, acquired by the Padres last fall after the Marlins jettisoned the former top prospect on the heels of a -0.4 bWAR 2021 showing.

San Diego, looking to rebound from a staggering second-half collapse last year, is swimming in catching depth right now. Austin Nola takes top billing, followed by the likes of former Cub and Yu Darvish’s personal catcher Víctor Caratini. From there, up-and-comer Luis Campusano seems like a likely third-string option as he looks to start putting up numbers at the dish at the big league level.

Add Alfaro in and you’d be carrying four catchers on the big league roster – which, despite several of these guys’ abilities to play a secondary position, seems pretty unlikely. Caratini has a minor league option left, but given he’s Darvish’s personal catcher, he’s probably not going anywhere.

MLB Trade Rumors has a nice piece breaking down the Alfaro conundrum facing San Diego heading into the spring – and, immediately, I connected it to the Cubs.

Last summer, the Cubs and Friars reportedly talked about a trade that would see Chicago take on all of Eric Hosmer’s contract – with a return headlined by Luis Campusano coming back to the North Side. Given Contreras is entering a walk year in 2022, that makes sense – and the situation behind the plate has only grown more dire since given the news Miguel Amaya will miss this season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Chicago Cubs: It’s not perfect, but Jorge Alfaro would be an improvement

Alfaro isn’t going to replace what you’d lose by trading Contreras. The most prudent move Hoyer could make is extending his two-time All-Star backstop – but as we know, that doesn’t mean that’s how things will play out.

Pairing Gomes with Alfaro, followed by the mix of guys at Double-A and Triple-A would give the Cubs a serviceable mix of catchers this year. Alfaro is a middle-of-the-pack pitch framer who runs well for a catcher and has been up and down with the stick. Last year, as noted, as a ‘down’ year for the 28-year-old, evidenced by his 70 OPS+.

He comes with a couple years of control, so Chicago can see if they can help him gain some badly-needed consistency at the dish. If not, cut bait in a year – but for the short-term, he represents a cost-effective, serviceable option for the club.