The Curious Case of Christian Bethancourt

Not all that long ago, the Atlanta Braves had a perennial All-Star at catcher.  Brian McCann, now with the New York Yankees, was the model of consistency behind the plate for the Braves.  And even these past two seasons, Evan Gattis’ right-handed power was enough of a reason to fight horrendous Atlanta traffic and venture to Turner Field.  But both former Braves backstops became expendable because of one highly touted catching prospect that was going to become Atlanta’s starting catcher for the next decade.  Now that Christian Bethancourt has played in over 50 games with the Major League club, are we still so sure about that?

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The 23-year old Panamanian’s arm behind the plate is howitzer.  It’s great to watch him gun down attempting base stealers at second base with great regularity.  Julio Teheran doesn’t have to repeatedly shake his head ‘no’ like he did with Gattis when Bethancourt is calling the game.  Christian Bethancourt classifies as a defensive wizard behind the plate.  But his play in the batter’s box is not progressing anywhere near what scouts envisioned.

In 2015, Bethancourt is hitting just .181 and on base just 21.3% of the time.  Scouts claim that he has power at the plate, though Atlanta has yet to see it 52 games.  Bethancourt has just nine extra bases hits, all doubles, no home runs.  If Christian Bethancourt is just a defensive player, then maybe the Atlanta front office made some mistakes.  We expected to receive a Yadier Molina or a Thurman Munson and instead we got a Brad Ausmus or a Bengie Molina.

He’s not even 24 yet and many fans are growing tired of Christian Bethancourt’s underwhelming performances at the plate.  Though he had a great game on May 21st, going 3-4 with two runs and an RBI in a 10-1 Braves victory over the Brewers, how much more time does Atlanta need to spend on a position player who can’t get on base?  Bethancourt lost his starting job in April when veteran AJ Pierzynski was swinging a hot bat to start 2015.  This year was Christian Bethancourt’s for the taking and he’s not making the most of this opportunity.

President of Baseball Operations John Hart doesn’t sit well with guys hitting at or below the Mendoza line.  Hart just traded Alberto Callaspo to the Dodgers because he wasn’t hitting from either side of the plate.  I know that Christian Bethancourt was a major prospect for our organization for many years, but the Braves can’t let him continue to make easy outs in the batter’s box.

With rumors circulating about the Braves’ interest in Brewers All-Star Catcher Jonathan Lucroy last week, if Bethancourt can’t show any signs of improvement at the plate by the All-Star Break, Atlanta might have to find a new starting catcher.  Pierzynski could start the rest of the season but he’s 38 years old.  Bethancourt’s sample size is growing and it’s not looking all that promising offensively.  Let’s hope Kevin Seitzer works his magic on Christian Bethancourt in June because Braves Country is starting to get a little restless with Bethancourt’s lack of production at the plate.