Right now the Giants are in need of a catcher to platoon with Buster Posey, as he continues to delevop. Ryan Garko is a catcher, and should be able to platoon with Posey. Ryan Garko was a catcher at Stanford University, where in 2003 he won the Johnny Bench Award(given to the nation's top catcher). He was a catcher in the Indian's farm system, until he switched to first base to recieve more playing time because at that time the Indians had a surplus of catching prospects.
Any of the veteran catchers that have been linked to receiving interest from the Giants are all would-be back-up catchers on any other ball club. Having spent the second half of last season in the National League, and given more time to get comfortable in the Bay Area, Ryan Garko should be able to improve the offensive game he showed as a Giant last season. Even a minimal improvement over what he did last season will be better than what some of the veteran catchers will contribute.
Watching Garko last season, it was easy to tell he hustled on every play. I think a switch back to his natural catcher position will be an easy transition for him. There is no doubt this will be an experiment if tried out by the Giants. But the way I see it, it is a low-risk and high reward scenario that needs to be explored. If Garko hits like many people believe he can, he will be a great offensive producing catcher. Ryan Garko is eligible for arbitration and after a decline in almost every statistical category last year, his pay of $420,000 should not increase very much. Letting Garko transition back into the catcher role will give Buster Posey his fair share of playing time and allowing him to grow into an everyday player.
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