This winter, the Minnesota Twins made a move that didn’t generate a ton of headlines. No splashy press conference, no massive contract. Just a two-year, $14 million deal for veteran catcher and first baseman Victor Caratini.
On the surface, it’s easy to shrug at it.
Last season with the Houston Astros, Caratini hit .259 with a .324 on-base percentage and 12 home runs across 114 games. Solid, but certainly not eye-popping. The surface-level numbers don’t scream impact player, but this is exactly the kind of signing that can quietly matter more than people realize.
Caratini’s value doesn’t jump out in traditional stat lines because he doesn’t win games with towering home runs. He wins with consistency, contact, and versatility.
He doesn’t swing and miss much. His strikeout rate last season was just 16.8%, comfortably better than league average. His whiff rate was below 20%, which is very strong for a catcher. He makes contact on pitches in the zone at an above-average clip and doesn’t chase at much. He keeps at-bats alive and puts the ball in play, traits that can make a massive difference from someone in the bottom half of a lineup.
According to RosterResource, Caratini is currently projected to hit eighth for Minnesota. That’s typically where teams hide their weakest bat, but you can do a lot worse than Caratini in that spot. A switch-hitter who controls the zone, doesn’t strike out excessively, and can provide 10-15 home runs has real value down there.
And if you dig a little deeper, there’s even more to like. Caratini posted an expected batting average (xBA) of .255 last year and an expected slugging percentage (xSLG) 20 points higher than his actual production. His hard-hit rate hovered around 41%, so while he’s not crushing the ball every at-bat, he’s not getting lucky either. His production is stable.
Where Caratini separates himself, and where this signing really starts to make sense, is defensively.
Over the course of his career, he’s consistently graded as an above-average defender behind the plate. His blocking metrics are strong, and he’s historically been an above-average pitch framer. Those are things that don’t show up in a box score but absolutely matter over 162 games.
And then there’s the flexibility.
Caratini can also play first base, and he’s significantly stronger defensively there than Josh Bell. That gives Minnesota lineup options. If Jeffers is catching and Bell is at first, Caratini can still find his way into the lineup. If Bell is at DH or needs a day off, Caratini slides over seamlessly. And because he’s a switch-hitter, he won’t force any platoon limitations either.
Despite being a switch-hitter, Caratini hit .268 against right-handers in 2025 and just .208 against lefties, which makes the split look pretty significant at first glance. But his isolated power (ISO) and wOBA were actually higher against lefties than they were against righties. The production didn’t fully show up in the batting average, but the underlying numbers suggest lefties weren’t a true weakness, and more so just uneven in results.
One area worth addressing is park fit. Caratini hit 12 home runs last season in Houston, but if you replicate the exact contact quality of those balls in Target Field, only about half would have left the yard. He hit the majority of his home runs to right field and right-center, and it’s much harder to drive the ball out to right in Minnesota than it is in Houston.
So yes, expecting another 12-homer season may be optimistic.
But here’s the thing: the Twins didn’t sign him to hit 25 home runs. They signed him to be steady and provide positional flexibility. Even if the power dips slightly because of park factors, the rest of his profile remains intact.
Remember, his value isn’t just power-dependent. His run value against fastballs has consistently been positive, and he’s historically handled velocity well. Pair that with an above league-average bat speed, and there’s enough pop in his bat to do serious damage.
Because of his defense and versatility, I expect Caratini to be a near-everyday player. He may get the occasional off day when Jeffers is catching, Bell is at first, and someone like Byron Buxton is occupying the DH spot. But that’s likely not going to be a common occurrence. Between catching duties, first base, and potential DH opportunities, there should be plenty of plate appearances available.
And if he’s hitting eighth, he’s not being asked to carry the lineup. He’s being asked to stabilize it, which is where guys like Caratini thrive.
At $7 million per year, this is not a league-altering contract. It’s a strategic investment for a player that will provide experience and depth.
If Caratini provides roughly 2.0 wins above replacement (WAR) per season, something he’s been capable of in the past, that’s tremendous value at that price point. The average rate for a win is significantly higher than $7 million. You don’t need him to be a star for this deal to work. You just need him to be himself.
This wasn’t a flashy signing, and Caratini isn’t a flashy player. But teams win in the margins. Players who provide lineup depth, defensive reliability, and don’t give away at-bats go a long way. That’s exactly what Minnesota is getting. And over the next couple of seasons, I think there’s a very real chance that Victor Caratini ends up being more impactful than most people expect.