With a dearth of catchers, unlikely spring training opportunities emerge with the Pirates

A breaking ball clips the bottom of the strike zone and Christian Kelley snares it before the ball hits the dirt. The catcher freezes for a beat then transfers the ball from his glove in to his right hand. He points back at the mound with his left, signaling his approval on the first Saturday of spring training.

On the mound is Chad Kuhl, a 24-year-old right-hander with 14 games of major league experience and more almost certain to come in 2017. By definition, Kelley, who has virtually no chance of playing in the majors this season, should be out of place.

Still, his routine at face is like any other catchers’ in Bradenton for the Pirates’ spring workouts. He crouches behind the plate while All-Stars such as Andrew McCutchen hit. He catches pitches from MLB stalwarts like Gerrit Cole. He sits in meetings with major league coaches and veterans.

“It’s still a little overwhelming,” Kelley said, “but at the same time it’s a great time. It’s so much fun.”

Kelley is the player in the Pirates’ Major League camp who has made it the least far up the minor-league ladder. The 23-year-old spent most of last season with Class A West Virginia before finishing the year with a brief nine-game stint for the Marauders. In all likelihood, he’ll be back in Bradenton for a season at the Class A Advanced level this summer.

And, as is so often the case for the player at MLB camp whose resume is most barren, Kelley has made his way to Pirate City with the major league team because of one crucial skill: He catches.

“It’s a unique experience,” catcher Francisco Cervelli said. “You’ve just got to take advantage of what you see here because your brain, your dream, your goal is to be here, you’ve got to start acting like it.”

Cervelli was in the same sort of position as Kelley in 2007. He had only played at Class A Advanced when the Yankees decided to bring him to spring training. He followed Jorge Posada around to absorb everything he could.

A year later, he made a brief appearance in the majors during the regular season before becoming a full-time major leaguer in 2009.

“That was something really special,” Cervelli said, “just to see the ethic, the way they work it was really special.”

Kelley’s first on-field experience at Pirate City was one of those moments. The first bullpen session he caught was from Cole, a former All-Star who once finished in the top five of Cy Young Award voting.

The meeting rooms have left a particular impression, too.

“It’s very different,” Kelley said. “Just listen to some of the brains of baseball go at it and break down pitchers and catchers and mindsets and different pitchers’ mentalities, how to approach people. It’s just a whole different side of the game I know I now need to sharpen up.”

Catchers tend to linger in the minors because of the scarcity of athletes willing to play the position. The two oldest players listed on the roster for Double A Altoona last season were catchers Zane Chavez and Samuel Gonzalez. Chavez, who turned 30 in December, was a particularly old man for the Curve — no other player in Altoona, Pa., was born before 1989.

It also means there are fewer players throughout the system to pluck from when MLB teams are looking to fill out their spring rosters with catchers who can report to camp early with the pitchers and help on the back fields when a quick bullpen session is necessary. In each of the past two seasons for Pittsburgh, it has meant using a catcher who had never played above Class A Advanced.

Last year’s choice was Reese McGuire, a former first-round pick who frequented Top-100 prospect lists before being traded to the Blue Jays in August. Kelley is even less proven. An 11th-round pick out of Division II California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, in 2015, Kelley isn’t even listed by MLB.com as one of the organization’s top 30 prospects.

Kelley batted only .236 with a .310 on-base percentage in 294 plate appearances with the Power in 2016, although he did post a triple slash line of .355 avg./.371 on-base pct./.419 slugging pct. during his 35-plate appearance stint at McKechnie Field, which was recently renamed LECOM Park. The next weeks will be his chance — a chance to temporarily live his dream and get the sort of jolt he hopes can lead to a breakthrough in his career.

“I already feel that much better from last year just in the couple days I’ve had to work with these guys, so that’s a great experience being able to get a jumpstart to this year,” Kelley said. “Hopefully, it’ll propel me.”

This story was originally published February 18, 2017 at 9:57 PM with the headline "With a dearth of catchers, unlikely spring training opportunities emerge with the Pirates."