The signing of Kurt Suzuki to a two-year deal that could turn into a three-year deal makes sense because he is the right kind of player to work with the Twins' young pitchers, and he is, I am told, an ideal teammate and locker room presence.
But what the Suzuki signing really means is that Josmil Pinto isn't a work in progress as a catcher. It means he's just a bad catcher.
If the Twins thought they could have Pinto straightened out by next spring, they wouldn't have paid Suzuki $6 million a year.
I would have preferred the Twins trade Suzuki for a good young player, but my understanding is that they didn't have that option. Failing the ability to trade Suzuki for value, signing him to an extension was logical. The one thing the Twins couldn't afford to do was let Suzuki leave as a free agent at the end of the season.
Remember, when Kirby Puckett signed a five-year, $30-million deal before the 1993 season, that was briefly the largest contract in baseball history? Now $6 million a year is what you pay a pretty good veteran catcher because you have no other options.
Souhan on Sports: startribune.com/sports
