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2008 Although Kendall performed reasonably well for the Cubs after they acquired him in mid-July, he'll best help Chicago by hurting Milwaukee as the Brewers' regular catcher this year. Kendall's only real skill is his ability to get on base by taking ball four and being hit by pitches, yet he posted a .301 OBP last season. Moreover, Kendall's throwing arm is now a major liability, as he allowed 111 of 131 baserunners to steal successfully against him last year, including 52 of 57 after returning to the NL. At age 33 and with a pair of gimpy knees, Kendall has little chance of escaping the pull of the undertow that's about to sink his career. 2007 Let`s first dispense with the obvious: Kendall wasn`t worth his $11.5-million salary in 2006, and he really won`t be worth his $13-million salary in 2007, the last season covered by his six-year, $60-million contract. On the plus side, the Pirates are on the hook for a good chunk ($5 million) of Kendall`s `07 income, his .367 on-base percentage last season ranked fourth among the nine MLB catchers who played enough to qualify for the batting title, and the A`s rave about Kendall`s work behind the plate. That isn`t to say Kendall is worth even the $8 million the A`s will spend on him this season. His OPS ranked ninth among those nine regular catchers, he threw out only 24 percent of larcenous baserunners, and he`s totaled exactly one home run in the last two seasons. The day his contract expires should be one of relief in the Oakland front office. 2006 Kendall triggered a host of PECOTA`s red flags entering last season. With his batting average-heavy offensive profile, declining speed, and his position, the system figured that there was about a 25% chance he`d have a year this bad or worse. Unsurprisingly, there isn`t much optimism about his rebound chances. Kendall is durable at least, but one wonders if that isn`t part of the problem. He`d surely be among the career leaders in Catcher Abuse Points. 2005 So a big sigh of relief, he's no longer the big contract Littlefield inherited, and Kendall can get on with playing somewhere consequential in the standings. With Oakland, it won't matter if he bats first or second; neither he nor Kotsay run enough to create distractions for the other, so Ken Macha can play platoon percentages or fuss about having Kotsay having the 'hole' to take advantage of with Kendall on base. He should profit from seeing his catching workload decrease to 120 games behind the plate while soaking up some DH at-bats, which might prolong his career to the point where he'll be a serious Hall of Fame candidate. 2003 Kendall’s offensive drop-off is alarming. He’s stopped taking walks, he no longer hits for power, and he doesn’t run as well as he did before his ankle injury despite being a top-of-the-order hitter. Obviously, his career is in crisis in tandem with the Pirates’ budget: it’s not Kendall’s defense that has kept him in the majors, and the Bucs would love to unload his $10 million/ year contract. That’ll be tough, with both his ironclad no-trade clause and struggles to get on base and hit the ball with authority clouding the picture. Lloyd McClendon is planning on using Kendall as a leadoff hitter in 2003; maybe that will force him to start taking some pitches again. 2002 Kendall played the whole year with a bum thumb (not the same as having your thumb up your bum) and easily had his worst year in the majors. He had surgery to correct the problem in October and should be fine for spring training. This was his age 27 year, so don’t be surprised if he rebounds and has a performance spike all at once. The left-field experiment is over. 2001 He’s doomed to second-string All-Star status as long as Mike Piazza is behind the plate, but Jason Kendall has firmly landed himself on the list of the best players in baseball and is just entering his power peak. Signing him for $60 million over six years was an excellent decision. Considering where the market went after he signed, Kendall might be a bargain at $10 million per year. 2000 Kendall was on pace for a career year in all categories when his foot fell off in a freak play in early July. He took the brace off in mid-September and is expected to be at full strength by the start of spring training, but his days as a prolific and high-percentage basestealer may be over. 1999 The best story on the Pirates. Kendall took huge steps forward at the plate, on the bases, in the field, and in the clubhouse, becoming the team's unquestioned leader and occasional mouthpiece. He's a player you lock up long-term and build around, and the Pirates are trying to do just that. 1998 More power, more walks and a much better year behind the plate. The Pirates have only signed one young player to a long-term contract so far, and they picked a great one. 1997 He managed a rare feat for the Pirates: retaining the offensive performance he showed in the minors. His 1996 was a carbon copy of 1995. He showed steady improvement through the minors, and I’d expect him to resume an upward climb towards .300. His defense was puzzling: he was among the best at stopping baserunners at Carolina in ’95, but surrendered more stolen bases than any catcher but Piazza while committing 18 errors. He’s tough to strike out and easy to hit, with a 76-to-44 strikeout to HBP ratio over the last three years. 1996 Probably the best prospect in the organization. Catcher, still young, doing all the right things, and getting a bit better at everything each year. Probably needs a little over a year in AAA, or perhaps a September callup. Will be a very good one, I think. Probably will not retain all of the gains he made with the bat in 1995, but won't slip very much, and that's still a darn good trend. Probably the only Pirate hitting prospect with any star potential, really.
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