Joe

Hudson

Hudson has morphed into the quintessential modern-era emergency catcher, getting into exactly 19 games for four different franchises since 2018. The 33-year-old veteran journeyman will head to Triple-A Sugar Land as, you guessed it, emergency catching depth for the Astros entering the 2025 campaign.

Hudson got into one game earlier this month for the Mets with Luis Torrens away from the club on paternity leave. The 33-year-old journeyman backstop has done a nice job the last few years serving as emergency organizational catching depth for several organizations.

With Luis Torrens coming off the paternity list, the Mets will move on from Hudson. The 33-year-old caught half an inning over the weekend, which was his first MLB action in four years.

The 28-year-old will go back to his role as the backup to Francisco Alvarez. His defense makes him a solid real-life catcher for the Mets, but he does not play enough to be in consideration in fantasy leagues. Joe Hudson was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Hudson gets the call to join New York’s active roster ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Cubs with backup catcher Luis Torrens away from the club on paternity leave. The 33-year-old journeyman backstop hasn’t appeared in the majors since the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

This seems like an odd move, but the Mets wanted to bring a third catcher to London, just in case, and they needed that catcher on the 40-man roster in order to bring him. Hence, the 33-year-old Hudson, who last played in the majors with the Mariners in 2020, is now on the 40-man. He won’t be recalled unless something happens to one of the Mets’ top two catchers, and he’ll probably be taken off the 40-man next week.

The quintessential minor league journeyman, Hudson has bounced around for the past decade in the upper minors, getting into 18 games in the big leagues between the Angels, Cardinals and Mariners since 2018. The 32-year-old backstop hasn’t appeared in the majors since the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign and will open next season as emergency catching depth for the Cubs.

Hudson last appeared in the majors for the Mariners during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and has spent the last two years in the Pirates and Rays systems. The 31-year-old veteran backstop provides the Braves with some emergency catching depth entering the 2023 campaign.

The local Tampa resident also received an invite to major league camp with the offer. Hudson last played at the major league level in 2020 and went 3-for-17 at the plate over nine games.

Hudson was released earlier this month after spending the entire 2021 campaign at Triple-A Indianapolis, posting a lackluster .188/.269/.292 triple-slash line with three home runs across 175 plate appearances. The 30-year-old backstop appeared in nine games with the Mariners during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. He should be able to latch on as extra catching depth with a minor-league deal this offseason.