2014 Dodgers review: Tim Federowicz

Dodgers catcher Tim Federowicz spent most of his 2014 season in the minors, and struggled during his time in the majors in 2014.

What went right

Federowicz continued to hit in Triple-A Albuquerque, hitting .328/.383/.555 with 14 home runs and 26 doubles in 78 games. In parts of four seasons in Triple-A, totaling 1,004 plate appearances, Federowicz has thrived in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, hitting .320/.394/.544 with 39 home runs and 75 doubles in 239 games.

Federowicz also threw out 10 of 23 runners trying to steal with the Dodgers, a 43.5-percent rate that ranked second-best in the National League among catchers with over 12 steal attempts against them.

What went wrong

The catching position was a problem for the Dodgers in 2014, especially offensively, hitting .181/.283/.261 as a crew. But as A.J. Ellis, Drew Butera and even Miguel Olivo struggled, the rhetorical question of "Why not bring up Federowicz; he can't possibly be worse, right?" was answered in a bad way.

Federowicz was 8-for-71 (.113) with three doubles and a home run in his 23 games with the Dodgers, including 19 starts at catcher. His .355 OPS ranks ninth-worst in Dodgers franchise history among non-pitchers with at least 75 plate appearances, and his 1 OPS+ (yes, one) is tied for fourth-worst with the immortal Bill Bergen.

Not that 78 plate appearances are the best way to judge Federowicz. In parts of four seasons with the Dodgers, he has hit .194/.247/.300 in 271 PA which might not be too far from most backup catchers (all catchers in baseball in 2011-14 hit .246/.313/.389, for instance), but is reaching a breaking point in his career, now out of options.

2014 particulars

Age: 26

Salary: something slightly over $500,000, pro-rated for his time in the majors

Game of the year

On June 7 against the Rockies in Colorado, Federowicz hit a three-run home run in the seventh inning that briefly gave the Dodgers the lead, his only home run of the season.

Roster status

Federowicz has one year, 107 days of major league service time and is out of options. He will have a fight on his hands to remain on the 40-man roster.