Just a day after being selected by the Gigantes de Carolina in the re-entry draft of the Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente we are happy to report more good news on behalf of catcher JC Escarra, the Cuban-American has signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees with an invitation to Spring Training.
The backstop from Miami has developed his defensive tool to a very high percentile. Escarra has been so good behind the plate that he was selected to the LBPRC All-Star game in Santiago de Los Caballeros, Dominican Republic against the best from the LIDOM.
In 241 innings this winter the backstop has only made two error and sports a .991 fielding percentage. He also has 24 assists, 198 putouts, 2 double plays and 36 % caught stealing percentage. But the unseen and untalked about ways he has progressed at handling a pitching staff is at what he has matured at the most.
Cuban-American @jcescarra , aka "The Hialeah Cannon"….#CubanBaseballDigest #LBPRC pic.twitter.com/rG21Qsg8ck
— Cuban Baseball Digest (@CBaseballDigest) December 30, 2023
He has been especially tasked with catching his countrymen Yoanys Quiala and Pedro Echemendia. In 11 starts by these two pitchers they have a combined 2.00 earned run average. His maturation behind the dish was what drew the the interests of the Yankees, MLB clubs and plenty of teams in Asia.
Now with the lumber Escarra has not been to shabby this winter either placing sixth in the LBPRC in hits (35), second in doubles (9), and fifth in runs batted in (15). In a position where hitting is not at a premium Escarra’s hitting is definitely a plus. During the summer he was a key figure in Unión Laguna’s playoff run that ended up with the being the runner-up of the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol.
During that Algodoneros’ playoff run this season Escarra’s stock rose after he slashed .333/.438/.621/1.059. Escarra also led the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol in homeruns during the postseason with seven and was second to Chris Carter in runs batted in with 20. In the regular season with Unión Laguna and Tijuana he hit a combined .296 with seven homeruns, 24 runs batted in over a 42 game span.