With the departure of Ramon Hernandez earlier this afternoon from the Baltimore organization, it looks like the wheels are in motion for Matt Wieters to take over the catching duties sometime in the near future.However, it looks like the Orioles are looking for a veteran to be behind the plate until Wieters is deemed ready. As it seems, former Blue Jays' catcher Gregg Zaun may be a natural fit; however, the team is looking at another candidate -- Michael Barrett.
Of course, Mr. Barrett is more or less known best for his infamous dugout fight with Carlos Zambrano two seaso! ns ago that probably ended up landing him with the Padres.
Aside from his infamy, Barrett is a solid offensive catcher with his best year in 2006 where he batted .307 with 16 homers and 53 runs batted in.
From ESPN's Jerry Crasnick: The representatives for free agent Michael Barrett expect to be talking to the Orioles, who are looking for a reasonably priced veteran to replace Ramon Hernandez after Tuesday's trade that sent Hernandez to Cincinnati for Ryan Freel.I'm Zaun may be the sentimental favorite; however, the possibility of seeing Barrett in an Oriole uniform is ! somewhat intriguing. He's no doubt a risk considering his inju! ry histo ry, but some of Michael Barrett pre-injury does return, he could be a diamond in the rough.
Houston and Toronto are other potential fits for Barrett, who is looking to revive his career after playing in only 30 games with San Diego last year because of a variety of injuries.
Gregg Zaun has been mentioned as another possibility for the Orioles, who currently have no catchers on their 40-man roster.
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