The Rays catching situation is dire. Combined, the unit ranks 29th in OBP (.253), 26th in SLG (.329), and 29th in wOBA (.254). A lot of people are saying, "Well, it's not like we need more offense." After all, the Rays are legitimately one of the best offenses in baseball in everything that matters. True, they don't need help scoring runs, but the thing is, runs are runs. Whether run creation or run prevention, adding either or both improves your team.
Which is why I put forth Gregg Zaun for consideration.
For years, Zaun was labeled as the ultimate reserve catcher. You often hear the cliché about doing everything well and nothing great, that's Zaun. He's bounced around from Kansas City to Houston, Toronto, and currently with Baltimore. Zaun has made four starts since Matt Wieters arrived and the Orioles have Chad Moeller, fully capable of being Wieters personal caddy, tucked away in Triple-A.
Zaun is projected at a little worse than league average hitting with an additional 142 at-bats. That number probably goes up as a starter, we'll say he gets something like 280 at-bats from here on out. That's -1.5 offensive runs. During that same timeframe Navarro would be projected at -10 runs. That's nearly an entire win difference over 280 at-bats. As we all know, quantifying catcher's defense is a chore yet to be completed. Although, I highly doubt many would contest Navarro is 9 runs better than Zaun.
Contractually, Zaun is owed 2 million for the entire year, which is dwindled down at this point, and will be paid either 2 million next year or a 500k buyout. Given the upgrade he presents, that cost is ridiculously marginal. Who knows what it would take to acquire him, but odds are not much.
I know Navarro isn't quite this bad, but in this division, if you can add a win for next to nothing, you have to do it.