Former longtime Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli is taking his talents to South Beach, signing a one year contract with the Marlins Monday.
Mark Feinsand of MLB.com has the terms of the deal.
Source: Francisco Cervelli has agreed to a one-year, $2M deal with the Marlins, pending physical.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) December 23, 2019
Cervelli, who will turn 34 in March, confirmed the signing.
I’m very happy my brother.... https://t.co/oljQP996ZE
— Francisco Cervelli (@fran_cervelli) December 23, 2019
The Marlins were believed to be looking for backup catcher for Jorge Alfaro since Chad Wallach, their only other catcher on the roster, missed most of last season with a concussion.
The Pirates entered this offseason in need of catching depth, but there seemed to be no interest in bringing Cervelli back.
2019 was a trying season for Cervelli. After a career best offensive season in 2018, his bat never heated up while with the Pirates in 2019, finishing with a .193 batting average and a .526 OPS. He was hit in the mask with a foul ball on May 25 and was placed on the concussion injury list. It was Cervelli's sixth documented concussion, and his third since June 2018. The injury sidelined him for most of 2019.
While he started his rehab process with the Pirates in August, he requested his release after learning the Pirates planned to use him, Jacob Stallings and Elias Diaz in a rotation for the final month of the season. The Pirates granted his release on Aug. 24. He signed with the Braves the same day and played well down the stretch.
Cervelli was with the Pirates from 2015-2019. He hit .264/.362/.374 with 26 home runs and 169 RBIs.
Cervelli was teammates with Marlins CEO Derek Jeter from 2008-2014.
