NOTEBOOK: Graterol provides veteran leadership to Herd staff

Starting ten different pitchers with an average age of just above 25 years old only 31 games into the season, what could go wrong?

Thankfully for the Buffalo Bisons' organization the answer is not much.

The Bisons have a Triple-A East best 3.24 team ERA this season and thanks in large part to the consistency and the calming effect of 32-year-old veteran catcher Juan Graterol.

In 2021, Graterol has been behind the plate for some of the Bisons’ best pitching performances and the team is 11-4 with him in the lineup, and 6-11 on his off days. Their offense averages 5.8 runs per game with him in the lineup and allows just 2.6 runs per game when he catches, both superior to the team average.

And Graterol’s effect has not just been seen statistically but in his communication and smarts from behind the plate.

The Toronto Blue Jays’ top-ranked prospect 6’6” righty Nate Pearson, in particular, has cited Graterol’s effectiveness, highlighting his ability to design and adapt the game plan throughout his starts.

“He is awesome and he's very experienced,” said Pearson. “He's very smart behind the plate. You can tell he’s always thinking about the game plan, and we are on the same thought process. We just get into a groove, and he is really good defensively back there and calls a good game.”

In Pearson’s six appearances with the Bisons, this season Graterol has been the catcher for four. The big righty’s ERA is over a point lower than his season average with Graterol behind the plate and he is striking out over 1.5 batters per inning.

Graterol also had a hand in guiding the newest member of the Toronto Blue Jays rotation Alek Manoah to the big leagues.

Despite never having pitched above the Single-A level coming into the 2021 season, Manoah made three starts with the Bisons before his call-up and Graterol caught all three for what was a match made in heaven.

“[Graterol’s] got a good brain back there and to be honest with you not many people are wired the same way I'm wired, and I think he is there,” said Manoah. “There weren't many times where I had to shake no, and I felt like we were on the same page.

Manoah pitched 18.0 innings to Graterol, struck out 27 and allowed a single run on seven hits before being called up.

“It's priceless man when you know you have an experienced catcher calling the game,” said Manoah. “And he's thinking the same thing you're thinking and it's just fun man to have a really good rhythm.”

Not to be outdone by his mitt behind the plate, Graterol’s bat has been one of the best among catchers at the Triple-A level.

Among catchers in the Triple-A East league, Graterol ranks among the best statistically despite being limited to 15 starts through the first 31 games.

Graterol ranks 19th among catchers in the league in at-bats with 52 but has produced the fourth-most hits, 21, the eighth-most RBIs, 11, all while striking out only six times.

Despite only one home run on the season, what Graterol lacks in power he makes up for with consistency, ranking first on the team in average, .404, and an on-base percentage reaching over 43% of his plate appearances.

“He is a great catcher who has had success at all levels and is really good behind the plate,” said Bisons’ manager Casey Candaele.

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Bisons in the Big Leagues

This past week has featured Riley Adams who made his first big league start of his career on June 8 following an injury to starter Danny Jansen’s right hamstring.

The 6’4” 246-pound catcher instantly made an impression launching a ball at 108 mph off the center-field wall against Chicago White Sox for a double and his first career hit. In addition, Adams caught games for Robby Ray, who struck 13, and Toronto’s ace Hyun-jin Ryu in the same series against the White Sox.

The power-hitting righty played 19 games with the Bisons and produced an impressive .410 OBP to pair with six home runs and 15 hits.