A.J. Pierzynski Wants To Play In MLB Again In 2015

Veteran catcher A.J. Pierzynski isn’t sure if he will return to the St. Louis Cardinals for the 2015 season, but he does want to play in MLB again next year.

Despite being released by the Boston Red Sox at midseason last year, and then joining the St. Louis Cardinals as mostly a backup, catcher A.J. Pierzynski wants to play again in 2015, but isn’t exactly sure where he will be next season.

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“I want to play, obviously,” said Pierzynski told The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Physically I feel good. I still think I can contribute. I don’t know what will be out there, but I want to play … My kids want me to play and my wife wants me to play,” Pierzynski said. “It’s hard to walk away. Whether it is to come in and help a young guy out or come in and play every day. It is a tough opportunity to turn down. All my friends … say keep playing as long as you can. They all regret (it) once they walk away.”

Pierzynski won a Silver Slugger award as recently as 2012, but last season wasn’t great for the 37-year old, two-time all-star. He was arguably worse in his 30 games with the Cardinals than he was in his 72 Boston games, but both are relatively small samples to judge him off of; but the bigger problem with Pierzynski, at least while he was with the Red Sox, was his attitude.

Players reportedly approached management in Boston and asked to address Pierzynski’s apparent indifference with his Boston teammates, and many pitchers began expressing a preference for backup catcher David Ross, particularly given Pierzynski’s poor receiving skills. Boston thought the catcher’s hitting would outweigh his deficits, but Pierzynski had a poor year with the bat, and his attitude made him not worth keeping around for the Red Sox. The Cardinals picked him up once Yadier Molina began having injury issues in July, but when Molina returned Pierzynski was the backup, a role he’s likely best suited for if he plays on an MLB team in 2015.

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