Tigers could be planning for 2025 after signing former Mets veteran catcher

Eight-year veteran catcher Tomás Nido has been on the move more this year than he's been in his entire career. He was an eighth-round draft pick for the Mets in 2012, and he waited five years to get his debut before he called him up in mid-September when the Mets were fully out of the playoff race. It was a weird move, seeing as Travis d'Arnaud was still healthy and operating as the Mets' primary catcher while Kevin Plawecki was still on the roster as a backup.

But the Mets didn't have anything to lose and Nido was a top prospect at the time, so they called up a guy who still hadn't cracked Double-A by then. He only appeared in five games by the time that season was over, but somehow became the Mets go-to farmhand, and they continued to call him up and send him down as needed until June 2024, when they released him.

He signed a major league deal with the Cubs, and after just 17 games he went onto the IL with a meniscus tear that would require surgery and a 4-8 week absence. The Cubs dumped him in brutal fashion on Aug. 30 and he became a free agent again.

The Tigers quietly picked him up on a minor league contract Sept. 18, after just a few weeks in free agency limbo, as Triple-A farmhand catcher Anthony Bemboom hit the IL. Nido appeared in his first Triple-A game with the Mud Hens on the same day.

Tigers sign Mets veteran Tomas Nido to a minor-league contract

Nido got the bulk of his playing time with the Mets in 2021 and 2022 — first as a backup to James McCann and then as New York's primary catcher — when he batted .233 with a .596 OPS. He was serviceable defensively, with an elite pop time and above-average framing, but offensively it was hard to understand why the Mets seemed to have so much faith in him.

In his first game with the Mud Hens, Nido got two at-bats and went hitless. It's sort of unclear why the Tigers took a chance on him, given that the Triple-A season will be over soon, but he might be the contingency plan if 34-year-old Bemboom decides to retire or the Tigers release him post-injury. Nido could be a fill-in option next season if Dillon Dingler needs more time in the minors, as Dingler is hitting just .123 in the 23 games he's played since he was promoted.

That may be the most realistic way Nido makes it back to the majors. If he can perform well enough in spring training next year, then Dingler may have a target on his back.