SURPRISE, Ariz.—When this winter’s hotly anticipated baseball free-agent class officially hit the open market, offers immediately started rolling in for one particular player—and it wasn’t Manny Machado or Bryce Harper. No, the phones were ringing off the hook for a career backup who could realistically be described as the worst hitter in more than a century. Jeff Mathis, a catcher who will celebrate his 36th birthday next month, owns a batting average of .198 since debuting with the Los Angeles Angels in 2005. Among all players...

Source: Wall Street Journal February 25, 2019 15:11 UTC