Baker glad Nats got Wieters deal done now rather than wait

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Nationals' signing of Matt Wieters is a done deal, pending the catcher passing a physical, Dusty Baker said this afternoon. Now the veteran manager and his organization have to figure out what to do with their logjam behind the plate.

Baker confirmed the deal in his daily press briefing, saying it was important to get Wieters in camp now rather than later this spring to ensure he has ample time to learn the Nationals' pitching staff.

"It's better that we got him here at this time, versus a couple weeks from now," Baker said. "Then you would've been flirting with (it being) too late and kind of learning on the fly as we go. So I'm glad if this was going to happen, it happened now for his sake."

The contract guarantees Wieters $10.5 million this season, with another $10.5 million salary set for 2018, according to sources familiar with the deal. The 30-year-old catcher, though, has the ability to opt out after one season, a de facto player option he's almost certainly going to employ unless he struggles or gets hurt in 2017.

The Nationals know Wieters is not the offensive player he was touted to be when he was drafted fifth in the country by the Orioles in 2007. He hit just .243 with a .302 on-base percentage, 17 homers and 66 RBIs in 124 games last year. But the club believes he's an upgrade over what was already in-house - Derek Norris, José Lobaton, Pedro Severino - and provides a steadying influence behind the plate.

"I know he came in kind of with a bang and he was one of the best catchers around; then he got injured," Baker said of Wieters, who missed much of the 2014-15 seasons due to Tommy John surgery in his right elbow. "And then he's been trying to regroup and regather himself since that point in time. It looked like last year when we played him, he was an offensive force. It gives us another big bat in the lineup, and to my understanding he calls a good game and handles a pitching staff well."

Baker said he made a point to talk to Norris this morning, letting the 28-year-old catcher know what was going on rather than letting him find out from somewhere else.

"I didn't want him to read it on social media or hear it from somebody else," the manager said. "He appreciated that. I talked to him a couple times. (General manager Mike Rizzo) talked to him a couple times. He was extremely disappointed, but he realizes that it's a business and we were trying to get better in the position, and Matt Wieters is a guy that's done well."

Norris, who was acquired from the Padres in early December, admitted he was surprised by the news but understands why Rizzo is making the move.

"There's no personal ties to anything," Norris said. "It's a business, and you've got a GM who's trying to win. If he thinks something's not up to par, or seeks out something that he thinks is better, then he's going to do it. So it is what it is."

Though Wieters' name had been linked to the Nationals all winter, Baker suggested he didn't give the signing serious thought until things came together in the last few days.

"Most of the time I don't really come in until almost the end because there's tons of rumors, there's tons of talk," Baker said. "That's what the general manager and the scouts are there for. Then when it gets a little more serious, they'll run it by me, and the ultimate decision is basically with ownership and upstairs."