The Arizona Diamondbacks now have a veteran presence to tie with their youthful backstop, as the team signed 35-year-old grizzled vet Stephen Vogt to a one year deal with a vesting option for 2021, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN and Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

Coming off of a year that saw Vogt put up a resurgence-like year at the plate, the left-handed-hitting catcher will have a decently-large role out in the desert, helping youngster Carson Kelly learn the ranks after having been traded in the Paul Goldschmidt deal last offseason from the St. Louis Cardinals.

With no confirmation yet made by the team for the deal, it looks as though Vogt’s impact on this team is yet to be determined, although for the catcher that has made stops in Oakland, Milwaukee, Tampa Bay, and San Francisco across his seven seasons at the big-league level, not having a role is almost the best kind of role for him.

Producing a line of .263/.314/.490 in 99 games, the injury-prone veteran came back in 2019 after having missed the entire 2018 season with a shoulder injury, and he showed that not wearing any batting gloves is still in. By wreaking havoc against right-handed pitching to a tune of a .835 OPS, Vogt is still a valuable member of a big-league team that could easily turn into a trade piece come this July’s trade deadline.

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While the Diamondbacks were not in a desperate state to have to go out and get a catcher, Vogt represents that veteran presence that will not only better this team with his experience, but it will also help develop Kelly in different ways, helping the young catcher grow into more of what the Diamondbacks were envisioning when they acquiring him last winter.

With the Diamondbacks looking up at the Los Angeles Dodgers in their division, and with the San Diego Padres looking to be on the up and up for 2020, the Diamondbacks will most likely be relegated to at best second place in their division, but most likely third or lower. With Vogt in the fold, he can become the leader of the pitching staff, helping develop young arms, and ultimately turning into a valuable trade piece, if the team so decides to want to move him at the deadline.