Firstly, John Jaso has not played too much at 1B in his whole career. He is as catcher by trade but can also play the outfield, if needed. However, many believe he can play an adequate 1B. This is due to the fact that catchers normally can turn around and become 1B, especially as they get older and their knees start to give (See: Joe Mauer and Mike Napoli). The transition isn't anything major. Even if Jaso is an average 1B defensively, his value will still be far beyond Alvarez' at half the cost.
Now, let's talk about Jaso's offensive capabilities. When looking at his numbers, the power doesn't blow you away at all, as he is not a big home run guy. He'll hit you a few, but he's not a bomber in that category. His skills lie in getting on base. In 2015, he hit in the .280s but had an OBP of a whopping .380. That is very, very good. His ability to get on base frequently is something the Pirates need in their lineup. Another thing to like about Jaso is that he always ranks very high in "Weighted Runs Created" which is a stat that is similar to RBI but done a bit differently. In other words, Jaso is very good at accounting for runs, even if he's not credited with the RBI. The Pirates also need more of that on the team.
For many teams, a signing of Jaso wouldn't really fit. However, for the Pirates, it's a perfect fit. Pirates need more base runners and run producers, and Jaso does both of those things very well. He can also fill in the left-handed part of the platoon at 1B, and I think he will do nicely. At $4M a year, this could very well be a steal for the Pirates if Jaso does what he has done in his career up to this point. It's not a flashy move, but it is certainly a move that the Pirates made that will improve the team overall. The cheapness of the deal also let's the Pirates enhance the club in some other areas *cough starting pitcher *cough. Also, even if Jaso flops and/or when Bell is ready, Pirates don't have a big financial attachment towards Jaso, so they aren't sweating it.
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