Top 15 catchers – 2009

 

My first positional rankings are out and they are a little bit unusual but the catcher position is rather unusual to start with. One thing I have to say: there is no excuse not to own a good catcher this year. You don’t have to spend an early pick on McCann, Martin, or Mauer. Napoli, Wieters, Doumit, and Soto are all going pretty low for their production and they’d all contribute big time to an offense. So, here we go:

1. Brian McCann – Fantasy wise it’s tough to top McCann. He’s a .300 hitter with pop and he catches. The thing is he’s just getting better. At 24 last year his SLG jumped almost 100 points and while the HRs didn’t follow as much as they could have, the power it there. He’s still in that early development stage in his career, a couple years away from his prime, and I think 30 home runs is in his future.

2. Mike Napoli – This guy has serious power and he’s just entering his prime. Sure, 20 homers doesn’t seem like THAT much. But that’s in 227 at bats. If he had as many at bats as Ryan Doumit, he’d have hit 40 bombs. This guy is kind of the Adam Dunn of catchers. I mean a power index over 200? He has ridiculous power, but he’s never going to hit for that high of a batting average. He could hit .270 with 30 or (a lot) more home runs. Hard to put him over McCann simply because McCann is a .300 hitter that also should hit 25-30 home runs, but he could really turn some heads this year.

3. Matt Wieters – If he were guaranteed a starting job in spring training, he’d be my #1 catcher, and in a year or two he will be FAR and away tops on this list. The problem is he might not be up till May. But he will start. Baltimore is going no where, Ramon Hernandez isn’t great, and this guy can flat out hit. The highly regarded prospect hit .355 with 27 homers through 2 levels last year, and that’s in 437 at bats at 22. If he plays, he’s a .300/30 guy at catcher. Once he gets into his prime, he’s a first round lock. .320/40 potential. I am confident and will stand by that prediction. Let your league mates draft the proven commodities, that minor league line is proven enough for me.

4. Ryan Doumit – Doumit’s year last year was legit, but where he is in his development is a bit of an unkown. On one hand he’s a lot older than you would think – he was 27 last year. This probably limits his power potential. But last year was the first year he really got full playing time, so I could see his power going up next year to the 20 home runs range. He’s a legit .300 hitter with good contact and power. I really like Doumit going into next year, much more than say Joe Mauer because he could hit for the same average and chip in 10-15 more homers.

5. Russell Martin – Russell Martin has a lot of things going for him. First of all he’s gonna be 26 next year and we all now how big that can be. He’s got the ability to go 20-20, and getting that kind of power speed from a catcher is ridiculous. But I’m worried. First of all the power growth that we saw before last season is gone. His power index dropped 35 points and his SLG 73. While you might dismiss that as purely an off year, he has caught 145 games each of the past 2 years. If the Dodgers are careful this is a 20-20 .285 guy. If not.. let’s just say I’d stay away from him this year.

6. Geovany Soto – Soto’s numbers last year were really good. .285 and 23 from a catcher? I’ll take that. He’s also 26 and his power numbers are only going to go up. Probably wont his .285 next year with twice as many strikeouts as walks, only solid power, and no speed, but he’s not going to hit .250 either. Expect something in the .270/20 – .280/25 range.

7. Joe Mauer – I’m not a huge fan of his. He is a .300 hitter, there is no reason to doubt another .320 season. But he doesn’t do all that much else. He’s hit 10 home runs once. He’s still 25, so there’s still time for the power to develop, but right now he’s just going to hit for an empty BA and contribute in RBI and runs.

8. Victor Martinez – Vmart is going to be interesting this year. He was hurt last season so we don’t have much to work with. A move to first base would help his bat, and as long as we can keep him at catcher that would be great. But staying at catcher could kill him as he’s on the wrong side of 30 and already caught a whole bunch of games. He’s still a .290 hitter and he can still put up mid-20s in home runs with tons of RBI. That said he’s getting older and he really shouldn’t be catching any more.

9. Bengie Molina – Fairly consistent. He’s got 20 homer type pop and he doesn’t strikeout which is a good combo for a catcher. He’s also painfully slow and aging. Those innings could finally catch up to him this year, but he could still be a .285/20 guy.

10. Chris Iannetta – Not gonna hit for a high average, but his power is getting there. His SLG jumped over 150 points last season, and 26 year olds with pop in Coors are very valuable. He could be in the mid 20s in home runs hitting in a solid lineup but that batting average will always hold him back.

11.Jorge Posada – He was never going to live up to his highly lucky 2007, but injuries wiped out most of his season. Still could go .280/20 and hits in the middle of a productive lineup. If he’s playing in spring training games, that’s a good sign, and I’d keep an eye on him.

12. Chris Snyder – He’s a good sleeper this year and you know what your gonna get with him. Poor batting average and some power. Similar to Iannetta, except with less upside, older, and outside of Coors.

13.Kelly Shoppach – So many .260/20 catchers (and that’s not a bad thing) drop him down to 13, especially now that it seems as though Victor Martinez will catch to start the year. I still think Vmart moves to first base or gets hurt. I still think he goes .260/20. But so could any of the 4 guys ahead of him (and more) and they all have starting jobs right now.

14. JR Towles – The potential is here. His minor league numbers show us a catcher that can post double didget homers and steals with a .300 average, and at his age the power could get better. He hit .300 last year after being sent back to the minors, but he did get sent back to the minors. Someday we could see that 20-20 .300 season, but it’s not there yet.

15. Jeff Clement – Can I say no one? Seriously no one I want past Towles. I might as well leave the lineup spot empty. Oh well. Clement was bad last year, but he did put up .280/20 in the minor leagues and he’s still 25. Some upside. I wouldn’t expect much.