Paul Sporer’s 2022 Catcher Rankings with Comments
by Paul Sporer
March 3, 2022
The difference being cited is from my first run of rankings. These are for 2-catcher leagues with 20-game eligibility. In 1-catcher leagues, you can push up some of the small sample beasts like Garver because replacement value is so much higher.
2022 C Rankings with Comments
| RK | CATCHER | TM | POS | Last Rk. | Diff. | NOTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | J.T. Realmuto | PHI | C | 1 | 0 | Perfectly solid season that included a career-high 13 SBs |
| 2 | Will Smith | LAD | C | 2 | 0 | Brilliant skills, just 27 y/o, and part of a wonderful lineup |
| 3 | Salvador Perez | KCR | C | 4 | 1 | I’m on an island w/him at 3, but can he maintain a 25%+ HR/FB rate? |
| 4 | Yasmani Grandal | CWS | C | 3 | -1 | Insane ’21 rates likely won’t hold, but should net more than 375 PA as well |
| 5 | Daulton Varsho | ARI | C/OF | 5 | 0 | Non-catching catcher w/spd is enticing; .290 AVG, 10 HR, 5 SB in 219 2H PA |
| 6 | Willson Contreras | CHC | C | 7 | 1 | Feels a bit overlooked after another strong yr (109 wRC+, 21 HR, 5 SB) |
| 7 | Tyler Stephenson | CIN | C/1B | 6 | -1 | Betting on size (6’4, 225) and scouting raw pwr (65) to deliver HR boost |
| 8 | Keibert Ruiz | WAS | C | 8 | 0 | Elite contact is rare at C and carries the profile even if pwr takes time |
| 9 | Elias Díaz | COL | C | 23 | 14 | After a .381 OPS thru May (88 PA), exploded w/a .897 OPS & 17 HR in 283 PA |
| 10 | Omar Narváez | MIL | C | 12 | 2 | Showed ’20 was a small sample blip; bankable double-digit pop & solid AVG |
| 11 | Mitch Garver | MIN | C | 15 | 4 | His ’21 is natural regression off that insane ’19; Cruz departure could add PA |
| 12 | Sean Murphy | OAK | C | 10 | -2 | Elite D locks in PT; should eventually reach the 20-HR range |
| 13 | Alejandro Kirk | TOR | C | 9 | -4 | Love the talent, but logjam is hard to overlook at a defense-first position |
| 14 | Gary Sánchez | NYY | C | 20 | 6 | 2016-17 is never coming back, but 23 HR per 400 PA since ’18 is a solid floor |
| 15 | Max Stassi | LAA | C | 11 | -4 | Huge fan of him, but hasn’t topped 88 gms entering his age-31 season |
| 16 | Carson Kelly | ARI | C | 13 | -3 | Hit just .219/.301/.347 w/7 HR from May on (6 HR in Apr.) + 2 inj. (toe, wrist) |
| 17 | Christian Vázquez | BOS | C | 24 | 7 | Volume and chip-in speed drive the profile even if the bat doesn’t rebound |
| 18 | Adley Rutschman | BAL | C | 19 | 1 | Should spend most of yr in BAL & premium skills can take over from there |
| 19 | Yadier Molina | STL | C | 25 | 6 | Top 10 effort in ’21 due to contact & volume; solid floor bet even at age-39 |
| 20 | Mike Zunino | TBR | C | 21 | 1 | Made most of limited contact w/33 HR, but he’s so volatile… be careful |
| 21 | Travis d’Arnaud | ATL | C | 14 | -7 | Brutal health track record makes the 33 y/o a tough bet; not C1-worthy |
| 22 | Austin Nola | SDP | C | 18 | -4 | 3x on IL(finger, knee, thumb) ate up ’21; still a + bat & 4% HR/FB will regress |
| 23 | Luis Torrens | SEA | C | 16 | -7 | Bat absolutely plays at DH and might not have to catch a single gm all yr |
| 24 | Joey Bart | SFG | C | 26 | 2 | Prospect Cs take time & he has just 117 MLB PA so far; don’t forget him |
| 25 | Yan Gomes | CHC | C | 37 | 12 | Should find 300-350 PA even if Contreras stays and be a useful C2 |
| 26 | Danny Jansen | TOR | C | 22 | -4 | 2 IL stints (hamstring) cost him 2 mos.; stuck in timeshare w/TOR |
| 27 | James McCann | NYM | C | 28 | 1 | Rough transition to NYM; locked in PT & a little improvement is C2-viable |
| 28 | Tucker Barnhart | DET | C | 17 | -11 | Bat likely to decline (98 pt road OPS drop), but defense will help DET SPs |
| 29 | Jacob Stallings | MIA | C | 34 | 5 | If you prefer to set it & forget it w/volume C2s, Stallings is your guy |
| 30 | Eric Haase | DET | C | 29 | -1 | Fun 2-mo. run last yr, but I don’t see much OF PT coming |
| 31 | MJ Melendez | KCR | C | 41 | 10 | KC open to pos. move to get him in lineup after 41 HR at AA/AAA last yr |
| 32 | Cal Raleigh | SEA | C | 31 | -1 | Could be a sneaky breakout if playing time opens up for him |
| 33 | Manny Piña | ATL | C | #N/A | #N/A | An interesting C2 as his .162 BABIP has to regress w/his 18% K, right? |
| 34 | Francisco Mejía | TBR | C | 30 | -3 | Solid C2 season (107 wRC+), but PT might be capped behind Zunino |
| 35 | Jonah Heim | TEX | C | 33 | -1 | Flashed some pop and should improve his AVG as .210 BABIP regresses |
| 36 | Tom Murphy | SEA | C | 27 | -8 | Unlikely to recapture ’19 magic (126 wRC+) and Raleigh could curb PT |
| 37 | Riley Adams | WAS | C | 32 | -4 | Capped strong yr w/good 90 PA stint in WAS; could wind up a worthy C2 |
| 38 | Pedro Severino | MIL | C | 45 | -5 | Cheap C2 pop, but probably won’t play enough to match ’21 output |
| 39 | Ryan Jeffers | MIN | C | 35 | -2 | Only 25 y/o, but troubling contact (37% K) could stifle any growth |
| 40 | Austin Allen | OAK | C | #N/A | #N/A | Really strong bat in the minors (4x 20+ HR), but will his glove curb PT upside? |
| 41 | Luis Campusano | SDP | C | 36 | -3 | Strong prospect, but weak glove and a crowded C group will hurt |
| 42 | Roberto Pérez | PIT | C | 40 | -5 | A poor man’s Stallings (career 76 wRC+) |
| 43 | Martín Maldonado | HOU | C | #N/A | #N/A | A rich man’s Perez, but w/a better backup that could eat some PT |
| 44 | Jason Castro | HOU | C | #N/A | #N/A | Still has some pop, though injuries are piling up and he’s 35 y/o |
| 45 | Jose Trevino | TEX | C | #N/A | #N/A | Monitor Sam Huff and if he returns to catching this yr |
| 46 | Gabriel Moreno | TOR | C | 42 | 0 | Just be aware of the 22 y/o prospect; TOR is logjammed, but he’s awesome! |
| 47 | William Contreras | ATL | C | 38 | -5 | It wasn’t a terrible debut, but the PT isn’t there right now |
| 48 | Victor Caratini | SDP | C | 39 | -5 | Could be squeezed into a 3-catcher rotation |
| 49 | Curt Casali | SFG | C | #N/A | #N/A | Could spike a 10+ HR season if it’s more of a 55/45 split w/Bart |
| 50 | Jorge Alfaro | SDP | C/OF | 44 | -3 | Would be interesting if he found some PT in the OF, espec. w/his speed |
Made with two-catcher leagues in mind.
For my money, Smith’s my #1 C. Maybe I’m wrong, but with the NL DH, I’d be surprised to see that big a differential in ABs between those top two catchers that Steamer is projecting, and maybe if their PT ends up being closer, Smith’s strength in HRs and OBP/SLG will outweigh JTR’s SB advantage.
I may be overrating the old adage of the magical “age 27” year of high production, which for Smith is 2022, though.
I love him and can definitely get behind him at 1. I think any of the top 3 and maybe even Grandal can be justifiably ranked 1
Grandal could be #1 an OBP league maybe, definitely not a standard league