Archive for Yadier Molina

When you think Yadier Molina, you probably think snap throws that send runners sprawling back to first base, balls expertly blocked in the dirt and perennial Gold Glove love from managers and coaches. His bat rarely gets much attention. That should change, though, following Molina’s big 2011 season for the NL’s best offensive club and eventual World Series champion.

Yadi batted .305 for the Cardinals, posting a .349 OBP and a .465 slugging percentage in 518 plate appearances. For comparison, the cumulative line for MLB catchers in 2011 was a measly .245/.314/.390. Molina’s .349 Weighted On-Base Average established a new career high and ranked sixth among catchers logging at least 300 plate appearances (sandwiched between Carlos Santana and Brian McCann). How did the Flying Molina Brother do it? By taking to the air, of course.

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As I said in yesterday’s Tier 4, I have to draw the line somewhere as to which players are worthy of keeping and which ones should be thrown back into the pool.  That line has now been drawn.  However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a few names of some young up and comers that I think will blossom into potential keepers and, if you believe in them enough now, could warrant consideration for 2012 depending on how much they are going to cost you.  Again, relative value is up to you, but here are a few guys worth mentioning.

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As we make our way through these rankings, let me just add in one thing.  While relative value is something we have left for you to ultimately decide, there are certain players whom I consider keeper worthy and those that aren’t in spite of things like the Fantasy Value Above Replacement spreadsheet that we have been using.  Sure, Yadier Molina may have outproduced Wilson Ramos according to our 2011 retro value, but am I keeping a catcher who is moving into his ninth season and will turn 30 years old at the All Star break because suddenly, out of the blue, he doubled his home run production last year?  Probably not.  It’s very difficult for me to think that a player who put up near identical numbers for his first seven seasons, suddenly can double his ISO mark in his eighth year and maintain that as his future level of production.  I see it more as a statistical anomaly than anything else.  Therefore, like each and every year prior, I would not even consider keeping Molina and subsequently must leave him off these rankings.

So today, I’ll throw out a few names of players to continue what we’ve done and tomorrow will finish it off with a few honorable mentions.  There will be some players left off this list, but again, we’re calling them keeper rankings and not every player is worth keeping.

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As Eno said in his Stat Grabs piece the other day, there’s no time and probably no chance to grab a well-rounded player off your waiver wire.  We are officially at the midway point here in the final month of the season and those fighting for the title in their roto leagues or are battling in a late championship week in their head to head league are probably looking for specific category help.   Catchers aren’t usually the biggest contributors in the game, but for fantasy purposes, there are probably enough out there that are finishing strongly and can kick in a little assistance here and there.

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Time to re-visit those monthly rankings, again.  As always, the criteria used for these is as follows:

1.  Current performance level
2.  Expected performance for rest of season
3.  Value based on standard 5×5 categories (avg over OBP)

One note, despite the fact that it is late in the season, we are not accounting for keeper value right now.  We are staying within the parameters of this season alone.  Injured players remain on the list at the bottom so we can just see who was up there from start to finish.  That being said, here’s how the catching position looks right now…. Read the rest of this entry »

As the MLB non-waiver trade deadline approaches, fantasy owners should be paying close attention to which teams may be buyers, which teams may be sellers, and which relevant fantasy players could be on the move.  A look at which players whose contracts expire at season’s end and are headed into free agency is as good a place to start as any. Read the rest of this entry »

As the season moves on, things are really settling in with the catcher rankings.  Not a whole lot of movement from tier to tier (almost none), but some movement within.  Remember, the criteria used for the rankings is as follows:

1.  Current performance level
2.  Expected performance for rest of season
3.  Value based on standard 5×5 categories (avg over OBP)

Here’s how it looks heading into July. Read the rest of this entry »

This is part of an ongoing pro/con series on RotoGraphs over the next couple of weeks. Today we’ll look at the positive/negative side of Carlos Santana. Expect the opposite side shortly.

Carlos Santana, Carlos Santana, Carlos Santana!  How come every time I write an article about catchers, some fool comes in here and brings up Carlos Santana? Read the rest of this entry »

As we get ready to head into a new month, it’s time to update the 2011 Catchers Rankings once again.  Remember, the criteria for these rankings is as follows:

The arrows are used to highlight a player moving up or down in tier, but you’ll also notice some minor tweaks within the tiers as well.  Some that will obviously have more impact than others. Read the rest of this entry »

While productivity can be limited for backstops, they also run the greatest risk for injury and before you know it, you’ve lost your guy and find yourself staring at the waiver wire wondering which set of scraps looks the meatiest.  Today we’re going to look at the latest catcher injuries and who the guys are that will get the playing time moving forward. Read the rest of this entry »