If you have read my previous work, you already know my bias towards the catcher position. Borderline on blatant absurdity, I oftentimes give too much value and attention to players with less of a bearing on the fantasy game. But hey, it’s the position I played for over 12 years and know the best. To keep my bat in the lineup, tireless work on the game’s defensive elements was paramount. My coach would run drills involving balls in the dirt, egg catching with oven mitts to create soft hands and the electrical tape throw. Allow a ball to reach the backstop or break an egg? Run laps. By placing black electrical tape around the diameter of the baseball, one needs to throw more over the top to avoid wobbling the line. One hundred throws, and a pushup for every wobbly toss. That’ll keep those throws down to second on target!
While a player’s defense doesn’t have a direct effect on our fantasy baseball categories, excluding penalties in point-based leagues, these players do require at-bats to make an impact. The more, the merrier, I always say. And if a guy is a defensive liability, this will cost you plate appearances. This is true for all areas on the diamond, but especially so for the catcher position. This draft guide piece highlights Catcher Framing, CS rates and Catcher Defensive Adjustment. These items will keep your star catcher (whom you exhausted draft capital to attain) in the lineup more. In a deep league or need to start two catchers? These guys will be serviceable and ready to answer the call of duty.
CATCHER DEFENSIVE LEADERBOARDS
Catcher Framing
According to Baseball Savant, catcher framing (CF) is the art of a catcher receiving a pitch in a way that makes it more likely for an umpire to call it a strike. A backstop can turn a borderline pitch into a strike with good CF, while poor framing can take pitches traveling through the strike zone and make them appear as a ball. What we’re looking for is a high Strike Rate (SR) percentage in the Shadow Zone (SZ). MLB’s league average for SR sits at 48.5%. Catcher Framing Runs (CFR) converts strikes to runs saved on a .125 run/strike basis and includes park and pitcher adjustments. The league average for RES is exactly zero.
Pitchers love a catcher who calls a good game and is an excellent receiver. Here are the best in that department as well as a few notable names who need to improve (Qualifier: six called pitches in the SZ per team game – stats reflect 2023).
| CATCHER | TEAM | PIT | CFR | SR | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Bailey | Giants | 2513 | 16 | 52.9% | ||
| Jonah Heim | Rangers | 3656 | 10 | 48.5% | ||
| Francisco Alvarez | Mets | 3006 | 9 | 48.9% | ||
| William Contreras | Brewers | 3310 | 7 | 48.0% | ||
| Sean Murphy | Braves | 2913 | 7 | 48.9% | ||
| Cal Raleigh | Mariners | 3257 | 6 | 47.5% | ||
| Adley Rutschman | Orioles | 3065 | 5 | 48.3% | ||
| Jake Rogers | Tigers | 2751 | 5 | 48.7% | ||
| Alejandro Kirk | Blue Jays | 2595 | 5 | 49.2% | ||
| Travis d’Arnaud | Braves | 1857 | 4 | 48.4% | ||
| Bo Naylor | Guardians | 1756 | 3 | 47.2% | ||
| Gary Sánchez | Brewers | 1842 | 2 | 48.4% | ||
| Danny Jansen | Blue Jays | 1854 | 2 | 47.4% | ||
| Gabriel Moreno | D-backs | 3219 | -1 | 45.6% | ||
| Will Smith | Dodgers | 3143 | -2 | 44.9% | ||
| Ryan Jeffers | Twins | 2216 | -4 | 44.3% | ||
| Logan O’Hoppe | Angels | 1458 | -5 | 41.9% | ||
| Yainer Diaz | Astros | 1339 | -5 | 42.0% | ||
| Willson Contreras | Cardinals | 2765 | -5 | 44.3% | ||
| Salvador Perez | Royals | 2469 | -7 | 43.9% | ||
| Elias Díaz | Rockies | 3530 | -8 | 43.2% | ||
| Shea Langeliers | A’s | 3642 | -8 | 44.0% | ||
| Tyler Stephenson | Reds | 2436 | -9 | 42.0% | ||
| Keibert Ruiz | Nationals | 3676 | -13 | 42.6% | ||
| J.T. Realmuto | Phillies | 4192 | -14 | 43.9% |
Jonah Heim had a career year offensively, finishing with 18 HR, 95 RBI and a 103 OPS+. The RBI mark was No. 1 in all of baseball for catchers and 15 more than second place. The 28-year-old switch-hitter is also now locked in as the No. 1 Catcher in Texas. Heim’s 10 CFR trail only Patrick Bailey. Yet, Bailey’s 77 OPS+ doesn’t measure up. However, I do like Bailey for deep leagues or two-catcher formats at his price despite the plethora of backstops behind him. His defense gives him a decided edge.
Francisco Alvarez had ups and downs as a rookie for the Mets. On the plus side, he had 25 HR and 63 RBI in his 123 games. On the minus side, he hit just .209 with a .284 on-base percentage. New York will have patience since Alvarez has proven to be a solid defender at this level. In particular, his framing had the New York media abuzz and amazed at the level of sophistication. The 22-year-old had the third-best SR, tied with Sean Murphy!
Speaking of Murphy, he is a special case since he shares backstop duties with Travis d’Arnaud. Both are solid in these categories yet cancel each other out for ABs. However, Murphy remains the more expensive draft-day option. Unless one slides more into a DH role, this is a tandem I wish to avoid. In two-catcher leagues, a bold strategy is to draft both and start them every day. You are guaranteed a full game of ABs from one position, while the player who sits or has 1-2 ABs doesn’t kill your roto categories. In points leagues with two catchers, this is harder to pull off unless you get DH ABs, but how much do C2s net you anyway? (See also, Danny Jansen & Alejandro Kirk, William Contreras & Gary Sánchez… assuming the latter finalizes his deal with Milwaukee and reports to Spring Training)
William Contreras had a big breakout in 2023 for the Brewers. The 26-year-old won the NL Silver Slugger Award at Catcher after batting .289 (best for the position) with an .825 OPS, 17 HR, 78 RBI and 86 R. Unlike his brother Willson, William was a superior framer. Willson still has a better arm, but William’s overall defense makes him the better Contreras. And speaking of breakouts, Adley Rutschman has blossomed into the No. 1 Fantasy Catcher. Rutschman posted a .277/.374/.435 slash line, .809 OPS, 20 HR, 80 RBI, 84 R, 52 XBH and a 0.91 BB/K mark. Rutschman’s 128 OPS+ was the best among regular starters. Rutschman led all catchers with 154 games played and 687 plate appearances in 2023, meaning he has extra chances to rack up fantasy numbers. The 26-year-old strong showing in all areas of defense is responsible.
From a pure power-hitting standpoint, Cal Raleigh might be the top option at Catcher for Fantasy. The Mariners switch-hitter was the only Catcher to hit 30 home runs in 2023, and he’s projected to lead all Catchers in homers again in 2024 with 28. Cal just won’t give you much batting average, and he’s prone to striking out. But in terms of playing time, few backstops are more secure than Raleigh. His defense helps big time, as he is top-8 in all three concentration areas of this article. Plus, when he needs to rest those knees, he can DH (14 times in 2023).
Arizona Diamondbacks’ 24-year-old Catcher Gabriel Moreno hit .284 with 7 HR, 50 RBI and a 104 OPS+ in his first full season. Fantasy managers will surely be geeked up over his offensive and defensive potential, especially after launching 4 HR and collecting 12 RBI during Arizona’s pennant run. But there is high risk with his high rewards. As we see below, nobody threw out baserunners at a better clip than Moreno last season. This helps with run prevention (more on that below). But his framing skills and some other areas of his defensive game need work. If Tucker Barnhart (3 CFR & 49.7% SR / 975 pitches) catches on with the D-backs, he makes for a good insurance policy for deep leagues and two-catcher formats.
Jacob Stallings left Pittsburgh and forgot how to play defense. FWIW, he now plays in Colorado, but he is in no way a viable option.
Just more reasons not to draft Salvador Perez.
If Tyler Stephenson doesn’t hit, he could cede ABs to Luke Maile due to the latter’s proficiency in defense.
It may be time to make J.T. Realmuto a more regular DH as his defense lets him down. But as long as he plays enough behind the plate to qualify as a Catcher, we are satisfied as Fantasy Managers. Or are we? Yainer Diaz will need to show some more improvement on defense to be the better option I feel he is, but the base is there.
CS Rates
Here are the backstops who are proficient at nabbing potential stolen base thieves and those who need to build some arm strength (stats reflect 2023; min 60 GP as Catcher).
SB = Stolen Bases Allowed
CS = Runners Caught Stealing
CS% = Caught Stealing Percentage
| CATCHER | TEAM | GP | SB | CS | CS% | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gabriel Moreno | D-backs | 104 | 35 | 22 | 38.6% | |||
| Freddy Fermin | Royals | 65 | 35 | 16 | 31.4% | |||
| Shea Langeliers | A’s | 123 | 84 | 38 | 31.1% | |||
| Yainer Diaz | Astros | 60 | 35 | 15 | 30.0% | |||
| Yan Gomes | Cubs | 103 | 60 | 25 | 29.4% | |||
| Jonah Heim | Rangers | 124 | 58 | 24 | 29.3% | |||
| Patrick Bailey | Giants | 94 | 63 | 25 | 28.4% | |||
| Cal Raleigh | Mariners | 128 | 78 | 27 | 25.7% | |||
| Willson Contreras | Cardinals | 97 | 42 | 14 | 25.0% | |||
| Ryan Jeffers | Twins | 82 | 40 | 13 | 24.5% | |||
| Elias Díaz | Rockies | 126 | 73 | 22 | 23.2% | |||
| Christian Bethancourt | Marlins | 102 | 44 | 13 | 22.8% | |||
| J.T. Realmuto | Phillies | 133 | 81 | 23 | 22.1% | |||
| Adley Rutschman | Orioles | 110 | 57 | 16 | 21.9% | |||
| Sean Murphy | Braves | 102 | 69 | 19 | 21.6% | |||
| Will Smith | Dodgers | 111 | 72 | 19 | 20.9% | |||
| Connor Wong | Red Sox | 121 | 68 | 18 | 20.9% | |||
| Gary Sánchez | Brewers | 66 | 38 | 10 | 20.8% | |||
| Tyler Stephenson | Reds | 92 | 54 | 14 | 20.6% | |||
| Alejandro Kirk | Blue Jays | 99 | 68 | 15 | 18.1% | |||
| William Contreras | Brewers | 108 | 77 | 16 | 17.2% | |||
| Jake Rogers | Tigers | 99 | 51 | 10 | 16.4% | |||
| Nick Fortes | Marlins | 104 | 72 | 14 | 16.3% | |||
| Keibert Ruiz | Nationals | 117 | 119 | 21 | 15.0% | |||
| Salvador Perez | Royals | 91 | 54 | 9 | 14.3% | |||
| Danny Jansen | Blue Jays | 73 | 52 | 8 | 13.3% | |||
| Francisco Alvarez | Mets | 108 | 99 | 15 | 13.2% | |||
| Travis d’Arnaud | Braves | 63 | 55 | 8 | 12.7% | |||
| Bo Naylor | Guardians | 67 | 58 | 8 | 12.1% |
Note: Caught Stealing rates drastically went down league-wide in 2023 from the previous two seasons due to MLB rule changes to encourage stolen bases (i.e. bigger bases, pitch clock disengagements). The decline will likely continue as MLB provides new guidance to umps for base-blocking rule. In sum, stolen-base attempts were up to 32.5% in 2023.
Will Smith’s defense is about as up and down as his offense. His framing is slightly below average, as is his CS rate. He had the fourth-most Defensive Runs Saved and fourth-highest Defensive Wins Above Replacement (see below). Yet, his CDA is only 0.7. His job is as safe as Raleigh’s. Plus, he can compete with Cal’s power numbers despite a power decline over the last three years. He has still averaged 23 HR, 80 RBI and 73 R with an .820 OPS over that time. Batting in the middle of a powerhouse Dodgers lineup helps.
Freddy Fermin’s cannon could garner more playing time. Shea Langeliers’ artillery is his saving grace defensively. He may not create extra strikes or save runs, but boy, can he toss the seed. No wobbly tosses here, folks! His 38 runners caught stealing was far and away the best (No. 2 Cal Raleigh, 27).
Oh, look, there is Jonah Heim’s name again. ?
Can Yainer Diaz and Ryan Jeffers compete this season for most runners gunned down? They both posted superior CS Rates in smaller samples last year. However, Jeffers will have Christian Vázquez to contend with.
While on the basepaths, Red Sox’s Connor Wong was second among Catchers with eight bags. Meanwhile, Realmuto is still a good source of SB from the position, leading all Catchers with 16 last season. But what’s good for these geese is not good for the ganders. Realmuto has a 22.1% CS rate – a dropoff for him but remains respectable in today’s environment. Returning to Wong, his CS rate is 20.9%, and he saved four runs last season, as we’ll see below. With the second-highest dWAR at Catcher, he is a safe bet to ward off the likes of Reese McGuire. Wong is a cheap source for SB from the position in deep leagues and two-catcher formats.
Keibert Ruiz allowed two more stolen bases than games behind the plate. Let that sink in for a moment! Also, if we reflect on his Catcher Framing deficiency above, Ruiz appears to be in a precarious situation. Ruiz is still a work in progress, and the Nats can afford to be patient with him. After all, Riley Adams poses little threat for playing time, and Ruiz’s switch-hitting bat plays.
After only logging 51 GP (49 as C) in 2023 due to a torn labrum in his left shoulder, Logan O’Hoppe finished what was supposed to be his first full year in good hitting form. However, he had his framing issues (worst SR in sample), and his CS rate was 13.9% (31 SB – 5 CS). Small sample, and his bat plays well above his backup, Matt Thaiss. But his defensive tools don’t jump out as plus, and O’Hoppe will need to improve his accuracy with more opportunities, especially when throwing to second base. (Btw, in this link, Baseball Savant gives us more data to consider for several of our Catcher targets.)
As much love as we gave Francisco Alvarez for his framing, the 22-year-old’s arm and ability to nail would-be base burglars need refinement. Although, some of his stat deficiencies were attributed to Mets pitchers, who were lousy at keeping runners close. Still, if New York keeps Omar Narváez around, Alvarez could cede some ABs. Narváez wasn’t too spectacular gunning down runners last season in 47 GP (11.5% CS rate). However, he had been around 22% over the past two seasons.
Like O’Hoppe (159.65 NFBC ADP, 213.13 Consensus ADP), Luis Campusano didn’t make enough starts to qualify for our look into CS rates. Despite being wet behind the ears, Campusano has a 191.99 price tag in NFBC leagues (252.70 Consensus ADP). Additionally, in 42 GP as a Catcher, he had a horrid 3.3% CS rate. The bat better be worth it!
Catcher Defensive Adjustment (CDA)
Different positions are more challenging than others. An adjustment is necessary because, while Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) compares players of the same position, we draft multiple positions at each level. WAR can provide overall player evaluation, yet we are still required to account for the differences in the positions to an extent. Positional adjustments accomplish this by adding runs for challenging positions and subtracting runs for the easier ones. Positional adjustments are based upon 1,458 defensive innings, or in other words, a 162-game season. So, if a catcher plays 1,215 innings (135 games) with a +12.5 positional adjustment for a full season, his adjustment for that period will be +10.4 runs. Some good knowledge for when you’re drafting any offensive position.
Here are the defensive statistics from 2023 via Baseball Prospectus/Fielding Bible/ESPN.
DRS = Defensive Runs Saved
dWAR = Defensive Wins Above Replacement
CDA = Catcher Defensive Adjustment
| CATCHER | TEAM | DRS | dWAR | CDA | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Bailey | Giants | 13 | 0.8 | 24.8 | ||
| Jonah Heim | Rangers | 6 | 1.0 | 16.1 | ||
| Cal Raleigh | Mariners | 2 | 0.5 | 16.0 | ||
| Francisco Alvarez | Mets | 7 | 0.2 | 12.4 | ||
| Adley Rutschman | Orioles | 2 | 0.2 | 11.8 | ||
| Jake Rogers | Tigers | 1 | 0.2 | 9.0 | ||
| Sean Murphy | Braves | 8 | 1.3 | 9.0 | ||
| William Contreras | Brewers | 5 | 0.1 | 8.1 | ||
| Alejandro Kirk | Blue Jays | 17 | 1.7 | 5.4 | ||
| Nick Fortes | Marlins | 5 | 0.8 | 4.6 | ||
| Bo Naylor | Guardians | -2 | 0.1 | 4.5 | ||
| Gary Sánchez | Brewers | 7 | 0.0 | 3.7 | ||
| Danny Jansen | Blue Jays | -2 | 0.2 | 3.1 | ||
| Travis d’Arnaud | Braves | 0 | 0.1 | 3.0 | ||
| Christian Bethancourt | Marlins | 0 | 0.7 | 1.6 | ||
| Will Smith | Dodgers | 12 | 1.4 | 0.7 | ||
| Freddy Fermin | Royals | 8 | 0.8 | 0.2 | ||
| Ryan Jeffers | Twins | 1 | 0.9 | -2.7 | ||
| Yainer Diaz | Astros | 4 | 0.7 | -2.7 | ||
| J.T. Realmuto | Phillies | -4 | 1.2 | -6.9 | ||
| Willson Contreras | Cardinals | -8 | 0.3 | -7.4 | ||
| Salvador Perez | Royals | -11 | -0.2 | -8.3 | ||
| Logan O’Hoppe | Angels | -9 | 0.0 | -8.4 | ||
| Gabriel Moreno* | D-backs | 20 | 3.1 | -9.0 | ||
| Shea Langeliers | A’s | -13 | 0.3 | -9.2 | ||
| Connor Wong | Red Sox | 4 | 1.9 | -9.2 | ||
| Tyler Stephenson | Reds | -11 | -0.1 | -10.1 | ||
| Keibert Ruiz | Nationals | -14 | 0.1 | -11.8 | ||
| Elias Díaz | Rockies | -16 | 0.8 | -13.8 |
In the end, it’s all about plate appearances. If your catcher is strong defensively, is a good receiver, and guns down potential base burglars, he’s gonna see more at-bats. These are just facts, plain and simple. Nothing pisses me off more than when my fantasy catcher sits cause an elite arm has his “personal catcher.” If we can stay away from teams who employ such tactics, more production will be attained. Now, these men just need to hit!
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