Catchers are underrated – many teams settle for guys who can call a good game and have “intangibles.” But what a team really wants is a guy (or guys) who can reach an .800 OPS and can call a good game, as well as pitchers who hold runners on well.
Stats:
BA – batting average
OBP – on-base percentage
SLG – slugging average
OPS – on-base percentage + slugging average
SEC – secondary average (created by Bill James to indicate how many runs a player will produce, it’s extra bases on base hits + walks + stolen bases / at-bats + walks)
Rankings are in order of OPS.
1. Brian McCann, Atlanta (.269 BA / .375 OBP / .453 SLG / .828 OPS / .302 SEC)
Yes, the days when a catcher would be among the very best hitters in the NL are long gone. McCann’s been the best the NL has to offer the last two years, and probably will continue to do so. Warning: his power has dipped a bit. Note McCann also has the top secondary average in the league – he’s easily the best option here.
2. Carlos Ruiz/Brian Schneider, Philadelphia (.286 BA / .386 OBP / .431 SLG / .817 OPS / .256 SEC)
Give the Phillies a lot of credit here – they have a good platoon catching system at a cheap price (Ruiz and Schneider combined made a bit over 3 million last year.) The best catching prospect, Sebastian Valle, played A ball last year and both Ruiz and Schneider are signed for 2011, so don’t expect changes.
3. Ramon Hernandez / Ryan Hanigan / Corky Miller, Cincinnati (.292 BA / .369 OBP / .424 SLG / .793 OPS / .217 SEC)
This is kind of a fluke – Hernandez’s numbers were a little higher than normal, Hanigan’s a lot higher. Hanigan’s 30, so last year’s .300 average probably represented an outlier year. Miller’s a journeyman catcher. All three are back for 2011.
4. Buster Posey / Bengie Molina / Eli Whiteside, San Francisco (.281 BA / .335 OBP / .439 SLG / .773 OPS / .215 SEC)
Yeah, Buster Posey’s going to be great, but that wasn’t all him. He doesn’t take a lot of walks, which is a little worrisome. Molina’s now in Texas, and Whiteside’s not going to be a viable regular, so the Giants better hope Posey’s healthy.
5. Geovany Soto / Koyie Hill, Chicago Cubs (.253 BA / .341 OBP / .417 SLG / .759 OPS / .267 SEC)
If Soto had stayed healthier, this number would have been higher – Hill had a .552 OPS, Soto .890, which would have topped Brian McCann for #1 in the league. But Soto missed 57 games and only had a little over 400 plate appearances. Cubs have to upgrade the backup position if that continues to happen, because if they have Hill behind the plate for 50-70 games a year, they won’t win anything.
6. Miguel Montero / Chris Snyder / John Hester, Arizona Diamondbacks (.245 BA / .333 OBP / .419 SLG / .752 OPS / .270 SEC)
Montero won the job after a fine 2009 season, but struggled with injuries last year. Snyder was dealt to the Pirates midyear, so he’s out of the rotation. Hester’s around but isn’t really a factor; Henry Blanco has been signed as the backup, but he turns 40 in August, so the D-Backs are in trouble if Montero suffers a serious injury.
7. Miguel Olivo / Chris Ianetta, Colorado Rockies (.246 BA / .316 OBP / .428 SLG / .744 OPS / .268 SEC)
Ianetta was one of the top catchers in the NL in 2009, so the Rockies let platoon partner Yorvit Torrealba go in favor of Olivo. Ianetta wasn’t the same player in 2010, but Olivo stepped up a bit, so the results were fairly similar. Olivo signed with Seattle, so Ianetta needs to step it up this year.
8. Yorvit Torrealba / Nick Hundley, San Diego Padres (.261 BA / .327 OBP / .396 SLG / (.723 OPS / .223 SEC)
Surprisingly decent offensive contribution from this position. No one expected much from Hundley, and Torrealba was the lesser half of a platoon in Colorado, but they kept the position from being a problem. Torrealba signed with Texas, so Hundley will have the full-time job.
9. Russell Martin / A.J. Ellis / Rod Barajas / Brad Ausmus, Los Angeles Dodgers (.256 BA / .348 OBP / .350 SLG / .698 OPS / .208 SEC)
The Dodgers finally realized Russell Martin wasn’t worth the money they would have had to pay him and let him go (the Yankees ridiculously paid $4 million to have him be Jorge Posada’s backup/successor). Barajas will supply his usual home runs-and-nothing else, with Dioner Navarro as the backup. I thought Brad Ausmus retired, but he’s still on the roster.
10. Jonathan Lucroy / George Kotteras / Gregg Zaun, Milwaukee Brewers (.237 BA / .311 OBP / .364 SLG / .675 OPS / .219 SEC)
Zaun was supposed to be the starter, but got hurt and was gone for the year in mid-May. Lucroy wasn’t ready yet, but he established himself pretty well. Kotteras is a standard backup guy, but the Brewers have also brought in Wil Nieves from Washington, for reasons unknown.
11. Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals (.262 BA / .329 OBP / .342 SLG / .671 OPS / .172 SEC)
This is another “Tony LaRussa must know something we don’t” entry, because most teams would be looking for someone else about now, while the Cardinals are going to pay him $5 million next year. I know he’s a great defensive catcher, and last year was a bit of a dropoff for him, but that’s still an awful lot of money for not a lot of output.
12. Rod Barajas / Josh Thole / Henry Blanco, New York Mets (.241 BA / .298 OBP / .372 SLG / .670 OPS / .194 SEC)
Most of the low on-base percentage is due to Barajas taking eight walks in 249 ABs in the first half of the season. Thole put up a .723 OPS in 202 ABs in the second half, which is a good sign. However, that came down to .743 against righties and .343 against lefties (admittedly, he only faced a southpaw 30 times), so the Mets nabbed Ronny Paulino, who has an .881 career OPS against lefties. This seems a better idea than the doofus blogger who lamented not outbidding the Yankees for Russell Martin.
13. Ryan Doumit / Chris Snyder / Jason Jaramillo, Pittsburgh Pirates (.220 BA / .304 OBP / .357 SLG / .661 OPS / .220 SEC)
Another of many areas the Pirates need to fix. Doumit’s pretty decent when healthy, which isn’t often enough. Snyder was dreadful after coming over from Arizona in midseason, but he’s still likely a better option than the light-hitting Jaramillo.
14. Ronny Paulino / Brad Davis / John Baker / Brett Hayes, Florida Marlins (.238 BA / .297 OBP / .353 SLG / .650 OPS / .189 SEC)
Paulino is a little stretched as a regular, but he was better than most of the other options the Marlins have. Baker is counted on to be the starter this year, which is likely a reach. I loved Davis in Midnight Express.
15. Ivan Rodriguez / Wil Nieves, Washington Nationals (.248 BA / .279 OBP / .336 SLG / .616 OPS / .129 SEC)
Hard to believe this wasn’t the worst catching pair in the league last year. Rodriguez was once on track for the Hall of Fame, but he may be ruining his chances in his quest to play more seasons than any other catcher (this will be his 20th). Nieves has moved on to Milwaukee, so someone else will have to back Rodriguez up.
16. Humberto Quintero / Jason Castro, Houston Astros (.222 BA / .272 OBP / .304 SLG / .577 OPS / .139 SEC)
I don’t think the Astros, in their 50 years of existence, have ever had an All-Star catcher. I know they’ve never had one who’s hit 20 homers. Anyway, Castro is now the catcher of the future, now that it’s been established J. R. Towles can’t his big league pitching (.830 OPS in AAA, .600 in the majors), unfortunately Castro was just as bad last year (.573 OPS). At least they’re not talking about bringing Brad Ausmus back.
