Catchers

2011 Fantasy Baseball Position Tiers — Catchers

1st Tier:  Joe Mauer, Brian McCann, Buster Posey, Victor Martinez

     No surprises here as the top group of backstops has remained relatively unchanged for some time.  New to the group is Posey, 2010′s NL Rookie of the Year.  Normally I’m not a huge fan of ROY’s in their sophomore season (remember this article?), but Posey is something special.  This kid is a player and a great long term keeper as well.  He should hit right around .300 again, and with the extra two months in the bigs that he didn’t have last season, should also clear the 20 HR barrier as well.

     As for the others, you have a pretty good idea of what to expect,  Last year, mauer showed that the power may be there, but it’s not a lock.  The high batting average and solid run production are, though, which keeps him atop the leaderboard.  McCann is the power guy and should continue to be just as productive this season as he has been in years past.  V-Mart is a bit of a wild card for me here, what with the move to Detroit and all, but when healthy, he’s still 20 HR power with a .300 average.

2nd Tier:  Matt Wieters, Geovany Soto, Carlos Santana, Mike Napoli

     Wieters has been a little disappointing, but the potential has always been there.  Perhaps the last time I keep him in this tier, but with an improved lineup in Baltimore, I’m willing to give him one more shot.  Soto proved last year that his power was no fluke and had he stayed healthy, he would have easily cleared 20 HR for the season.  Look for him to be, at the least, just as productive as he was last season.  We all know what we’re getting from Napoli, power and average wise, which is nice, but the question for him again will be the number of at bats.  He’s platooning behind the plate, at first and at DH, so he should atleast get enough to make him a worthwhile choice.

     The wild card here is Santana.  He started off rock solid last year and was on his way to proving his supporters right until the knee injury occurred.  With a full recovery and a full season of at bats, he could soon launch himself into the top tier as a great power-average combo.

3rd Tier:  Kurt Suzuki, Miguel Montero, Russell Martin, A.J. Pierzynski, Jorge Posada, Miguel Olivo

     Some interesting choices here.  Suzuki is fairly consistent, but you’re not likely to see much in the way of power though.  Between 10 and 15 HR is where he should sit with a .270ish average.  And that’s probably where I would put Olivo, with the move to Seattle, and Pierzynski, who is probably on his last legs in Chi-Town.  Then you’ve got your dueling backstops in New York, both of which could be decent options this year.  Martin could see an increase in power with the move to hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium, whil ePosada could see a bit of a resurgence as the now full-time DH has a better chance of staying healthy.

     The wild card here is Montero who has great power potential but disappointed fantasy owners everywhere with his injury last season.  The job is his and there’s no Chris Snyder lurking over his shoulder, so with a full season, he could put up some solid HR and RBI totals.

4th Tier:  Carlos Ruiz, Chris Iannetta, Chris Snyder, John Buck, J.P. Arencibia, Yadier Molina, Jonathan Lucroy

     There’s definitely some potential here, but with a number of caveats.  Iannetta is getting another chance to prove himself and could excel this year….or he could start losing at bats to Jose Morales.  Lucroy and Arencibia could both do well for their resepctive teams as both are being given the opportunity to start for their teams full time.  Buck becomes a little less attractive now that he’s in Florida, Snyder will be quietly productive if he can stave off Ryan Doumit, and Molina and Ruiz are decent average guys who may not have a lot of pop, but won’t hurt you like some of the lower tiered backstops you’ll get stuck with if you don’t grab someone by this point.

5th Tier and Beyond:  John Jaso, Ramon Hernandez, Rod Barajas, Jeff Mathis, Nick Hundley, Jason Castro, Ronny Paulino, Ivan Rodriguez

     You know exactly what you’re getting when you’re shopping down here.  It means the rest of your team better be rock solid.  If Jaso can learn to hit lefties, he could be a nice little sleeper here as he will likely hit leadoff on days that he does play.  I’m not totally sold on the idea because he’s not really a speedy guy, but Joe Maddon likes him and that’s what counts most.