RADIO
Just Starting Out
How have the first couple weeks gone for you? Not exactly confident in the catcher you drafted? Looking for a reliable backup? Need to replace Yan Gomes or Devin Mesoraco?
RotoBaller has got you covered with analysis on three catchers who may be free agents in your league who you can target off the waiver wire.
Editor’s Note: to read about even more waiver wire options for catchers, be sure to check out our famous waiver wire pickups list which is a running list that is updated daily.
Waiver Wire Adds for Catchers
Travis d’Arnaud, C, New York Mets
Owned in 29% of FleaFlicker, 70% of Yahoo
BALLER MOVE: Add in All Formats
Some folks are pegging Travis d’Arnaud as this year’s breakout backstop, comparing him to Devin Mesoraco from 2014. There are some eerie similarities in plate discipline and ISO through their minor league careers. I’m not exactly willing to say d’Arnaud will finish 2015 as a top five catcher as Mesoraco did the year prior, but he’s playing like he is for the time being. Since I last wrote about d’Arnaud, his ownership numbers have more than doubled.
He’s actually the second rated catcher right now in standard leagues with his .294/.324/.471 slash line through the first couple of weeks. He’s added one home run, three runs, and eight RBI to this point. Don’t expect d’Arnaud to keep up this average. But by the same token, his OBP could actually be on the rise since his walk rate is less than on third of his career average. Durability is a concern – as it is for most catchers – but this year the Met’s lineup will be better, and Citi Field’s fences have been bumped in a tad. All of this leads to 20+ HR upside, with 75 RBI and .270 AVG as a best case scenario.
Yasmani Grandal, C, Los Angeles Dodgers
Owned in 20% of FleaFlicker, 26% of Yahoo
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Formats
Another popular sleeper/breakout pick pre-season was Yasmani Grandal, even prior to switching from the Padres to the Dodgers via trade. The former 12th overall pick has shown glimpses of brilliance in his first few seasons at the highest level. Leaving Petco for Dodger Stadium is an upgrade offensively, as LA is quietly a nice home run park. He is starting almost every game when Clayton Kershaw isn't on the mound, and bats fifth when doing so.
Grandal is only hitting .190 currently, and most Dodgers fans are losing their minds that this is what they received for Matt Kemp. But there's a few reasons to be optimistic. It's crazy early in the season, we can’t make any definitive declarations on the performance of most players. He gets on base a good amount, with five walks currently.
One of the biggest flaws of Grandal was his stat line against lefties in 2014. Considering that was a precipitous drop from his career averages, you can expect some sort of return in production there. He clearly has the upside to be better than his .225, 15 HR 2014 season, and i'm looking at something in the nature of a .255, 60 R, 20 HR, 65 RBI season.
Roberto Perez, C, Cleveland Indians
Owned in 2% of FleaFlicker, 3% of Yahoo
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Formats, Most Two-Catcher Leagues
With Yan Gomes sidelined for 6-8 weeks, Roberto Perez is now the primary backstop for the Cleveland Indians. Cleveland’s front office is high on Perez after his .305/.405/.517 slash line at Triple-A last season. The one word of caution I would have is that Perez may be a bit of a burden on fantasy managers’ batting average. His career AVG at .260 and is expected to drop now that he’s facing major league pitching.
Perez came out of the gates hot, going 2-4 with a two-run blast in his first game this season. Since then he’s gone 0-7 in his past three games, but an adjustment period is to be expected. Perez is not going to win owners their league’s this year, but he does make for a viable 6 week Band-Aid for Yan Gomes owners or others struggling at the position. And his double-digit walk rate in the minors should translate to the highest level to some regard, helping fantasy managers in OBP and walks.
