RADIO
The first three months of the 2013 fantasy baseball season are in the books, and now we’re really starting to get a feel for the fantasy baseball landscape. RotoBaller will be updating our positional rankings over the next week. Today, we’re revisiting the catcher rankings we initially published in April and have updated in May and June. All the ranks below are compared to the FantasyPros ECR (Expert Consensus Rank), which will show you where RotoBaller differs with the expert community and by how much. Check out our tier-by-tier analysis below the rankings, and let us know where you agree or disagree with us!
Tier 1: I flirted with making some adjustments in this tier-- most notably moving Yadier Molina up a spot or two-- but then I looked at this tier of catchers overall and decided any that one of them could realistically finish the season ranked #1 at the position. I still think Buster Posey is the safest bet to do so, but if Molina stays healthy (right knee irritation) and continues producing like he has been, I won’t hesitate to make some adjustments in the next rankings update.
Tier 2: Jason Castro didn’t have a spectacular June (.239, 4 HR, 10 RBI), but he produced enough to prove he belongs in the second tier of catchers. He climbs nine spots to #11 overall, which will probably be his ceiling give or take a spot or two. Brian McCann (.232, 3 HR, 10 RBI) and Matt Wieters (.225, 3 HR, 7 RBI) posted similar numbers in June and their rankings were adjusted accordingly. Wieters, in particular, finished last season as the #8 overall catcher and is on pace to finish 2013 with similar numbers. Last, but certainly not least, the Jonathan Lucroy hype-machine rolls on. He’s been on-fire lately with 3 HR and 6 RBI in eight July games after hitting .296 with 3 HR and 18 RBI in June. Are you on the Lucroy bandwagon yet?
Tier 3: Once again, these are your fringe #1 catchers in 12-team leagues that only start one at the position. Those of you who were counting on Yasmani Grandal to produce numbers similar to last year were dealt a blow upon hearing the news that he will need knee surgery that will likely end his season. You won’t see him on the rankings again until next year. Miguel Montero was better last month (.278, 2 HR, 11 RBI), but appears to have reverted back to his light-hitting ways early on in July. He’ll be ranked lower next month if this continues. Ryan Doumit and Jarrod Saltalamacchia climb a few spots on the backing of solid numbers in June. J.P. Arencibia, on the other hand, was awful last month...
Tier 4: ...as was John Buck, who was so bad that he was demoted a full tier in the catcher rankings. Who knows how Evan Gattis's oblique injury will affect him when he returns after the All Star Break? I have dropped him down one tier as well until we see him back in action. Alex Avila spent most of June on the DL but he might be showing signs of life early on in July. Josh Phegley is someone to keep an eye on. In 61 games for the White Sox Triple A affiliate, he hit .316 with 15 HR and 41 RBI. He has already parked two homers since his call up.
Tier 5: None of these options deserve roster consideration except in very deep league-only leagues or formats where owners must start two at the position.
Tier 6: Stash only if you have the room. Travis d’Arnaud, in particular, can’t get here soon enough.
