Fantasy Baseball Player Notes
2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Notes
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1.
J.T. Realmuto
PHI
Realmuto fractured the thumb on his throwing hand in mid-February, and is iffy for Opening Day. He is in a tier to himself among catchers when healthy, putting up consistently excellent numbers in what is the thinnest of positions. He had the highest barrel rate and hard hit percentage of his career in 2020, and also walked at a career-best pace. Realmuto is in his age-30 season, so that's getting near the point where catchers begin to decline. But given that he's shown no real slippage in his skills to this point, his numbers shouldn't fall off much in 2021, assuming he has no setbacks and returns on or around Opening Day. Back with Philadelphia now and for several years after signing a five-year contract, Realmuto is the only catcher worth drafting before the sixth or seventh round.
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2.
Salvador Perez
KC
Perez returned from missing all of the 2019 season to put up monstrous numbers. He batted .333 with 11 home runs in just 37 games. Sure, his meager walk rate became even worst and he struck out more than ever, but his strong numbers were absolutely earned. He had an expected batting average of .325, an expected slugging percentage of .624, and barreled baseballs at a significantly higher rate than he ever had before. Perez will be 31 years old this year this year but considering that he's had just 156 plate appearances combined over the past two years (after having one of the heaviest workloads for a catcher over the previous six seasons), he should have some gas left in the tank. Draft him as a top-three catcher without hesitation.
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3.
Will Smith
LAD
Smith had an outstanding 2020 season, walking a ton, striking out little, and getting on base at higher than a .400 clip. The power he showed in his 54-game stretch in 2019 remained, and he ranked in the top 10% of the league in wOBA, expected wOBA, and expected slugging percentage. Given how the Dodgers play the entire season with an eye toward the playoffs, as well as the presence of Keibert Ruiz, it's possible that Smith may get more rest than other catchers this year. But that's a minor point against someone who should be one of the top options at his position. He's no worse than a top-five catcher, and there's a good argument that he should be the second player selected at his position.
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4.
Willson Contreras
CHC
Contreras has established a pretty decent baseline for what fantasy managers can expect over the course of a full season. He'll likely give you a floor of 15 home runs and 110 combined runs and RBI, with upside for more. Those numbers don't sound impressive, but they're enough to make Contreras a top-five catcher easily. Given his safety, there's an argument to be made to take him as high as second overall at the position. But, even so, there's no need to select him before the eighth round or so, as there's not an appreciable difference in the production of the next seven or eight catchers beyond J.T. Realmuto.
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5.
Yasmani Grandal
CWS
Grandal is getting up there in age for a catcher, and there were a few warning signs for the veteran. He struck out nearly 30% of the time last season, well above his typical rate, and his expected batting average, slugging percentage, and wOBA were some of the worst of his career. At the same time, he continued to walk at a near-elite clip, and again provided plenty of power from a position where pop is hard to find. The good news for Grandal is that both his large contract and his elite pitch framing skills should keep him in the lineup as often as possible, which will help to pad his counting stats. He's just a tad outside of the elite range at the position, but he's a locked in fantasy starter.
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6.
Travis d'Arnaud
ATL
It took a long time but d'Arnaud has finally developed into one of the best hitting catchers in the game, as he was projected to be. It's difficult to quite buy what we saw last year, considering d'Arnaud's batting average (.321) and slugging percentage (.533) were miles ahead of his career marks, and even the numbers that he had put up in recent seasons. With that said, he'll bat in the middle of a strong Braves lineup and be presented with plenty of RBI opportunities, so 15 home runs with 55 RBI should be considered the floor for a healthy d'Arnaud. Those numbers aren't just passable, they're extremely strong for a catcher in fantasy, and he should be drafted as a relatively strong first catcher in mixed leagues.
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7.
Christian Vazquez
BOS
Vazquez was a late bloomer, but he's developed into one of the more reliable catchers in the game. Not only does he provide 20-homer power, but he's one of the best assets at catcher in both batting average and stolen bases. Entering his age-31 season, there's certainly the possibility for a major decline in his numbers, but there is little in his underlying metrics to suggest it is imminent. Draft Vazquez as a strong starter in single-catcher formats, and you won't need to do so before the double-digit rounds.
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8.
Gary Sanchez
NYY
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9.
Austin Nola
SD
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10.
Sean Murphy
OAK
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11.
James McCann
NYM
McCann will be the everyday catcher for the Mets after putting up his second consecutive successful season for the White Sox. After putting up a .789 OPS in 2019, he jumped up to an .896 mark in 2020, setting a career-high in walk rate. McCann was a part-timer last year, so his rate stats will likely dip as he takes over a heavy workload with the Mets (Wilson Ramos ranked fourth among catchers in plate appearances the last two seasons). But counting stats should be there in spades in a strong Mets lineup. He should be drafted as a starting catcher in 12-team formats.
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12.
Daulton Varsho
ARI
Varsho saw plenty of action between catcher and the outfield last year for the Diamondbacks, and although he batted just .188, he hit three home runs and stole three bases. That may not sound like much but for a catcher-eligible player in 37 games, it's plenty. The problem for Varsho is that the Diamondbacks' roster looks pretty full, especially with the signing of Asdrubal Cabrera, and there's a good chance he begins the year in the minors. There's a ton of potential for Varsho, given that he was a high-average hitter during his minor-league career, but it seems increasingly likely that fantasy managers will need to wait a bit longer for him to become someone to start in fantasy leagues.
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13.
Mitch Garver
MIN
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14.
Buster Posey
SF
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15.
Yadier Molina
STL
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16.
Carson Kelly
ARI
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17.
Jorge Alfaro
MIA
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18.
Wilson Ramos
DET
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19.
Danny Jansen
TOR
Jansen's playing time is uncertain this year with the presence of both Reese McGuire and Alejandro Kirk, but his defense is likely to keep him in the mix as a starter most games. He hasn't developed into the offensive force most thought he would become, and his average has been downright dreadful. But he's put up 19 home runs and 59 RBI over 150 games in the last two seasons, and the Toronto lineup is incredibly strong. If he wins the job outright out of spring training, he should be considered a fairly strong second catcher.
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20.
Alejandro Kirk
TOR
Kirk has the bat to to be a fantasy asset if he can stay in the lineup, particularly with catcher eligibility. He is a career .315 hitter with a .918 OPS in the minors, and had a strong, albeit short, stint in the majors last year during when he had a .983 OPS in nine games. The biggest obstacle for Kirk is that the Blue Jays have two solid defensive catchers in Danny Jansen and Reese McGuire, and although they could put Kirk at DH, they have plenty of other options for that position. In other words, Kirk needs to hit and hit early to cement a lineup spot. If he does, he's got top-10 catcher potential pretty easily.
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21.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa
TEX
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22.
Yan Gomes
WSH
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23.
Pedro Severino
BAL
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24.
Omar Narvaez
MIL
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25.
Ryan Jeffers
MIN
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26.
Tom Murphy
SEA
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27.
Kurt Suzuki
LAA
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28.
Jacob Stallings
PIT
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29.
Max Stassi
LAA
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30.
Joey Bart
SF
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31.
Francisco Mejia
TB
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32.
Tyler Stephenson
CIN
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33.
Roberto Perez
CLE
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34.
Tucker Barnhart
CIN
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35.
Andrew Knizner
STL
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36.
Elias Diaz
COL
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37.
Sam Huff
TEX
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38.
Victor Caratini
SD
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39.
Chance Sisco
BAL
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40.
Luis Torrens
SEA
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41.
Martin Maldonado
HOU
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42.
Adley Rutschman
BAL
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43.
Jason Castro
HOU
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44.
Mike Zunino
TB
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45.
Austin Barnes
LAD
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46.
Andrew Knapp
PHI
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47.
Jose Trevino
TEX
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48.
Austin Romine
CHC
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49.
Robinson Chirinos
NYY
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50.
Kyle Higashioka
NYY
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51.
Willians Astudillo
MIN
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52.
Curt Casali
SF
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53.
Keibert Ruiz
LAD
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54.
Tony Wolters
PIT
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55.
Alex Avila
WSH
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56.
Tyler Flowers
FA
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57.
Jonah Heim
TEX
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58.
Stephen Vogt
ARI
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59.
Chadwick Tromp
SF
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60.
Austin Hedges
CLE
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61.
Jonathan Lucroy
CWS
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62.
Dom Nunez
COL
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63.
Jeff Mathis
PHI
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64.
Luis Campusano
SD
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65.
Ryan Lavarnway
CIN
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66.
Eric Haase
DET
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67.
Kevin Plawecki
BOS
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68.
Manny Pina
MIL
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69.
John Hicks
TEX
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70.
Reese McGuire
TOR
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71.
Jacob Nottingham
MIL
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72.
Francisco Cervelli
FA
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73.
Grayson Greiner
DET
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74.
Bo Naylor
CLE
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75.
Austin Allen
OAK
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76.
Tyler Heineman
STL
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77.
Chad Wallach
MIA
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78.
Tomas Nido
NYM
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79.
Sandy Leon
FA
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80.
William Contreras
ATL
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81.
Zack Collins
CWS
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82.
Michael Perez
PIT
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83.
Matt Wieters
FA
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84.
Alex Jackson
ATL
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85.
Cam Gallagher
KC
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86.
Aramis Garcia
OAK
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87.
Welington Castillo
WSH
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88.
Jake Rogers
DET
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89.
Garrett Stubbs
HOU
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90.
Kevan Smith
TB
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91.
Drew Butera
TEX
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92.
Anthony Bemboom
LAA
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93.
Cal Raleigh
SEA
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94.
Rene Rivera
FA
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95.
Luke Maile
MIL
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96.
Dustin Garneau
DET
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97.
Kyle Farmer
CIN
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98.
Deivy Grullon
CIN
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99.
Chris Herrmann
BOS
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100.
Meibrys Viloria
KC
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101.
Connor Wong
BOS
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102.
Jose Briceno
COL
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103.
Seby Zavala
CWS
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104.
Rafael Marchan
PHI
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105.
Caleb Joseph
NYM
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106.
Bryan Holaday
FA
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107.
Beau Taylor
CLE
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108.
Tres Barrera
WSH
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109.
P.J. Higgins
CHC
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110.
Andrew Susac
PIT
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111.
Ali Sanchez
STL
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112.
Patrick Mazeika
NYM
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113.
Joseph Odom
TB
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114.
Austin Wynns
BAL
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115.
Joe Hudson
PIT
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116.
David Freitas
FA
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117.
John Ryan Murphy
PIT
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118.
Raudy Read
WSH
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119.
Miguel Amaya
CHC
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120.
Nick Ciuffo
BAL
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121.
Brian Navarreto
MIA
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122.
Tim Federowicz
LAD
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123.
Josh Phegley
FA
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124.
Colton Shaver
HOU
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125.
Yermin Mercedes
CWS
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