1. JT Realmuto, Marlins (for now)
This is indisputable. In 2018 J.T. Realmuto became an All-Star for the first time, earning a Silver Slugger and racking up 4.8 fWAR. Realmuto hits well, runs well and is a plus defensively. He’s also just 27-years-old and just entering the prime of his career.
Of course, WAR isn’t the be-all-end-all so also consider this: among catchers, Realmuto was third in batting average, third in homers, and one of just two catchers in all of baseball to rate positively on the base paths.
If you want to really look at how elite Realmuto is with the bat consider that almost 15% of his fly balls became home runs and his hard hit percentage was almost 40% when the average is about 30%.
Defensively Realmuto was also a positive, while his framing skills were just about average he threw out 38% of would-be base stealers (League average was 28%).
Given the state of the franchise in Miami and their rebuild, if Realmuto is still a Marlin come Opening Day is still yet to be seen, but regardless of what uniform he is wearing, we can expect another strong season from the catcher.
So what do you think? Do you agree with our MLB rankings of the top catchers? Comment below!