MLB Players: Top 10 catchers entering 2020
1. Yasmani Grandal, Chicago White Sox
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This was so close. I’m talking splitting hairs here. But the edge goes to Grandal at the end of the day. He clearly benefitted from hitting in the Brewers lineup with Christian Yelich (plus Miller Park is a launching pad) batting .246/.380/.468 with 28 homers. He set career highs in games played, plate appearances, home runs, runs batted in, and walk percentage.
All that added up to a 5.2 WAR.
And now he goes to a park that is even more of a launchpad in Guaranteed Rate Field. And while the White Sox don’t have a Christian Yelich type player (that we know of, yet) they do have a ton of talent throughout the lineup to protect Grandal and for him to drive in.
As long as Grandal continues to get on base at a steady clip, and hit the ball on the screws (45.4% hard-hit rate) he’s going to continue to be at or near the top of catching lists.
He also gets the benefit of being able to spend some time in the DH spot which should keep him fresher longer. The White Sox were wise to spend $73 million on him.