Fantasy Baseball Catchers #8: Willson Contreras
Willson Contreras has been one of the most reliable catchers in baseball for several years now, and 2022 was his best season by some stats. He slashed .243/.349/.466/.815, good for an OPS+ of 128. He hit 22 homers, 23 doubles, drove in 55 runs, and scored 65. Since he signed with the Cardinals, I think we’ll see an uptick in runs scored because the lineup around him is much stronger than when he was on the Cubs. Most projections have him batting second, with Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and Tyler O’Neill behind him.
Fantasy Baseball Catchers #7: Cal Raleigh
Big Dumper had a big season in 2022. The switch-hitting slugger slashed .211/.284/.489/.774, good for an OPS+ of 122. He hit 27 homers, 20 doubles, drove in 63 runs, and scored 46. He comes with strikeout problems just like many of the other catchers discussed so far, but he also has more power, which helps balance things out. He also has a really strong lineup in front of him. He’s projected to hit sixth in Seattle’s lineup, with guys like Kolten Wong, and Teoscar Hernandez in front of him, and obviously Julio Rodriguez at the top.