For those gazing at their fantasy squad, do you trust your current catcher? After all, it’s a tough position to tackle. Almost nobody wants to pay the premium for the likes of William Contreras, Cal Raleigh, or Salvador Perez because of their draft day cost. But those same people refuse to accept anything less than J.T. Realmuto, Shea Langeliers, or Logan O’Hoppe. It doesn’t help that Francisco Alvarez, Sean Murphy, and Tyler Stephenson will all be out to start the year. In twelve team leagues, there’s only so much talent to go around, often making this position a tricky obligation. 

 

Fear not. 

 

If you don’t feel comfortable with your current backstop, there are reliable substitutes who have barely been claimed in most leagues. In other words these under appreciated misfits are just sitting on the waiver wire, ready for any chance they get. These catchers all have starting roles cemented and the possibilities are aplenty, so let’s dive in. 

 

Drake Baldwin – Atlanta Braves : ESPN – 4% / Yahoo – 7%

The Braves are more than used to the ‘next man up’ mentality after a gauntlet of injuries in 2024. But I don’t see this as a less-than-meaningful substitute, more so a thrilling opportunity for Atlanta’s #1 prospect. Yes Sean Murphy is down for a bit. Enter Drake Baldwin. 

 

Baldwin has supreme power to all fields with strong plate skills . GM Alex Anthopoulos expects him to be the catcher of the future within the organization, and he will already be 24 years old at the start of the season. And at that age, I don’t want to see a prized prospect in the minors anymore, let’s see what the kid can do in the show. 

 

Atlanta has named Baldwin as their starting catcher in a lineup hungry for vengeance after the poor health debacle last season. When it comes to judging prospects, everyone should examine how they fared at the Triple-A level. This should give us a small hint about what we might be able to expect in the majors. In 72 games at said level last season, Baldwin slashed .298/.407/.484 with an .891 OPS and 12 long balls. Yeah, he’s ready.

 

Baldwin’s roster rate dipping below 10% shows that almost nobody is paying him the attention he deserves. That may be a result of his role potentially ceding to Murphy once healthy or fantasy managers simply don’t trust the young gun. Either way, it’s worth the minimal investment just to see how dangerous he can become in one of MLB’s most dangerous offenses. 

 

Jonah Heim – Texas Rangers : ESPN – 9% / Yahoo – 8%

One of the most important factors when it comes to the catching slot is playing time. And even though Heim struggled mightily last season, he still played in over 80% of Ranger contests. This shows that manager Bruce Bochy has the utmost confidence in Heim and is willing to give him plate appearances in order to find his confidence. It’s something which goes a long way in rostering the correct catcher because nobody wants a guy who’s sitting out at least once a series.

 

A good start to the season in a lineup surrounded by mashers will only improve Heim’s chances of getting back to the hitter he once was. He’s a product who doesn’t impact the ball all that much but does show good swing decisions and healthy strikeout rates. He hovers just under 20% when it comes to K% which is an encouraging sign for a relatively high floor.

 

We also can’t forget one vital tidbit of Heim’s career; when a player fails as bad as 2024 Heim did, we often forget about what 2023 Heim produced. He hit 18 home runs with 95 RBI’s and a .755 OPS just two seasons ago, more than acceptable numbers for a catcher being rostered in less than 10% of leagues. 

 

Plus we know the RBI opportunities will be sitting there for him with guys like Josh Jung and Jake Burger batting ahead of him. The ducks will be on the pond in plenty of Heim’s at-bats. So to put it simply, with opportunity comes success.

 

Ryan Jeffers – Minnesota Twins : ESPN – 18% / Yahoo – 25%

I’ve said it time and time again; the single most important offensive factor when it comes to fantasy baseball is power. And even though we all know Jeffers has his shortcomings, he makes up for it with the long ball. No other tool in the game provides as much as a singular home run does. It allows for less reliance on other batters in the lineup, taking probability out of the equation.

 

The Minnesota backstop averages 24 homers per 162 games. And for a catcher who is barely rostered in a quarter of all leagues, that’ll play. We did see Jeffers get an increase in playing time last season and I expect more of the same in 2025. While he may not be in the lineup every single day, Jeffers will have his fair share of opportunities to cash in at the plate.

 

Extreme pull-hitters are typically a good thing for right-handed batters in Minnesota, taking advantage of their left field porch. Jeffers did just that in 2023, knocking 14 round-trippers in 96 contests with an .858 OPS. 

 

In other words, a poor man’s Cal Raleigh? Sure. Nothing wrong with that title when every other fantasy manager is undervaluing him.

 

Iván Herrera – St. Louis Cardinals : ESPN – 11% / Yahoo – 28%

Now that Willson Contreras is playing first base, it’s Iván Herrera’s time to shine. In his brief major league career so far, his line shows .289/.365/.398. Not bad for his first cup of coffee in the bigs, eh? 

 

While a player like Herrera possesses many wonderful tools, there are some negatives attached. He has played 96 games thus far in the majors with little to show in the power department. Five total home runs is less than encouraging. Though let’s not forget in 2024 his OPS did reach .800, something which stuck out to me. The bat speed was his strongest metric which also caught my eye.

 

Herrera remains very young with time for growth. His approach in the minors was always contact-first. And even with that process he still smacked 17 home runs in 98 Double-A games. 

 

There’s room for improvement and positive development, something which may expand quickly since he’ll finally be receiving everyday at-bats. But don’t let Herrera fool you – he’s thinking of ways to get on base and make contact, not hit it over the fence in every at-bat. The steady plate discipline and ability to take his walks will help him down the road. He could be a menace in OBP leagues. 

 

The allure in adding a guy of his caliber is tempting. And because he’s essentially free at the moment, it’s even more enticing. So if you’re looking for an average boost with a stable floor and potential for improved power, consider the Iván Herrera investment.

 

Connor Wong – Boston Red Sox : ESPN – 8% / Yahoo – 31%

While Drake Baldwin and Jonah Heim come with elite lineup context, so does Connor Wong. Wong is slated to hit eighth for a Boston squad ripe with promise. Hitting between Wilyer Abreu and Ceddanne Rafaela doesn’t seem like such a bad place to be compared to a lot of bottom three hitters across the league. Being put in a position like this will only help his numbers.

 

Wong doesn’t light up any metrics in particular but the Red Sox like what they see from him. Many people have forgotten that he did show power early on in the minors, hitting 19 and 24 long balls in back-to-back seasons. And in his final test of minor league action back in 2022, Wong thumped 15 homers in 81 games while on his way to an .839 OPS.

 

The swing is designed for Fenway Park, pulling 10 of his 13 home runs over the green monster in 2024. His ability to improve the pull-rate up over 40% is a direct result of maturing positively. And speaking of heading in the right direction, his average, OBP, SLG, and OPS all jumped significantly from 2023 to 2024 while playing the exact same number of games in both seasons.

 

I expect even more progress from Wong this season and believe he has the ability to achieve such success. One market inefficiency I’ve witnessed so far when it comes to catcher roster rates; Keibert Ruiz is rostered in 72% of ESPN leagues while Connor Wong currently sits at 8%. Hmmm, something doesn’t sit right here. Especially when Wong is playing in a lineup which had a positive run differential in 2024 with much bigger expectations this season, while Washington finished with a -104 differential last season. Do not forget Wong’s capability when it’s time to hit the waiver wire.

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