We’re doing something new this year, adapting our end of year review to the standard gaming tiers. We’re using 300 PA as our cutoff in these lists. So.
Overall, this is an NL dominant position for sure.
For the defensive stats, FRM is Framing Runs, a measure of how many runs were saved through handling the glove and RTO% is the % of runners thrown out. For these, the 3 best performers are in bold; the 3 worst in italics.
#S Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | OTT | Gary Carter | 21 | 297/359/703 | 57 HR 123 RBI 103 R | |
| NL | HOM | Josh Gibson | 22 | 400/494/818 | 49 HR 145 RBI 131 R | 9.7 FRM 31.5% RTO |
Josh Gibson was the best player in the NL, making him the de facto best catcher. But Gary Carter‘s season cannot be ignored. Just because there is a massive gap between 2 players (Gibson has, for example, an 11.4 to 5.5 edge in WAR) doesn’t mean both can be S-Tier. Just about the only edge Carter has is defensively, where his significantly stronger arm shines.
#A Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL | DET/ CLE | Ed Bailey | 36 | 259/347/607 | 39 HR | |
| NL | BBB | Jim Pagliaroni | 32 | 265/354/604 | 45 HR | -1.8 FRM 31.2% RTO |
| NL | BRK | Mike Piazza | 26 | 297/329/614 | 48 HR 117 RBI | 29.6% RTO |
| NL | NYG | Buster Posey | 26 | 288/355/561 | 39 HR | 10 FRM |
Jim Pagliaroni and Ed Bailey were each slightly less than full time players, but catching is hard, and we are more forgiving of that here.
Still, Mike Piazza would top this list and clearly (especially if you give weight to his monstrous postseason this year) has the best chance of moving up, as it’s not clear how many seasons Bailey has left and Pagliaroni–especially when his defensive ineptitude is considered–may actually belong 1 group lower.
In saying that, I continue an honored WBL tradition of not really giving Buster Posey his due. The metrics love him, as he is 3rd overall in WAR at 4.4 and clearly a better defensive catcher than the rest of this group. But his raw OPS is 40 points lower than Pagliaroni and he suffers from playing for the Gothams.
Which mean Ed Bailey is the best catcher in the AL right now, although Posey and some of the younger backstops from lower tiers may be preferred if you were building a team from scratch.
#B Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | IND | Johnny Bench | 25 | 238/303/562 | 46 HR 116 RBI | 7.0 FRM |
| AL | BAL | Curt Blefary | 26 | 257/351/539 | 38 HR | |
| AL | SFS | Mickey Cochrane | 25 | 289/371/513 | 26 SB | |
| AL | MEM | Gabby Hartnett | 29 | 244/304/575 | 41 HR | |
| NL | HOU | Jim O’Rourke | 30 | 279/375/514 |
A good argument could be made that Johnny Bench belongs in the tier above, especially if we are giving any weight at all to his Year 1 performance, but his offense just fell off so much–the power remained, but little else. Still, the assumption is he will bounce back.
There is something off with Curt Blefary, but the team is remaining mum so far. Still rumors of him and alcohol abound, raising a question of how long he can keep up his production.
Gabby Hartnett and Mickey Cochrane are both incredibly solid, and Cochrane’s defensive masterclass in the Whirled Series did nothing but enhance his reputation.
Gentleman Jim O’Rourke‘s value is largely from his defensive versatility, but he did play more innings at C than anywhere else (which speaks more to Jorge Posada‘s ineptitude than anything else).
#C Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL | CAG | Carlton Fisk | 25 | 235/302/508 | 33 HR | |
| AL | DET | Ernie Lombardi | 28 | 279/326/529 | ||
| AL | POR | Joe Mauer | 23 | 278/360/463 | 31 SB | |
| AL | NYY | Thurman Munson | 24 | 265/347/499 | ||
| AL | MCG | Iván Rodríguez | 21 | 270/309/532 | 46.1% RTO | |
| NL | KCM | Ted Simmons | 23 | 274/310/520 | -0.5 FRM |
These are all solid starters, and none of their jobs are really in question (other than, perhaps, Ernie Lombardi, who just looks like someone who will always come off the bench). But none of them really catch the eye, either. Joe Mauer and Thurman Munson were much better last season, so there is hope they return to form and Pudge Rodríguez, of course, is absolutely spectacular defensively. But even with his cannon of an arm, he’ll need to add some more offense to edge up the list.
#D Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | HOD | Elrod Hendricks | 28 | 195/291/416 | ||
| NL | HOU | Jorge Posada | 36 | 227/318/414 | -1.5 FRM | |
| NL | PHI | Mike Scioscia | 26 | 254/351/377 | 41.8 RTO% |
Elrod Hendricks, quite good for the House of David last year, lost his starting job this year, despite retaining a decent power bat. Posada is clearly on his way out, and will likely spend next season as Houston’s backup catcher, while Mike Scioscia is likely to fill the same role for Philadelphia.
#F Tier
| Lg | Tm | Name | Age | Slash | Other | Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL | CLE | John Ellis | 25 | 251/297/429 | -1.6 FRM | |
| AL | CLE | Louis Santop | 20 | 195/238/348 | 42.2 RTO% |
I mean, maybe Hendricks and Posada belong here? Certainly the total mess of a situation in Los Angeles does–which brings up the challenge of the F Tier in general: if you play that poorly, you’re probably going to be moved out.
John Ellis is really more of a pinch-hitter, spending roughly half his time at 1B as well. The occasional power is useful, but he’s not a starter at either position. Seeing him and Louis Santop (one of last year’s darlings, and still a highly regarded prospect given his tender age of 20) here makes Cleveland’s decision to acquire Ed Bailey quite obvious.
#Rookies
None. The best rookie catcher in the league was Philadelphia’s Bill Dickey, but he didn’t play enough to qualify here.