Post by Erbes on May 10, 2013 21:13:07 GMT -5
[glow=red,2,300]Top 10 MLB Catchers[/glow]
This is clearly a play off of Ashes' Top 75 article. Unlike his article, though, I will be ranking only the MLB players at each position. How will I rate them you ask? This will come down to a combination of ratings, stats, age, etc. In other words, it will be a value ranking - not purely based on one aspect. I'll also do the top 5 prospects at each position.
Top 10 MLB Catchers
10. Brandon Inge, Los Angeles Dodgers
Age: 22
Ratings: G/A/P/G/F/B; D range, A arm
1999 season: .287/.326/.352, 4 HRs, 30 RBIs, 34.5% RTO
Inge may be surprise to many on this list mostly because I'm not sure anybody knew he was this good! Like WTF, Greg??? Where have you been hiding him? He probably would have been the top prospect in those rankings, but he was called up in May and has held his own against major league pitching. He could have used a little more seasoning in AAA to get those homer ratings up, but with some IRI love those should round out nicely. While he hasn't been a world beater at the plate I do love that he hasn't really had a bad month at the plate. OOTP loves making rookies struggle for some reason and usually kills them before they can start. Inge avoided that curse and should be a mainstay for the Dodgers.
9. David Nilsson, Milwaukee Brewers
Age: 29
Ratings: A/G/F/A/A/A; D range, A arm
1999 season: .303/.386/.437, 9 HRs, 65 RBIs, 36% RTO
This could be another surprise for people, but Nilsson is a huge reason why the Brewers hang around each year. He's a major masher from behind the plate - 18+ HRs in each season of BBSBL. I think the most impressive thing about him, which is something a lot of players in the league struggle with, is the fact that he hits lefties just as well as he hits righties. The lack of a split allows him to play everyday and doesn't cost Steve a platoon position. He doesn't have the sexy ratings like some guys ahead of him on this list and that would probably hurt his value a little out on the open market. Even so, Nilsson is without a doubt a top 10 catcher.
8. Ivan Rodriguez, Texas Rangers
Age: 27
Ratings: A/G/F/A/A/B; B range, A arm
2013 season: .269/.324/.428, 11 HRs, 45 RBIs, 33.7% RTO
For all intents and purposes, Pudge should be much higher on this list... and yet he really shouldn't. His name definitely carries more value than anything at this point, but he's still very solid. We all know Texas is a bandbox. Pudge doesn't. The most HRs he's hit in a season is 23. That's unacceptable from a guy making $10M+ per season... for the next 4 seasons! A lot of his lack of production probably has to do with the fact that Texas has never fielded a winning team, but homers are individualistic by nature and he should still be popping them more consistently. I'd take Pudge over my current catching situation, but I'm not sure he's on the rise like a lot of these other under-30 catchers.
7. Mike Stanley, Chicago White Sox
Age: 36
Ratings: G/A/P/G/G/A; C range, C arm
1999 season: .294/.370/.482, 15 HRs, 53 RBIs, 37.3% RTO
Mike Stanley aka Father Time. This dude has been raking since you were sucking on your mama's tit or in break's case his papa's dick. Never less than 30 round trippers, never less than an .899 OPS in any BBSBL season. That's called consistent banging. The best part about him? He's 36 and shows no signs of regression yet. All of his ratings seem to be holding steady which is huge for such an old guy. His contract demands always seem to flatten his value a bit, but I haven't heard a complaint out of Waldo since I traded Stanley to him. I imagine it's the same feeling Waldo gets after hiring a hooker. It'll be interesting to see what Mike gets in FA and if he can hold up for a couple more seasons to grab 250 homers.
6. Phil Nevin, Detroit Tigers
Age: 28
Ratings: A/A/P/G/A/F; E range, C arm
1999 season: .264/.313/.438, 16 HRs, 69 RBIs, 31.3% RTO
Phil is an awkward catcher. I certainly wouldn't play him there. On the flip side I wouldn't rank him this high if he were playing 3B so his real value lays in his ability to play catcher. Make sense? Phil really doesn't do anything but hit the ball a really long distance and consistently. He had a bit of a down year last year, but he's on pace for a solid season of about 25 homers. If d2a would pour some love into Nevin I think he could be a next level player and carry Detroit. I'd also be interested to see what he would do on a good team. OOTP seems to drag down good players on bad teams and I think he would be an .800 OPS player on a better team. Still at only 28 he's got room to grow and he could certainly build on this year's All-Star appearance... maybe all the way to an MVP?
5. Mike Sweeney, Kansas City Royals
Age: 26
Ratings: G/G/P/G/G/B; E range, C arm
1999 season: .285/.372/.479, 16 HRs, 70 RBIs, 17.3% RTO
This is definitely another case of a guy playing out of position. Note the horrible RTO compared to everybody else on this list. On the bright side, damn Mike you can hit. That OBP is so sexy I want to hump it. Another guy who really doesn't have a bad split, in fact it's kind of a reverse split, which should straighten sooner than later. While I love his OBP I do see a couple red flags. 1. His power is pretty nonexistent. To be elite he needs to develop that, and do it in a hurry. 2. His past two months of this season have been abysmal. Not sure what that means long term (if anything), but for this season it spells trouble for the Royals. Sweeney will be a killer in Kansas City for a long time if he can tap into his 'good' homer potential. If not, he could be on the outside looking in for next year's ranking.
4. Jason Varitek, Boston Red Sox
Age: 27
Ratings: G/A/P/A/G/F; E range, C arm
1999 season: .320/.389/.442, 6 HRs, 50 RBIs, 36 SBs, 20% RTO
Yeah you're reading that right. 36 stolen bases at the time of writing this. That's absurd for a catcher. Like mental. Tack that onto a .389 OBP and .830 OPS, and wow. In real life this is what MVPs are made of. The ratings aren't super sexy, so I'm thinking a lot of the production is based off the nice dimensions of Fenway Park, but it's really hard to fake an OBP like that. My concerns are the lack of power - like none. Totally void. And the fact that is his best season to date. OOTP loves giving guys one great season before crashing them back to earth. See: Derek Jeter 1997. Damn that season was great for him! If Tek can give break this kind of production for the next 5-6 years I think you'll be seeing a lot of All-Star selections and really idiotic MVP talk from break.
3. Javy Lopez, Atlanta Braves
Age: 28
Ratings: G/G/F/B/A/B; A range, C arm
1999 season: .275/.335/.501, 22 HRs, 79 RBIs, 22.4% RTO
I'm not so sure Javy plays up to his ratings. Sure he averages about 28 homers a season, but wouldn't you expect more from a 'brilliant' rating? I think I would. His OBP is also pretty pedestrian for my liking, but I'm nitpicking at this point. This dude AVERAGES 28 homers! Why am I moaning about that?? LOL! Javy was my undoing in the '96 World Series and I'll never forgive him for it. At only 28 I'm sure he'll be breaking many more hearts before he retires. He's got a solid shot at 300-350 career homers. Tasty from a catcher.
2. Mike Piazza, Houston Astros
Age: 30
Ratings: G/A/P/B/A/A; A range, C arm
1999 season: .338/.403/.612, 22 HRs, 70 RBIs, 24.4% RTO
Big Mike. Piazza is a little older than some of the guys behind him on the list, but he's just so much better than all those dudes! LOL! He has a career OPS over .900 in BBSBL years and he is showing no signs of slowing even as he hits 30 years old. Mike doesn't have down months, weeks, days - he's always on. If he hadn't gotten injured, he'd be top 3 in OPS in the NL right now. That's a catcher people. Catcher's don't often put up those kind of years. And yeah he was injured, but he still has 22 dingers! Such a good player and tied up to an affordable contract. Value, value, value. He oozes it.
1. Jorge Posada, Chicago Cubs
Age: 28
Ratings: G/G/P/G/G/G; C range, B arm
1999 season: .299/.400/.520, 18 HRs, 77 RBIs, 25% RTO
Javy's counterpart in that '96 WS? Mr. Jorge Posada. Now with the Cubs, Jorgie hasn't stopped raking. He's even hitting as a lefty in that park! WOWOW! Sporting a beastly .400 OBP this season, Jo-Po has never had an OPS lower than .861 in a season. That's disgusting. I made him too good! He hits for average, power, with men on base, in late and close situations - he just hits! I don't see a weakness. His RTO could come up a bit, but it's like damn Jorge just keep hitting the cages and we'll worry about that never! #1 in the rankings and #1 in our hearts. #lovejorge
Guys just missing the cut: Brian Schneider, Jason Kendall, Bill Haselman, John Flaherty, Scott Hatteberg, Robert Fick (if he was listed as a C)
Top 5 Catching Prospects
5. Gerald Laird, Cleveland Indians
Age: 19
Ratings: G/A/P/A/G/G; D range, C arm
MLB ETA: 2001
Pretty ho-hum prospect. His consistency scares me and I think you're seeing some of that show in his minor league performances to date. His ratings are right in line with his age so I wouldn't be surprised to see Laird in the bigs in about 2 seasons.
4. Victor Martinez, Cleveland Indians
Age: 20
Ratings: G/G/P/G/A/G; C range, C arm
MLB ETA: 2000
Back-to-back Indians to start here. V-Mart shouldn't be behind the plate in the bigs. I think once his position shifts, his value drops because of it. I really don't like his minor league stats - they highlight his pretty obvious righty/lefty split problem he's going to have even though he's a switch hitter. Still, he could hit .290 with 25 HRs each season without blinking an eye. Kind of a mystery to me.
3. Ryan Doumit, San Diego Padres
Age: 18
Ratings: G/G/P/G/A/G; C range, B arm
MLB ETA: 2003+
Not a huge fan of Doumit. His 5* rating is misleading in my opinion. No brilliants? Yikes. He came to the Pads by way of the Miggy Cabrera deal with Florida and I feel like Ashes fleeced Big Air on this one. Doumit is raking right now in the minors so that is positive. I can't see him getting a cup of coffee for awhile. At least 3 years.
2. David Ross, Texas Rangers
Age: 22
Ratings: G/A/P/G/A/G; D range, C arm
MLB ETA: 2000
Love Ross. Great intangibles, crushing in AAA right now, and almost ready for the show. Dan shouldn't call him up until next year at this point, and when he does he will be a serious candidate for ROY. He'll mash in Texas like nobody's business.
1. Jason Grabowski, Minnesota Twins
Age: 23
Ratings: G/A/P/G/G/B; C range, C arm
MLB ETA: 2001
I understand Jason isn't hitting at all right now, but how is this guy not in the top 100 with those ratings? He's pretty underdeveloped for 23, but who cares? He'll be ready by 25 and should dominate. Will Cunnane was called up at year 25 and he's a front runner for ROY this year. The Twins might need to keep cash on hand though because that prone injury rating already looks dangerous. Other than that, can't miss kind of guy.
Honorable mentions: Carlos Ruiz (NYM), Jeff Bailey (NYY)
I plan on doing first baseman tomorrow! Stay tuned!