Fantasy Focus: Catcher Bargains

Ask and ye shall receive!  We'll kick off a requested series on fantasy baseball bargains or undervalued players with the catching position.  After a couple of seasons in the doldrums, the catching position has suddenly become a lot more interesting with multiple players vying for undervalued or bargain status, which is good because with attention spread around, it's more likely they will stay undervalued.  See, the problem with undervalued fantasy baseball players is that as soon as someone writes an article identifying a player as undervalued, there's suddenly a bunch of readers who jump on the bandwagon and the player is in danger of becoming overvalued!

When I look for undervalued or bargain players for my fantasy team, I am not looking for some hidden mystery or some impossible to predict breakout.  I look for players who have excelled in part time roles who, through a change in situation are likely to see a big jump in playing time or a more friendly environment for their skillset which will significantly increase their value if they just keep doing what they have been doing.  I've had some success with that approach although it's still a tough business.

2018 fantasy baseball drafts will still see familiar names getting drafted early.  Gary Sanchez, Buster Posey, Wilson Contreras, Yadier Molina and Salvador Perez will still be taken fairly early in snake drafts for for a significant price in auction drafts as they should.  You may be able to get close to equal value at those catching studs if you bide your time and wait until the end of the draft as several catchers who played well in part time roles last year stand to see their playing time increase in 2018.

Chris Iannetta had a near career year in 2017 in a platoon role with the D'Backs:  .254/.354/.511, 17 HR, 316 PA.  Iannetta now moves back to Coors Field which should be just as hitter-friendly or even more and he looks to be the primary catcher there.  The caution wth Iannetta is he has had a very see-saw career and that pattern could continue.

Robinson Chirinos was a backup catcher for the Rangers last year but gradually took playing time away from Jonathan Lucroy until the Rangers traded Lucroy to the Rockies.  Chirinos line was similar to Iannetta's at .255/.360/.506, 17 HR, 309 PA.  Chirinos should be the undisputed starting catcher for the Rangers in 2018 which could bump his PA's above 500.

Wilson Ramos is a guy who just can't seem to stay healthy, but is a terrific hitter when he is.  He missed the first half of the season in 2017 recovering from yet another knee surgery.  He came back in the second half to hit 11 dingers in just 224 PA.  If he can stay healthy, he should be the Rays starting C for 2018.

 I picked up Welington Castillo late last season and he was a plus for my fantasy team down the stretch.  He was a part time catcher for the Orioles but got more PT late due to injuries to the O's other catchers.  His final line was .282/.323/.490, 20 HR, 365 PA.  Castillo just signed a large FA contract with the White Sox who did not give him all that money to be their back up catcher.  The think I love about Castillo is last year was not a breakout for him.  He's averaged 28 HR's/600 PA's over his last 3 seasons.  He probably won't reach 600 PA's in 2018, but has a great chance at 500+.  White Sox crib is a hitter friendly park so he could easily hit 25 HR's with a solid BA.

Beware of players who may lose playing time or find themselves in platoon situations.  Evan Gattis is a guy fantasy managers have loved because he has catcher eligibility but gets a ton of AB's in non-catching roles.  The problem for him is he will likely struggle for playing time with the Astros in 2018 just like he did in 2017.  I'd also stay away from the Dodgers situation as Austin Barnes continues to erode Yasmani Grandal's playing time.  There has been speculation that Grandal could be traded. If so, Barnes would be a nice grab, especially in OBP leagues.