Fantasy Baseball 2025: Catcher Rankings

The backstop situation in fantasy baseball is healthier than you may think.

After years of fantasy analysts begging for additional depth in such a dry catching landscape, the situation is shifting in an upward manner. Pay attention to age and playing time when it comes to these players, such characteristics could account for affordable discounts. 

And remember no singular person shines in any particular category when it comes to catchers, leaving room for patience.

8. Tyler Stephenson

I’m looking forward to every member of the Cincinnati Reds come 2025. There is no club in baseball who needed a change in energy much more than the Reds. And with Terry Francona, they got their catalyst. We forget how young players are at times and I’d like to remind everyone that Stephenson just finished his age-27 season.

His underlying data is solid and if he got more aggressive with his approach, it wouldn’t surprise me if he produced a 25 homer season with an .850 OPS. And it’s not just Stephenson who will be rejuvenated under a new manager, the entire roster should be, too. With improved lineup support in one of the best home ballparks to hit in, Stephenson could break into “top catcher in fantasy baseball” conversations with the right guidance. 

7. Adley Rutschman

Since 2022, Cal Raleigh hit a combined 91 home runs while Rutschman produced just 52. Raleigh played 417 games in that period, Rutschman 415. Almost 40 less long balls is enough to convince me why the Baltimore young gun is bordering on overrated territory. His 2024 OPS was .709, far too low. And when looking at his profile, I just don’t see a lot that sticks out to me.

He will grow with this young core which Baltimore is growing at the moment, sure. The switch-hitting helps, sure. Yet there’s only so much value to bring to fantasy baseball teams when the ceiling is 20 home runs while hitting .250. Just know that when you select Rutschman, you are receiving mediocrity. 

6. Will Smith

For the number of games Smith plays, his ratios are quite healthy. In fact that’s always been the case with the Dodgers and how they treat Smith. He is a guy who will miss a decent number of games considering he has always required several days off.

Additionally, Shohei Ohtani doesn’t give him the opportunity to slot in at DH like he once did. Even if he remains healthy the entire year, projections show he still misses about a month of the season. I’m not a fan of this which is the main reason he lands outside of the top five. 

5. Shea Langeliers

Who? I’d like to introduce everyone to Mr. Bangeliers, or Langeliers that is. While the Athletics 2024 was much more about emotion rather than actual play on the field, Langeliers is one of the bright spots moving forward. His profile is very similar to Cal Raleigh, who we’ll see shortly, in that he’s got a good amount of power with low batting average. Plus their metrics line up well together, too.

Exit velocity, barrel percentage, hard-hit percentage, and bat speed are all well above league average. And remember, this team will now be playing in a Triple-A park over in Sacramento. The dimensions are lighter and I’m sure Shea is very much looking forward to taking advantage of such factors. 

4. Cal Raleigh

The wisdom with which I’ve gained in my years of playing fantasy baseball have taught me many lessons. One of them is that the home run is the single most important stat to build your team around. The home run is the short cut to success with counting stats. And because Raleigh cranks bombs, he lands at #4 in my rankings.

In the last three seasons, Raleigh sent 27, 30, and 34 balls out of the park. Also, how did he achieve 100 RBI in this pitiful Seattle offense? That blew my mind considering there were literally zero accountable bats amongst Mariner hitters. So Raleigh or Rutschman you ask? Give me Cal all day long. 

3. Salvador Perez

It’s fantastic to see Salvy taking on a leadership role with such a young group in Kansas City. It would also be fantastic to see Salvy give us one more year of solid numbers. For the past decade, Perez has been a savior for the catching spot considering it seems like him and J.T. Realmuto have been the ones anchoring the position.

I say it time and time again, and can especially preach it for this position; the best ability is availability. Perez was able to participate in 158 games, far more than any other top catcher in the game. So I don’t care that Perez will be 35 years old because his versatility in playing first base and designated hitter is more valuable than many other things in my eyes. 

2. Yainer Diaz

I owned Yainer Diaz at the beginning of the season and would be baffled if I saw that he was my #2 catcher heading into 2025. The performance in April and May was … not great. I had enough of him by the time June rolled around and shipped him to another league manager. Funny thing is, I even checked his Statcast metrics right around that time.

They still looked respectable even with how poorly Diaz had played up to that point. I disregarded the figures and moved on. After hitting .200 with a .472 OPS in the month of May, he didn’t hit below .300 in the final four months of the season. I can see Diaz achieving 25 home runs while his batting average will be somewhere around .300 in 2025. One lesson to learn from my experience if you are about to make a trade- trust the analytics, kids. 

1. William Contreras

No other catcher has the solid floor which Contreras possesses. His career averages on a 162 game pace have now reached 25 home runs with a .822 OPS. That would be a great player at any position and such trustworthy production goes a lot farther than you may think.

No matter what else is happening at your other positions, it’s important to treat catcher as a safety net. Remember that no catcher totally distanced himself from the competition in 2024 and I don’t see anyone doing that in 2025, either. At only 27 years of age, Contreras is just now entering his prime, giving me reason to boost him up to primary battery mate.