Navigating the Weak Catcher Market
What are the options for teams that need a new backstop this offseason?
Determining what positions your favorite team needs to target this offseason is the easy part. Navigating who is actually available and the pending CBA changes is the hard part. Especially if your team needs a catcher.
We all know that catchers are graded on somewhat of a different scale. Unlike other positions, a catcher’s responsibilities go beyond fielding their position and hitting at an adequate level at the plate. Managing a pitching staff and calling a game are two skills that often keep weak hitters in the league for a decade. Factor in the ABS system and framing pitches, and you’ll quickly realize a catcher’s value is more complicated than other positions.
But, your team still needs one. Considering that catcher is a position that gets more off days than others, your team might actually need more than one. So fire up your search engine, start typing away “free agent catchers,” click the list, and what do you see? Pretty underwhelming, huh?
Today we will walk through the names on the free agent market, potential trades, and find different avenues for your team to fill the catcher position.
Free Agent Options
I’d argue that the catcher’s importance to the pitching staff leads to more of them never hitting the free agent market. Finding a good catcher is difficult, so when you do, you better hold on to them. This has resulted in fewer quality options looking for work, and the options that are available come with their own set of red flags.
Starters
Ryan Jeffers, Tyler Stephenson, Carson Kelly
I view Jeffers as far and away the best option on the catching market this winter. The 29-year-old righty has a patient approach at the plate with enough power to truly be an offensive weapon from the catcher’s position. Not many other options can say that.
There is a trade-off when it comes to the defense element, which is less than ideal, but passable. With a full season with a full season of health, 20+ home runs should be expected.
A step down from Jeffers, Stephenson and Kelly are two veterans with a lot of experience. Kelly is a better defender, but fewer were better with the ABS system than Stephenson, which I do think carries value. While neither will drastically change the ceiling of your team, both are reasonable starters who offer some offense.
If you’re looking for a truly impactful starting catcher, I think it’s Jeffers or nothing from the free agent market. Even with Jeffers, there are concerns. We aren’t looking at a $20 million AAV for anyone on this list; expectations should match their $10-$15 million price point.
If I were to rank these catchers, I think I would start with Jeffers, followed by Stephenson and Kelly at third by a slim margin.
Backups & Depth
Gary Sánchez, Jake Rogers, Kyle Higashioka, James McCann, Jonah Heim, Austin Hedges, Elias Díaz, others
Your team could join the merry-go-round that has been signing Sánchez and getting excited about a hot stretch each year. Or, you could sign up for one of the several 36-year-olds who are mostly glove-only guys on the last leg of their career. Either way, the options are very slim.
Personally, I would not want any of these names to be the primary backup catcher for my major team. Typically, this level of player will find a backup role on a bottom-feeder or join a team after injuries have occurred. I could be convinced that Sanchez and Rogers deserve a cheap major league deal, but the others are invites to spring training.
Trade Possibilities
With the free agent market lacking starting options and depth, the next best path would be to address a need via trade. Of course, we don’t know exactly who is available, but we could speculate. It feels like every offseason we see an unexpected name or two moved, which could be the case due to the weak catcher’s market this winter.
Starters
Shea Langeliers (ATH), Yainer Diaz (HOU), Sean Murphy (ATL), Hunter Goodman (COL), Keibert Ruiz (WSH)
Let’s go ahead and discuss the two most unlikely trade candidates, Shea Langeliers and Hunter Goodman.
Unlike what you might think, the A’s have not been trading any players with multiple years of control in recent history. Their catching situation outside of Langeliers might be the worst in the league, and moving him would be difficult.
Goodman is one of the better power bats from behind the plate, but with a few years of control, the price will be steep. I think the Rockies should make the move and capitalize on a weak catcher market, but I’ll believe it when I see it.
Murphy is a very good backup and a quality starter. If Atlanta were to move Murphy, they would free up some money, but then be in the market for a backup catcher. Considering the number of injuries he’s dealt with the past several years, I wonder if many teams would be willing to give up what it would take to make them lay down and move off of Murphy.
I do think Diaz is a perfect target for many teams. A good offensive catcher who’s relatively young, comes with a couple of years of control, and can be an answer for more than one season. The Astros need to be in rebuild mode, and I don’t think Diaz should be a priority to keep.
Lastly, you have Ruiz. He comes in at $6.25 million for 2027, 2028, 2029, and 2030. Certainly not difficult money to take, but how much do you really believe in his improvements from 2026? Is a team willing to take on starter/fringe starter money for that many years and roll the dice? I guess we’ll see just how desperate teams get.
A catcher-needy team should look to strike a deal early before options quickly evaporate and the cost gets driven up.
Backups
Drew Romo (CWS), Joey Bart (CWS), Bo Naylor (MIL), Freddy Fermin (SDP), Pedro Pages (STL), others
Trying to determine which backup catchers might be available is trickier. St. Louis could really impact the market by trading one of Pages, DH/quasi-catcher Iván Herrera, Leo Bernal, or Jimmy Crooks.
I view Pages as a perfectly fine backup, but Herrera would be an offensive weapon if a team is willing to not only pay the price to acquire him but stomach his defense. Bernal and Crooks are both young options with upside, so we’ll see if either is moved.
The White Sox brought in Bart last year after injuries took a toll on their depth. In this market, I think Bart would be a reasonable target for a backup role, but the White Sox might prefer to move former Rockies prospect Romo or even Edgar Quero. Kyle Teel is safe as the starter, but the backup role is still a bit of a question.
There are a few wild cards who could be made available once we see the direction each team is taking. If the Rangers decide to retool or rebuild, Danny Jansen becomes an option. I doubt the Brewers would be willing to move William Contreras after picking up his option, but we’ve seen the pitcher shed salary in the past and reload, so it’s not out of the question.
Final Thoughts
After working through this exercise, I think there are three to five starting-level catchers who will be available this winter. There’s a good chance that the Reds try to bring back Stephenson, which would shrink this number even more. So, if you are a team that needs a catcher, you might have to act quickly.
I have a feeling that trades are going to be more prevalent this winter than in years past. Catcher is not the only position that lacks depth on the free agent market, so teams will have to prioritize how they want to use their tradable assets and which positions they value the most.
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