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2016 AL East Rankings by Position: Catcher

By Nate Wardle

Jun 20, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (55) is unable to tag out Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13 ) during the sixth inning in a game at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 20, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (55) is unable to tag out Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13 ) during the sixth inning in a game at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 20, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (55) is unable to tag out Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13 ) during the sixth inning in a game at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 20, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (55) is unable to tag out Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13 ) during the sixth inning in a game at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports /

Our annual series on AL East Rankings by position begins today with looking at the catchers on the five teams in the division.

As I mentioned recently, I am ready for some baseball. And with that, here are a few thing to remember about these AL East rankings by position:

  • I love being able to discuss these rankings. I don’t claim to know everything about the AL East, but I tried to be as impartial as possible. If you disagree, let me have it!
  • We are primarily focusing on the player projected to start at the position, but if it is close, the backup will be looked at. At the catcher position, this favors the Baltimore Orioles.

Last year, I projected a ranking of 1 – Baltimore, 2 – New York, 3 – Toronto, 4 – Boston, and 5 – Tampa Bay.

In reality, my review listed it as 1 – Toronto, 2 – New York, 3 – Baltimore, 4 – Boston, and 5 – Tampa Bay

So, I didn’t fare too bad, just needed to flip the Orioles and the Jays. In hindsight, I figured Matt Wieters would play more and be healthier, which was not the case.

For 2016, every team returns their starting catcher from the previous year; and only the Orioles project to have their starting catcher be different from the person who caught the most time in 2015, as Matt Wieters should be healthy enough to catch most of the games, allowing Caleb Joseph to back him up quite capably.

2016 RANKINGS

  1. Toronto Blue Jays – Russell Martin, Josh Thole, A.J. Jimenez, Humberto Quintero

Whatever team Martin is on, they usually win. The 32-year-old was an All-Star in 2015 for the first time in four years. The veteran started 113 games at catcher and finished the year with a .240/.329/.458 slash line, with 23 HRs and 23 2Bs. The numbers aren’t always flashy, but by the end of the year Martin is usually a guy with 20 HRs and 20 2Bs, as he has proven throughout his career.

He also is one of the best defensive catchers in the game. Martin threw out 44 percent of base runners last season, a major league high. He also caught 32 runners trying to steal, an astounding number.

Thole is the personal catcher for R.A. Dickey and also sees some other work as a reserve for the Jays in typical situations where catchers get days off. Jimenez is still trying to prove he is capable of being a big league player, as he struggled mightily in only 28 games between AA and AAA in 2015, while Quintero was not in the majors in 2015 either. I fully anticipate only Martin and Thole being on the 25-man roster on Opening Day.

Next: The good guys rank second...

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