Fantasy Baseball Review: Top 50 EOY Catcher Rankings for 2023

This little fantasy baseball review is something I do after every MLB season and I figured I might as well share it with you. I think it can help just about everyone who plays fantasy baseball. In our first look at the year that was, we’ll examine the end-of-year catcher rankings for 2023 fantasy baseball.

Basically, this quick look allows me to take stock of the season just past and reshape my view on the player pool for the coming season. Maybe you also play fantasy football and missed some things that happened in the final month of the season. Or maybe like me you were buried in planning and edits for draft kits in football, basketball, and hockey, all at the same time.

You’d think that getting to edit all of the fine writers here at FantraxHQ would make me a better fantasy baseball manager. Sadly that’s not so. I’ve got articles coming at me from all directions and baseball inevitably takes a back seat late in the season. I HATE that. I am a baseball guy!

So with the other sports now cruising along in regular season mode, I can play some catch-up on the fantasy baseball front. Feel free to tag along as I take a fresh look at the 2023 baseball season. Today, I’m going to examine the catcher position and see where we stand as we prepare for the 2023 season.

2023 Catcher Review

We aren’t exactly in the era of Pudge and Piazza but we are seeing a bit of a resurgence at the catcher position. The top catchers aren’t putting up elite numbers by any means but the depth at the position is thickening up quite a bit. Managers who waited until late to fill the position were most likely able to find some form of production and didn’t take too much of a hit from those who jumped early.

While there was little speed to be had at the position, there were a whopping 20 catchers who hit 15 or more homers. and 16 who topped 60 RBIs. Some of that power came with low batting averages but that’s happening at every other position as well.

What does this mean for 2024 fantasy baseball?

The lack of elite offensive numbers paired with a fair amount of depth tells me there’s no reason to jump early at the catcher position in 2024 drafts. Sure those top four or five catchers will definitely help but the advantage over your competition is unlikely to be worth the hit you’ll take at other positions. I’ve always tended to wait at the position and in 2024 I’ll feel even better about it.

Top 50 Catcher Rankings for 2023

The dollar values below are based on a 15-team mixed league with traditional 5 X 5 scoring and borrowed from the Fangraphs Auction Calculator.