Drake Baldwin greatly rewarded fantasy managers who selected him late in fantasy baseball drafts last season. He had a superb rookie season for the Atlanta Braves. The rookie slashed .274/.341/.469 with 19 home runs, 56 runs, and 80 RBIs, which led to him winning the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
We may not see that type of production from a rookie catcher this season. There aren’t many rookie backstops who look to get the at-bats to post statistics similar to Baldwin’s in 2025. If you are looking for full catcher rankings, visit our Fantrax consensus catcher rankings.
Below are three rookie catchers who, if given opportunities, could reward fantasy managers in the later rounds of fantasy baseball drafts.
Rookie Catchers to Keep an Eye on for 2026 Fantasy Baseball
Samuel Basallo, Baltimore Orioles
Samuel Basallo made his MLB debut last season in the middle of August, but the hype he built up in the minors didn’t translate to his short MLB appearance. At all three minor league levels, he showed great contact ability, posting .363, .324, and .287 BABIPs over his last three seasons. He has also demonstrated power, hitting 19 or more home runs during the same period.
In his MLB debut, his power skills didn’t show, as he hit only four home runs and had 15 RBIs in 118 plate appearances. He also struggled, slashing .165/.229/.330. Basallo will be DHing with Adley Rutschman, a superb defensive catcher who is healthy and behind the plate for the Orioles.
Despite batting in the bottom third of the lineup, the rookie has the skills to bounce back and support managers with his contact and power. Especially in a much-improved Orioles lineup that will be explosive after adding two power bats in Pete Alonso and Taylor Ward.
Basallo even stole 22 bases combined over the 2023 and ’24 seasons in the minors, but don’t expect many in the big leagues. He is the best bet of the rookie catchers on this list to be able to post similar statistics to what Baldwin posted last season.
Carter Jensen, Kansas City Royals
Carter Jensen was a September call-up in 2025, during which he displayed strong plate vision and contact skills. In his 69 MLB plate appearances, the rookie showed his plate discipline with a 13.0 BB% and only struck out 17.4 percent of the time. He also scored 12 runs and knocked in 13 runs. Although the sample size is small, it shows that Jensen can be selective at the plate, boosting his on-base percentage.
Jensen hit 20 home runs last season over 492 minor-league plate appearances, giving fantasy baseball managers production from the rookie in all offensive hitting categories. Like Basallo, managers may even get some stolen bases from Jensen, who stole 27 bases combined over the last two minor-league seasons.
He will likely hit in the six or seven hole but should have ample fantasy production opportunities. He will mainly DH with Salvador Perez behind the plate, though the Royals tend to rotate players in the DH role.
If Jensen can find regular at-bats, further increasing his 2026 potential, the Royals are moving the right-center and left-center fences in 10 feet and lowering the walls from 10 to 8.5 feet. Jensen could easily be a 20 or more home run candidate this season if the plate appearances are given to him.
Moises Ballesteros, Chicago Cubs
Moises Ballesteros made his MLB debut for a few games in May before being sent back to Triple-A. He then was a mid-September call-up. He demonstrated excellent plate vision and contact skills at the big-league level, though with a small sample size. The Cubs rookie had a 13.6 walk percentage, an 18.2 strikeout percentage, and posted a .349 BABIP over his 66 MLB plate appearances.
Ballesteros hasn’t shown the power that Basallo and Jensen have in the minors. However, the left-handed hitter could produce 15-20 home runs this season with regular at-bats. He possesses the contact skills and plate discipline to continue to boost his batting average and on-base percentage.
The Cubs have Carson Kelly behind the plate, which means Ballesteros will DH. He will bat in the bottom third of the lineup; however, the Cubs’ lineup is filled with top-tier talent, allowing ample opportunities for the rookie to be productive for fantasy managers.
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