The 2023 fantasy baseball draft season is upon us, and with its arrival comes a variety of strategies to test out and employ.
Drafting with position scarcity in mind is something we see every year, and though the catcher position is routinely linked to the strategy, the belief that you need to draft one of the top backstops early is a mistake. If you have been leaning in that direction, it’s time to change gears before you fall over.
In fantasy football, position scarcity has people drafting top-ranked tight end Travis Kelce early because, in securing him, you are obtaining a significant advantage over your opposition. His production dwarfs that of anyone else at his position, and the impact is huge. The same cannot be said regarding the No. 1 catcher, J.T. Realmuto.
There is plenty to love about Realmuto from a fantasy perspective. His three-year average has him as a .268 hitter with 22 home runs, 84 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. The numbers are strong, especially the steals, but does drafting him in the second or third round over a 35-homer Matt Olson or a 200-strikeout Sandy Alcantara give you an advantage? Not when it’s just one-fourteenth of your overall team’s production or when you see what you can get at the position several rounds later.
Though you might struggle to find a backstop who does it all like Realmuto, the numbers themselves are not irreplaceable. Last season, there were eight other catchers who hit at least 18 home runs with the potential to improve, and that doesn’t even include developing hitters, such as Adley Rutschman and Alejandro Kirk.
If you’re looking for batting average, then Christian Vazquez, William Contreras and Travis d’Arnaud will suffice. They too can hit for power, and though their RBI totals might not be glamorous, it works well when you’re taking them in the 12th round.
Yes, the stolen bases are nice, but with the new rules of MLB, we expect the category to be much richer with options than overdrafting a catcher to grab a few more steals.
If Realmuto were a .300-30-100 player, the conversation would certainly be different. He’s a great player, but he isn’t performing at a level that leaves your opposition in the dust. If his production can be matched 10 rounds later, you’re better off using that early pick on an elite arm or a bigger bat at another position. Leave your catchers for later.
Howard Bender is the head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award-winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 6-8 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy baseball advice.
