2023 NL East Position Rankings: Catchers Edition

With pitchers and catchers set to report in just over two weeks, we’re continuing our rankings of each position within the NL East. With catchers, you rarely have just one player get regular playing time, especially with the universal designated hitter option. For that reason, we will be ranking each team by their tandem of catchers heading into the 2023 season.

5. Keibert Ruiz and Riley Adams, WAS

Keibert Ruiz was the centerpiece of the return Washington got when they sent Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to the Dodgers in 2021. Ruiz assumed the starting catcher role full-time in 2022 and showed some signs of greatness. While his .251/.313/.360 (90 wRC+) batting line doesn’t jump off the page, Ruiz struck out in just 11.5% of his at-bats. In addition, Ruiz’s .277 xBA ranked in the 91st percentile on Statcast and suggests that he could improve this season. A switch-hitter, Ruiz had some alarming splits, as he had just a .584 OPS with no homers batting right-handed, compared to a .700 OPS as a lefty. Defensively, Ruiz registered a below-average pitch framer and he threw out a solid 28% of attempted base stealers.

Backing up Ruiz is 26-year-old Riley Adams, who wasn’t much of a factor on either side of the ball in 2022. In 48 games, Adams chipped in negative-1.2 fWAR, almost outweighing Ruiz’s 1.7 mark. Adams hit just .176/.245/.310 while striking out 29.7% percent of his at-bats. The one positive Adams has from 2022 is that he went 4-for-12 with two homers against the Mets.

4. Jacob Stallings and Nick Fortes, MIA

After being one of the more productive catchers in 2021, Jacob Stallings took a major step back in 2022. His OPS dropped from .704 to .584, his wRC+ fell from 94 to 71, and he tallied just four homers and 12 doubles in 384 plate appearances. Stallings regressed significantly on defense as well, registering negative-4.3 framing runs in 2022 after recording 8.8 in 2021. His arm took a step back too, as he threw out just 19% of attempted base stealers. All told, Stallings’ fWAR fell from 2.5 to negative-0.6 in 2022.

Nick Fortes, however, emerged as a solid backup option for the veteran Stallings. In 240 plate appearances, Fortes hit a respectable .230/.304/.392 (100 wRC+) with nine homers and struck out in just 18.8% of his at-bats. Defensively, Fortes was an above-average framer with 1.8 framing runs and he threw out 29% of attempted base stealers. In just 72 games, Fortes was able to put up 1.4 fWAR. There’s a strong chance that he will assume the starting catcher role at some point this season.

3. Omar Narváez and Tomás Nido, NYM

At some point this season, Francisco Álvarez is expected to take over as the Mets’ starting catcher. For now, though, Omar Nárvaez and Tomas Nido are slated to share most of the catching duties.

Neither Nárvaez nor Nido provided much value offensively in 2022. A year after making his first All-Star Game, Nárvaez hit just .206/.292/.307 (71 wRC+) with four homers in 296 plate appearances for the Brewers. His walk rate remained around 10% though and he struck out in under 20% of his at-bats. Nido meanwhile hit a slightly better .239/.276/.324 (74 wRC+) in 313 plate appearances with three homers, all of which came in September. Nido did show some promise though with an .854 OPS over the final month of the regular season and he hit .333/.395/.410 with two outs and runners in scoring position. He also led MLB with 12 sacrifice bunts.

Both players, however, were fantastic behind the plate. Once considered one of the worst framers in baseball, Nárvaez posted his third straight above-average season of framing, recording 7.5 framing runs. Statcast ranks him in the 89th percentile of pitch framing. Nido was a Gold Glove finalist, racking up 7.2 framing runs and ranking in the 93rd percentile for pitch framing. Thanks to their defense, Nárvaez and Nido combined for 2.0 fWAR in 2022, which is greater than both the Washington and Miami tandems.

2. J.T. Realmuto and Garrett Stubbs, PHI

There is a gargantuan gap between the second and third spots on this list, as the Phillies have one of the best catching duos in MLB.

Through the end of June, J.T. Realmuto had just a .677 OPS and just five homers. However, from July 1 on, Realmuto was one of the best hitters in baseball. He hit .311/.366/.591 with 17 homers, 15 doubles, and 55 RBIs in 284 plate appearances. Realmuto’s 163 wRC+ during that stretch ranked eighth among hitters with at least 160 plate appearances and his OPS ranked fifth. Overall for the season, Realmuto hit .276/.342/.478 (128 wRC+) with 22 homers, 21 steals, and 84 RBIs. Defensively, Realmuto recorded 1.1 framing runs and threw out an MLB-best 44% of attempted base stealers. Realmuto’s 6.5 fWAR led all catchers, and he won his second Gold Glove and third Silver Slugger while finishing seventh in MVP voting.

Backing up Realmuto is Garrett Stubbs, who also had a strong offensive season, albeit in a small sample size. In 121 plate appearances, Stubbs hit .264/.350/.462 (128 wRC+) with five homers, four doubles, and 16 RBIs. However, he grades as a below-average framer, and as a result, he only racked up 0.6 fWAR. Still, having two catchers who can put up a 128 wRC+ is quite the luxury.

1. Sean Murphy and Travis d’Arnaud, ATL

What’s better than having one top-10 catcher on your roster? Having two of them. While they dealt away William Contreras, the Braves brought in Sean Murphy, who’s coming off the best season of his career. In 612 plate appearances for the A’s, Murphy hit .250/.332/.426 (122 wRC+) with 18 homers, 37 doubles, and 66 RBIs. Murphy also struck out in a career-low 20.3% of his at-bats and walked in 9.2% of his plate appearances, which is the highest he’s recorded over a full season. Defensively, Murphy put forth another fantastic season of framing, recording 8.7 framing runs, and he threw out 31% of attempted base stealers. Overall, Murphy racked up 5.1 fWAR and received an MVP vote.

Travis d’Arnaud is expected to back up Murphy and serve as the team’s starting DH. In 426 plate appearances, d’Arnaud hit .268/.319/.472 (120 wRC+) with a career-high 18 homers, 25 doubles, and 60 RBIs. While he walked in just 4.5% percent of his plate appearances, he cut his strikeout rate down to 21.1%, which is the lowest it’s been since 2017. Defensively, d’Arnaud had arguably the best season of his career, recording 8.9 framing runs and throwing out 25% of attempted base stealers, which is a huge increase from the 16% he recorded in 2021. All told, the former Met put up a career-high 3.9 fWAR, was a finalist for a Gold Glove, and made his first career All-Star Game. Regardless of who the Braves put behind the plate on a given day, they will always have a strong bat and a great defensive catcher in the lineup.