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buster olney
multiple authors
Spring training camps are underway, which means it’s time to look at the state of baseball. As part of our 2026 MLB season preview, ESPN’s Buster Olney surveyed people from across the industry to help rank the top 10 players at every position as part of his annual positional rankings series.
Today, we rank the best of the best at catchers.
The aim of this exercise is to identify the best players for the 2026 season and not who can be the best in five years or in their careers. We will be releasing one post per day over the next two weeks. Here is the program: starting pitcher (monday), relief pitcher (Tuesday), first baseman (Thursday), second baseman (Friday), third baseman (February 23), shortstop (February 24), corner outfielder (February 25), center fielder (February 26) and designated hitter (February 27).
cal raleigh He played 159 games last season, when he arguably generated Best performance by a catcherwith 60 homer110 runs and a league-high 125 RBI. This winter, the Seattle front office discussed Raley’s workload, aiming for the best possible combination of play behind the plate and at designated hitter.
He appeared in 121 games at catcher last season, and played 38 more at DH, and the Mariners expect him to catch in that same range again. “I think it’s possible for Cal to use last year as a marker for games caught,” said Jerry Dipoto, who runs Mariners baseball operations. “Cal isn’t interested in relaxing. He loves playing.”
But it’s not something they’ll just direct to Raleigh. They have learned to trust his feedback and self-assessment, as he has a habit of organizing his work days precisely. Mariners staff say there is nothing chaotic about the way he goes about his days.
A switch-hitter, Raley knows how much time he needs to devote to his left-handed and right-handed swing when he begins his catching preparation for that day’s game, or, if he is going to be the designated hitter, what time he will need to assist that day’s catcher in going over scouting reports. He will allocate time for media obligations or meetings with the organization. Every day during the offseason, he would be at T-Mobile Park at 8 a.m. doing his workouts.
A member of the team’s front office said, “He has a unique ability to filter what matters.”
Late last season, when Raleigh was in the midst of a rare offensive lull in late August, the staff asked him if he had time for a video call with a group of Seattle minor leaguers who had been invited to the club’s high-performance camp, which asks about 40 players to volunteer. Some star players from other teams made it clear that they had no interest in this kind of thing, but Raleigh agreed.
As the call began, Mariners general manager Justin Hollander introduced the catcher to the group and Raley, the son of a college coach, talked about how just being average doesn’t cut it. The Mariners are a really good team and headed for greatness, Raleigh clearly told the group — he’s typically underestimated and not hectored — and doing things like a high-performance camp is the first step as players set expectations for themselves.
Raleigh finished and turned the conversation back to Hollander, who was watching the players absorb the All-Star’s words. “I didn’t find anything,” Hollander said.
What can he possibly do to top the words of the best catcher in the game?
top 10 catchers
1. cal raleigh, seattle mariners
Raleigh was a Platinum Glove winner for his defense in 2024, but his framing numbers declined last season and he was not named a Gold Glove finalist. When Raley was asked about this, he said he would take a look at the numbers and figure out why the analysis indicated his defense regressed in ’25. One opponent evaluator noted that his glove position at the time the ball is thrown was generally higher than some of his teammates, and that he was in a better position to catch pitches at the top of the strike zone – but he was not throwing as many strikes on breaking balls as some other catchers. Raleigh gave a plus-5 rating to pitches at the top of the zone, but a minus-4 in the bottom. But considering his offense, Raleigh’s superiority at this position is clear. Last year, he dominated catchers in fWAR:
Raleigh: 8.6
alejandro kirk:4.7
dylan dingler: 4.1
2. Alejandro Kirk, toronto blue jays
Kirk’s strikeout rate of 10.6% was easily the best among catchers, and during the postseason, he presented a difficult matchup for opposing pitchers working around. Vladimir Guerrero Jr.. Former catcher David Ross said, “I just love his bat-to-ball skills – you love hitting him behind Vladdy because if he works around him the opposing team is going to have to pay.” “You can tell he’s a leader behind the plate. He’s just at ease, like sitting in a rocking chair behind the plate.” Baseball Savant’s framing statistics rank Kirk second among all catchers.
3. Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers
Like Carlton Fisk, Smith’s place in history was cemented by a postseason home run: his shot in the 11th inning against Toronto shane bieber Arguably the best decision taken game 7 In the greatest World Series we have ever seen. Rival evaluators generally agree that Smith’s defense has improved over the course of his career, but he is viewed primarily as a catcher on offense – and at this, he continues to excel. His OPS+ of 152 last season was the best of his career over an entire season, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts talks about how important Smith’s presence as a right-handed power hitter is in getting left-handed hitters to follow – shohei ohtani, freddy freemanand now kyle tucker – Top of LA’s lineup. David Ross called Smith The General. “I like his presence, the fact that he won’t be intimidated,” Ross said. “He’s willing to fight for his group and his pitchers.”
4. patrick bailey, san francisco giants
Nearly a half-dozen evaluators provided their top 10s at this position, and the fact that almost all of them included Bailey this high despite his offensive struggles shows how impressive they believe his defense is. He has won back-to-back Gold Gloves, but that doesn’t explain his excellence behind the plate. He finished first at 25th in Baseball Savant’s catcher framing metric – well ahead of second-place Kirk (17) and third-place Kirk (17). Austin Wells (12). Bailey was in the top three in framing in each of the four quadrants of the strike zone – down, up, and left and right – which is absurd, like a hitter covering every part of the plate.
5. William Contreras, milwaukee brewers
He did not show as much power as before, his slugging percentage dropped below .400, but Contreras was a vital part of the Milwaukee lineup that drove in runs and won. He had 147 hits and drew 84 walks for a .355 on-base percentage.
6. Dillon Dingler, detroit tigers
After his first season in the big leagues, Dingler may be the most underrated player in this group. jake rogers caught every pitch of tariq skubalThe 2024 Cy Young season, but when Rodgers lost his job to Dingler at the start of the 2025 season, he was vocal in his support of Dingler. “He’s earned every bit of it,” Rogers said. Dingler may have the best throwing arm in the majors. “That kid has tube,” said one evaluator. ”He’s got a great arm, but when you combine that with his quickness with his feet, he reminds me of Pudge Rodriguez. He is a big pooch. “I just love looking at him.”
7. Langeliers clubbed 31 homers last season and had an OPS+ of 134, and while the A’s home park in Sacramento was viewed as a bandbox, 19 of his homers were hit on the road, where he posted a .580 slugging percentage. Langeliers is ranked 44th overall in Baseball Savant’s Catcher Framing Stat.
8. Austin Wells, New York Yankees
There were times during last season when Wells performed offensively and he finished the year with a .275 on-base percentage. But he hit 21 homers and remained at the top of the leaderboard in pitch-framing data. The season they worked together max friedHe was the first among all catchers to hit pitches in the lower part of the strike zone, where Fried likes to work. The Yankees say they feel Wells was bad offensively last year and will bounce back this season.
9. drake baldwin, atlanta braves
of the National League rookie of the yearBaldwin hit so well that the Braves used him at designated hitter at times when he was not catching. He hit with power (19 homers), made consistent contact and performed surprisingly well in his platoon splits, with an .818 OPS vs. lefties and an .808 mark vs. right-handers.
10. gabriel moreno, Arizona Diamondbacks
Moreno had 4.3 WAR in 2023, the year Arizona reached the World Series, but injuries have limited his playing time and production the past two seasons — he played 97 games in 2024 and 83 games in ’25. But he is considered an excellent all-around catcher.
honorable mentions
hunter goodman, colorado rockies: : Goodman blasted 31 homers while hitting .278 last year, and posted an .803 OPS on the road.
carlos narvaez, boston red sox: : Boston’s pitching staff praised his work behind the plate last year, when he played most of the season injured.
JT Realmuto, philadelphia phillies: : Throughout the winter, it seemed inevitable that the Phillies and Realmuto would work out a contract extension (what they did last month) because of his relationship with the pitching staff. But evaluators say his ability to frame pitches in the bottom of the field has diminished.
Adley Ratshman, baltimore orioles: : It’s a big year for Rutschman, and an important season for the Orioles. He has four years of service time left and will be eligible for free agency after 2027, but his production has been steadily declining, with his OPS+ falling to 105 in ’24 and 90 in ’25.
francisco alvarez, New York Mets: : Like Rutschman, Alvarez is looking to have an even better year. He told reporters on the first day of the camp that he had lost weight.
Austin Hedges, cleveland patron: : Like Bailey, Hedges doesn’t offer much offense, but he is excellent in his defense.
yenner diaz, Houston Astros: : He’s a hit-first catcher, but last year, his OPS+ dropped below league-average to 92.
salvador perez, kansas city royals: : The future Hall of Famer crushed 30 homers last year, bringing his career total to 303. He will turn 36 in May and while he caught 115 games in 2025, the Royals intend to deploy the top prospect carter jensen There’s a lot more behind the plate this year. Pérez will be listed among the DHs on these top-10 lists.
