Please, save yourself the trouble and don’t put too much time into your dynasty league catcher.  You’ll definitely fall into one of two groups: the haves, and the have-nots.  If you’re lucky enough to get Brian McCann, Matt Wieters, or Russell Martin, you’re set for the foreseeable future.

If you don’t get one of the big guys, don’t even bother with the catcher position and pick up the highest rated catcher in single-year leagues.  Bengie Molina isn’t a pretty option, but he’ll get the job done. It makes a lot more sense to draft Ramon Hernandez every year, than it does to keep someone like Kurt Suzuki, just in case he breaks out.

Matt Wieters, the number one prospect in baseball, is obviously in the player pool but none of the other young-impact catchers make the list.  There’s no Buster Posey, Carlos Santana, or Jesus Montero.  Your best bet for grabbing a youngin’ probably comes from the catching stable in Texas, both Max Ramirez and Taylor Teagarden are solid prospects.

The first group of catchers are all about 26 years old, excluding Wieters, so you really can’t go wrong.

C- 1B – 2B – SS – 3B – OF - SP – RP

1. Brian McCann – ATL Braves – The only one of the bunch without a noticeable flaw.

2. Joe Mauer – MIN Twins - Flaw: Bad Back

3. Geovany Soto – CHI Cubs - Flaw: Only One Year Under His Belt

4. Russell Martin – LA Dodgers - Flaw: Speed will abandon him

You could make an argument for those 4 going in any order you’d like. I think McCann’s power will persevere unlike Martin’s stolen base numbers.  Joe Mauer at second is risky business considering his back is in awful shape, but while Mauer’s GP won’t be consistent, his batting average should be. Depending on how the young Twins shape up, Mauer should improve with age.

5. Matt Wieters – BAL Orioles - Wieters doesn’t even have a job yet, but when you consider very few catchers will get kept you might as well take a risk.  Weiter is also a great draft + trade candidate, as his value will only go up once he reaches the big leagues.

6. Chris Iannetta – COL Rockies – Finally, a Colorado catcher that can hit. Ianetta’s young enough to improve for the next 3 or 4 years, and maintain steady output into his 30′s.

7. Dioner Navarro – TB Rays – Bit of a risky pick here as Navarro is anything but predictable.  The only thing keeping him ahead of Doumit and Martinez is position eligibility.

8. Victor Martinez – CLE Indians – At some point, he’ll be an everyday first basemen or dh.

9. Ryan Doumit – PIT Pirates - Doumit’s already played his fair share of games in the outfield, and I wouldn’t bank on him having catcher eligibility for more than a couple years.

10. Mike Napoli – LA Angels - Limited at-bats, Lots of power.

11. Jarrod Saltalamacchia – TEX Rangers - Don’t write him off yet.

12. Jeff Clement – SEA Mariners - Ditto.

13. Max Ramirez – TEX Rangers - If you do write off Salty..

14. Taylor Teagarden – TEX Rangers – Minors numbers aren’t as pretty as you’d expect.  Solid defender and he plays in Arlington, though.

15. Kelly Shoppach – CLE Indians – Ditto Napoli.

16. Chris Snyder – ARI Diamondbacks

17. Angel Salome – MIL Brewers

18. Bengie Molina – SF Giants

19. Ramon Hernandez – CIN Reds

20. J.R. Towles – HOU Astros

21. Jesus Flores – WAS Nationals

22. A.J. Pierzynski – CHI White Sox

23. John Baker – FLA Marlins

24. Jorge Posada – NY Yankees

25. Ronny Paulino – FLA Marlins

26. Miguel Olivo – KC Royals

27. Nick Hundley – SD Padres

28. Kurt Suzuki – OAK Athletics

29. Jeff Mathis – LA Angels

30. Miguel Montero – ARI Diamondbacks

While I’ve listed these down to 30, I really don’t see any point in wasting a keeper spot on a mediocre catcher just because he’s under 25.  Obviously, when a Matt Wieters or Buster Posey comes along, you should pounce but the amount of FAIL that keeper-league catchers bring to the table is ungodly.

Furthermore, most of these catchers aren’t going to come into their own until their mid-twenties.

ESPN released their new fantasy baseball rankings for 2009 on Friday, March 13th.  The team at ESPN normally brings solid analysis and a half decent ranking system to the table but they tend to err on the side of caution.

In deep leagues, caution is your friend.  If you screw up in a deepleague, you’re left with Tony Pena Jr. manning a middle infield spot.  In a regular sized league, of up to 16-teams, caution is your enemy.  It makes sense to go out on a limb and grab Aaron Cunningham and hope for the best because if he falters; you can replace him easily enough.

Without further adieu, it’s time to examine their catcher rankings:

POS	OVR	Name	Team	POS	Mixed $	AL/NL $	MOV
1	47	Brian McCann	ATL	C	15	22
McCann sits atop almost all catcher rankings at this point, even though Atlanta seemingly has the worst offense of the bunch.
2	53	Russell Martin	LAD	C	13	21
Martin contributes steals, but at some point they’re going to drastically decline. Value’s still there in a potent LA line-up.
3	69	Geovany Soto	CHC	C	12	21
Soto may be in for a bit of a Sophomore slump. I wouldn’t expect drastic improvement
4	81	Joe Mauer	MIN	C	10	19
Mauer’s my favourite of the bunch, but missing camp will hurt. Drafting Mauer allows you to attain high SB / low AVG guys. You’re really going to have to follow his back pain, because if he starts missing time — he’ll fall below more than just Soto.
5	108	Ryan Doumit	PIT	C	7	17
Doumit has the job, but I doubt he catches all year. If he does catch all year, expect a second half drop-off. The Solid power and average numbers keep him in the top 6.
6	112	Victor Martinez	CLE	C	7	18
Martinez is primed for a bounce-back year as he says he’s healthy. If he’s healthy, he’s got the potential to match McCann category for category. If you can get Martinez between picks 100-110ish you’re golden.
7	131	Mike Napoli	LAA	C	6	16
Napoli appears to be missing a good chunk of spring training, and he may not be ready for the season. Drop him a spot, maybe too. Expect a regression in BA, as well. All the other stats should go up w/ increased playing time
8	150	Chris Iannetta	COL	C	5	14
Iannetta is a beast whose BA may drop him. I like him quite a bit, and expect him to perform in the Ryan Doumit range. Personally, I’d switch him and Napoli up.
9	171	Jorge Posada	NYY	C	3	15
Jorge’s way too high for my liking. He’s injury prone, old, and shouldn’t be getting AB at DH considering the Yankee depth. 120 GP is a stretch. A healthy season in that line-up makes him a top-5 catcher though.  Lots of Risk & Reward here.
10	179	Matt Wieters	BAL	C	2	14
Everything is pointing towards Wieters starting off in the minors, but Zaun can’t hold him off. A mini-slump to start off his Triple-A season wouldn’t surprise me, but he should get the call regardless.
11	184	Bengie Molina	SF	C	2	13
Molina wont repeat his 95 RBI season, and there’s no reason for him to be batting clean-up ever again. 45 Runs and 75 RBIs seem far more likely. He’s still a solid option, as Buster Posey is no threat at this point to his AB. You never know though, especially if Posey keeps smash-killing the ball — just kidding Giants fans, you’re stuck with Molina for another year or two.
12	188	Ramon Hernandez	CIN	C	2	13
Hernandez is the epitome of average, but a switch to the Great American Bandbox may help his numbers. 60 Runs with 75-80RBI is the ceiling, but that .250 AVG is going to hurt.
13	195	Kelly Shoppach	CLE	C	1	13
Shoppach strikes out a lot, but he also punishes the ball. The only question is where’s he going to play. He’ll get his AB when Martinez needs a rest, for sure. But how often will Martinez DH, or play 1B? What you think of Martinez will determine how highly you rank Shoppach. Keep in mind, if Shoppach only gets 350 AB he’s a legit 20HR hitter, and that .250-.260 average doesn’t hurt nearly as much over 350AB.
14	255	Jeff Clement	SEA	C/DH	$-	11
It’s Clements year to shine, but the signing of Griffey Jr. hurt. Clement was penciled in for almost all of the DH at-bats, but now he’ll have to play nice. Clement should still out-perform his value, and at this point it might make sense to take him over Molina, Hernandez AND Shoppach.
15	276	Chris Snyder	ARI	C	$-	9
Snyder’s one of my personal favourites, as his partner in crime: Miguel Montero. How many AB Snyder gets will largely determine his value, but I’d put him somewhere in the 10-12 Dollar range
16	277	A.J. Pierzynski	CHW	C	$-	10
I hate Pierzynski with a passion, but he’s consistent and probably worth more than 10 bucks. Drafting a guy like Pierzynski will allow you to reach on a prospect in the later rounds. 65Runs, 65 RBI and a .275 average make up the sum of this ass-hat’s value.
17	298	John Baker	FLA	C	$-	8
Baker’s moving up everyones list, and I approve. He strikes out a bit too much, but he walks enough to ease my concerns. He certainly won’t duplicate last year’s .375 BABIP, so expect a drop in BA. Closer to .275 than last year’s .299.
18	300	J.R. Towles	HOU	C	$-	8
Everyone’s going to forget about Towles, and while this may be a smidgen high – I like him. Realistically, if you can get Towles around here – you might as well jump. He’s got a bit more upside than a guy like Pierzynski or Snyder, but there’s the potential for another year of suck-age. Grab yourself a back-up plan if you go with Towles. He could easily enter the top-10 catchers by September, though.
19	302	Taylor Teagarden	TEX	C	$-	8
Teagarden vs. Salty…I have Salty higher. Teagarden’s the sexier choice, but I fear that fantasy “experts” are caught in the hype machine. Even if Teagarden wins the job outright, his eye and contact skills still need work.
20	304	Yadier Molina	STL	C	$-	8
Not sure what ESPN was thinking here: .275AVG and 50 of each R and RBI. You can get that elsewhere. Drop him in the rankings.  Nice enough line-up if Schumaker plays 2nd base though. Hrm…
21	342	Dioner Navarro	TAM	C	$-	8
…like right here: Navarro was hit or miss last year, but it’s not ridiculous to expect a .290 AVG, 55 R, 55RBI to go along with at least a few more HR than Molina.
22	343	Kurt Suzuki	OAK	C	$-	8
Suzuki is boring and should be shot. He does however get on base, and should score plenty of Runs for a catcher. He’s fine here-ish. I’m not sure why, but Suzuki is one of the few young guys I see drastically improving upon his skill-set in 2009.
23	349	Jesus Flores	WAS	C	$-	6
Oh Jesus, Flores is solid but I’m not sure what ESPN is drinking at this point. Flores strikes out too much, and has an awful BA. He does however have 15HR pop in his bat. When drafting a guy like Flores as your starter, you best be loading up on the James Loney / Conor Jackson breed of first basemen rather than the Adam LaRoche breed.
24	386	Brandon Inge	DET	C/3B	$-	7
Inge will find a spot to play, but this is too high. Stick Laird here and call it a day.
25	387	Jarrod Saltalamacchia	TEX	C	$-	7
Saltalamacchia really dropped, and I haven’t the slightest clue why. He hasn’t impressed in the Majors but he’s playing arguably the hardest position on the field. I peg break-out year, and Teagarden may steal AB but Salty’s still got top-12 catcher written all over him.
26	388	Miguel Olivo	KC	C/DH	$-	6
Olivo and Buck will be having one of those lovely open competitions. Olivo is solid, and I’d be willing to drop 7 or 8 bucks on him. I think he outproducing guys like Suzuki and Inge, probably Flores too. He has to get the AB though, which shouldn’t be hard considering Buck is one of the few backstops with a worse BA than Olivo.
27	391	Kenji Johjima	SEA	C	$-	6
I see no reason to own Johjima – you’ll have to overpay for his name. ESPN has hit the nail on the head with this one.
28	439	Gerald Laird	DET	C	$-	5
Laird seems to be far too low for my liking. Yes, Detroit will temper his power numbers but he can still rake, and for a 29 year old he still has “upside”. Would you be surprised if Laird hit .275 with 15 Homers? Because I wouldn’t be.
29	440	Rod Barajas	TOR	C	$-	5
We’re onto the guys with starting jobs now… Barajas has power, and Toronto has a half decent line-up when they’re all healthy. The 13-15HR are nice, but the .240 AVG really hurts.
30	442	Jason Varitek	BOS	C	$-	4
…if only leadership were a category in fantasy baseball.
31	444	Josh Bard	BOS	C	$-	4
I’d take Bard over ‘Tek, but neither has value. If your league has 16 teams, and 2 catcher spots there are better options here.
32	476	Nick Hundley	SD	C	$-	2
An option like Nick Hundley, you know he could be a steal and perform at least a 5 dollar value.
33	478	Jason Kendall	MIL	C	$-	2
…yup, he’s worth a buck or two.
34	482	Mike Rivera	MIL	C	$-	2
…uhh, he’s hurt and I’d rather have Salome!
35	484	Chris Coste	PHI	C	$-	2
There’s a log-jam in Philly, and personally I like Paulino the best but Coste may put up the best numbers.  Go with your gut at this point.
36	486	Miguel Montero	ARI	C	$-	1
The difference between Montero and Snyder is marginal in my books. If you think Snyder gets all the AB, these rankings are fine. Personally, I’d move both of these guys closer to the average.
37	487	Ronny Paulino	PHI	C	$-	1
I like his skill-set a lot and would draft him over the previous 4 or 5 guys.
38	489	Carlos Ruiz	PHI	C	$-	1
So many average catchers…Ruiz was getting the AB come play-off time but the other two catchers are both better fantasy catchers.
39	518	Jeff Mathis	LAA	C	$-	2
If Napoli starts the season on the DL, Mathis could be a steal. I’m high on Mathis to begin with, and I expect a very solid year. I expect him to outperform the Miguel Olivo’s of the world.
40	527	Ivan Rodriguez	FA	C	$-	$-
Okay, I understand the point of listing Pudge as the last available catcher but he’ll find a job. Put him somewhere in the mid-to-late teens and call it a day.

Where Have You Gone?

Pablo Sandoval – San Francisco Giants: ESPN left him out due to his lack of playing time at catcher.  Pablo played 11 Games at backstop last year, and he might sneak in a few this year.  Examine your league settings

Humberto Quintero – Houston Astros: If Towles continues to struggle, Quintero should nab the job.  If Quintero nabs the job, expect somewhere between bad and awful.  Jason Castro appears to be the heir apparent, but he’s still at least a year away.

David Ross – Atlanta Braves: He plays behind Brian McCann, but there comes a point where it makes more sense to draft a solid back-up.  I like Ross, and I think he’ll get at least a couple hundred AB this year.

Angel Salome – Milwaukee Brewers: Jason Kendall aint that great, and Salome has shown promise throughout his minor-league career.  It might be asking too much from him to go from Double-A to the show, but after a little seasoning in AAA he might make the mid-season jump.  He’s a talented hitter, and definitely worth a look. His defense is definitely questionable, but if he breaks camp with the team and has catcher eligibility in your league — give ‘er tits.  I’d take a risk on Salome over Kndall, Bard, Varitek — type guys.

Castro & Schnieder – New York Mets: This is a problem, because the Mets have a stellar offense.  I’m not sure where these two fall, but their counting stats should be acceptable assuming one manages to get a 75% share of the AB.

Greg Zaun – Baltimore Orioles: While I’m a firm believer in the “Greg Zaun is the worst human being alive” school of thought, there’s no ignoring Zaun’s talent for sticking around on big league rosters.  Zaun’s managed to have himself a solid spring, and could be a very useful fill in for those waiting on a “catcher of the future”, like Teagarden or Wieters.

Henry Blanco – San Diego Padres: Nick Hundley is having a stellar spring training, but Blanco is still a solid option.  I had the pleasure of watching Blanco, and his overly greased mullet, propel Team Venezeuala past the USA in Round 1 of the World Baseball Classic. San Diego has an awful ballpark for hitters, but Blanco is still a half-decent option in deeper leagues.

The Mess That Is The Twins: Mike Redmond is not the answer, and depending on how long Joe Mauer is expected to be out,  it’s either an open competition or free agent time.  Rodriguez has been playing well in the WBC, but I’m sure he’s out of Minnesota’s price range.  Avoid this mess.

Final Take:

Joe Mauer’s a mess, but his time-table is up in the air.  Either avoid, or follow carefully. Very carefully.

Jeff Mathis could provide early season help.

Teagarden isn’t king yet, don’t sleep on Salty.

J.R. Towles is having major issues AGAIN, in spring training.

Clement should be a steal.

The fall-off from switching leagues should be negated by a friendlier ballpark when dealing with Ramon Hernandez.

Jorge Posada is old, real old — Approach with Caution.  Whoever catches for the Yankees will score a lot of runs, and drive in just as many.  Molina and Cervelli become viable options.

Ryan Doumit can’t catch a whole season, but he shouldn’t have too much trouble getting AB in the outfield.

Joe Mauer’s a stud, and probably the most balanced catcher in the league.  Mauer brings everything you’d want from a catcher to the table, and that’s why he sits squarely in the heart of of the Minnesota Twins batting order.

Joe Mauer - Dan H - Flickr

While Mauer realistically has only 15-17 HR pop in his bat, his batting average and on-base percentage more than make up for it.

Only Brian McCann can rival Mauer for OPS at the catcher position.  Geovany Soto’s ability to post another .500 SLG season is at least somewhat questionable, in my humble opinion.

Mauer had surgery over the off-season, almost 3 full months ago now, to eliminate a kidney obstruction.

Unfortunately, Mauer’s still got a sore back and his status for opening day is in major question. Mauer will be underoing an MR anthrogram in the next couple days, reports MLB.com.

I originally ranked Mauer as the top available catcher, assuming full health.  As the top-tier of catchers is so tightly packed, it’s time for a Mauer Free-Fall.

Brian McCann takes over the number one catcher spot, even if the Braves line-up is a snooze.  Russell Martin maintains solid value despite a projected decline in steals. Having Ramirez entrenched in that Dodgers line-up will help Martin’s counting stats substantially. Soto and Mauer now sit as 3A and 3B on my list.

Mauer’s game relies on his extroidinary hand-eye coordination which leads to an amazing batting average.  Power and speed are relatively easy to turn on, but hitting for average takes time.

A bad back for a catcher is bad news. Whether or not Mauer brings value will depend largely on the knowledge of your league.

One of the preliminary rounds of the World Baseball Classic is coming to the True North, and my place of residence: Toronto Ontario, Canada.

The Group contains the USA, Venezuala, Canada and Italy.

The United States of America: This team doesn’t look like the dream-team so much as it looks like the 2004-Boston Red Sox.  The words chemistry, and unity, and team-work will be used to describe this team, a lot. The USA is an interesting team, that’s filled with the kind of guys you’d want on your baseball team, rather than the guys you’d want on your fantasy team. Full USA Roster Here.

Team Canada: Our starting pitching is down-right awful.  When Rich Harden, Erik Bedard, Ryan Dempster, Shawn Hill and Scott Mathieson play; Canada can compete with anyone in a tournament.  Unfortunately, none of these guys are playing and we can’t absorb these loses like the US can.

1. A Quick Article from the National Post regarding the pitching problem can be found here.
2. Mike Johnson, a 33-year old journeyman may be our starter vs. the USA and JAKE PEAVY.
3. Jeff Blair of the Globe & Mail, Toronto’s Best Sports-Writer, also informs us that Russell Martin may have some foot issues that’ll prohibit him from playing Catcher.
4. BlueBirdBanter gives a nice little recap on the March 3rd Blue Jays / Team Canada game.  Team Canada took it, Thank God.
5. Team Canada has a solid offense, go ahead and check it out: Morneau, Martin, Bay, Votto and Teahan? I didn’t know Teahan was Canadian.  I guess that’s what happens when you go to St. Mary’s University.

Unfortunately for the Royals, Team Canada has been playing our favourite error-proned second baseman in the outfield.  The Mark Teahan Error Watch will be put on hold for the time being.

Team Venezuala: This is a sleeper special as they have all the tools necessary for a run at the title.  Really, all you need is 2 amazing pitchers.  Felix Hernandez and Carlos Zambrano fill these spots. Miguel Cabrera, Bobby Abreu, Carlos Guillen, Magglio Ordonez, K-Rod, and one of my favourite players, Max Ramirez, will definitely put up a fight.  Full Roster Here.

Italia: Italy has more than a couple solid prospects, and they should be at least mildly entertaining.  Super-Util Nick Punto should ball-out.

I’m going to try to get to at least a couple of the games, and snap some pictures.  Canada vs. USA should be a sure thing, with Canada vs. Venezuala, and Venezuala vs. the US next in line.

This’ll be taking up my time, but everyone loves pictures, right?
Ticket Sales are already at 40,000 for the first game or so says the USA TODAY, INTERNETS.

The Catcher position is a mess this year, and you really have to decide what you need from your Catcher this year.  There are more than a couple options there; You can grab 20 Steals, 20 HR, a Great Average, and Solid RBI and Runs, just not in the same player.

I hate ranking catchers, as I generally screw it up — not because I mis-predict their output, I’m just incapable of putting the guy with 70RBI, over the guy with 55 RBI.

Anyways, go ahead and read the write-ups to find out where I stand.

1. Joe Mauer

Joe Mauer or Russell Martin, the choice is yours.  Mauer comes with about the risk you’d expect from a starting catcher, with regards to injury. Martin probably has a slightly better than average chance of staying healthy.

Mauer’s probably going to give you what you expect, and it’s best to start with his batting average.  A lot of the time, if you draft a bad starting catcher it’s actually more harmful to your roster than helpful. While they’ll pile up 40 or 50 RBI and R, they’ll kill your average in the process.

With Mauer healthy, you can at least guarantee a .300+ average and high-eighties Runs and RBI.  Homers, as always, will be around 10.  Personally, I think this is a bit more valuable than Martin’s SB.

2. Russell Martin

Martin is clearly 1b than 2.  The only thing that separates Martin from Mauer is about 40 pts batting average, and his position in the line-up.

Martin could easily put up as many R and RBI this year, as Mauer did last.  If he does so, he leap frogs Mauer with ease.  Even if Martin can get to 90R and 80RBI, his 5 more HR and 15 more SB, is more than worth the decrease in BA. Just a couple years ago, Martin put up 87 of each Runs and RBI — so its definitely possible in that Dodgers offense.

I dont think you can count on the SB, however. Twenty or so seems likely a reachable number, but all it takes is a minor injury for Martin to stop running.

3. Brian McCann

McCann is solid across the board. It wouldn’t be surprising to see McCann put 100RBI this year, to go with 70 R, 20 HR, and a .300 average.

McCann may slip below Soto due to the ROY-hype, but McCann has a very solid claim for the  number 1 spot.

McCann will probably bring the best value out of the top 4 or 5 catchers, draft him.

4. Geovany Soto

Soto was on everyone’s sleeper lists last year, and even on the cover of the Bill James Handbook, or Baseball Prospectus, or one of those diddies.

He clearly didn’t disappoint, and he should continue to mature and put up solid numbers.  I’d imagine a slight increase across the board, as expected with an increase in AB.

24 Homers, 70 R, 85 RBI, .280 Average, and a steal — yes, after years of never putting up a steal in the Minors, I’m figuring Soto is going to steal second base, sometime in mid-june.

5. Ryan Doumit

Nice Power, and now a full-time gig. He’s just gotta stay healthy. Doumit used to be one of the guys that split AB, but was still more useful than most of the catchers because he carried a nice BA.

This year, he’ll continue his tear and possibly jump a spot or two in these rankings — he’s that good.  Doumit will eventually move out of the Catcher position, but as long as he has eligibility, he’s a great pick.

6. Chris Iannetta

Why not? Iannetta has been a solid prospect for  some time now, and it’s about bloody time he steps up to the plate.  Last year’s numbers were pretty nice, and rosterable — but he was splitting AB with Yorvit Torrealba.

This year, I’d imagine he’d get to at least 450 AB, which should bring with it some solid numbers.  The OPS of .895 shows a lot of ‘dat ‘dere potential.

22 HR, 75R, 75RBI, .260AVG, and maybe a stolen base or two.

7. Mike Napoli

Did Napoli really hit 20 HR in 227 AB? Any Catcher that has a .960 OPS is a damn good bet for a break-out season.

Jeff Mathis was supposed to be super-prospect, and then the powder keg that is Mike Napoli just started tearing stuff up.

Napoli will continue to split time with Mathis, I’d imagine. But he should have at least 350AB this year, or possibly more.  Adjust accordingly.

8. Victor Martinez

Holy Crap, I bet Martinez owners are cheesed at him.  I guess we can chalk last year up to Injuries, as great hitters don’t become awful hitters, overnight.

There are reasons why people use 3-year averages to determine a players value, good reasons.

Even if Martinez goes out and puts up 20 HR, 80 RBI, 70 R, and hits .280 — He’s going to be incredibly useful.  There is a hell of a lot of potential for another 30HR, 100RBI season though.

It just comes down to injuries, not just his but, the other Indians as well.  Shoppach is going to get AB, at which point Martinez is going to be moved to first or DH, which are currently occupied by Garko and Hafner, respectively.

9. Bengie Molina

Quantity over Quality.

I dislike Molina quite a bit, and he wont come close to 95RBI again.  Well, I guess he could if he continues to bat clean-up.

Ugh, stupid Molinas. Yes, he’ll perform. To what extend, depends on where he ends up batting.

10. Kelly Shoppach

Shoppach filled in amazingly for an injured Victor Martinez last year.  The Cleveland Indians really need to find at-bats for Shoppach this coming year.

Shoppach will hit home runs, but he’ll also strike-out a whole hell of a lot.

Go ahead and move Shoppach down if you look at the Indians depth chart and can’t find At-Bats for him.

11. Chris Synder

I like Snyder, he’s a solid player.  If he gets 450-500 AB, he’ll produce like a top 10 Catcher. However, Miguel Montero is also a great young catching prospect who’ll end up stealing at-bats from Snyder.

Even at 450 AB, Snyder should be able to get to around 20HR, and 60 R, with 70 RBI and a .250+ average

12. Pablo Sandoval

Everyone’s favorite sleeper, Pablo Sandoval.  He’d be a bit higher, if he’d played more than 11 Games.

Make sure to check your league settings for position eligibility, as 11 games oftentimes just wont get it done.  With Sandoval pretty much entrenched at third, it’ll take a while for him to regain catcher eligibility — if he regains it at all.

13. Dioner Navarro

Navarro is solid, and still has some growing to do.  I choose life: 60 RBI, 60 R, 13HR, and a 300 average.

14. Matt Wieters

Stupid Greg Zaun, like seriously. I hated Greg Zaun in Toronto, and if he starts stealing Wieters’ AB in Baltimore, the fantasy community will lynch him

Draft Wieters and everyone will think you’re smart.  Draft Wieters without a back-up plan, and you’ll regret it.

With that said, Wieters is about as Major League ready as you can get.

15. Jeff Clement

Clement proved all he had to prove in the Minors, and the only thing holding him back was ownerships love of AZNs.

Who’s ownership you ask? Well, it’s Nintendo.  Maybe that’s why Johjima is starting all the time, and cashing that 7 million dollar per year contract.

Clement should do well this year, assuming he  gets starter AB. Lets just hope that Clement can get himself at least 400AB this year, and if he does — he’ll produce.

16. Ramon Hernandez

Everyone’s favorite Latin Lover. I’m not sure how the Reds are going to play out in 2009, but Hernandez is pretty much set as the Reds’ starting catcher.

Hernandez might be a great pick-up a few months into the season or a late round pick, that you can take the wait-and-see approach.

18 Homers, is a solid, realistic expectation, which is nice.

17. A.J. Pierzynski

Noted Douche-Bag, A.J. Pierzynski.  He’ll produce, but there’s absolutely nothing sexy about it.  Expect quite possibly the exact same numbers, right down to at-bats and plate-appearances.

18. Jarrod Saltalamacchia

Texas has a herd of quality young catching prospects, and it looks like Saltalamacchia has a head-start on the starting gig.

Taylor Teagarden looks like he’ll be the number two, and he has all the talent to leap-frog Salty, if given a shot. I’m very interesteted to watch how this plays out, as Salty is getting down to his last shot before he loses his “sure-fire” prospect label.

Some experts have already tossed him onto the scrap heap, but I still tend to think he’s going to be an above average Major League catcher.

Max Ramirez, the third in Texas’ list of  “cant-miss” catching prospects will more than likely end up playing the majority of the year in the Minors, but he’s worth a massive, major, maximum look in Keeper Leagues.

19. Someone’s going to get moved here, just not sure who.

20. Jorge Posada

I refer to both Posada and Cantu, as George.  It’s funnier that way, eventhough saying Whore-Hey is great.

IR-regardless, If Posada plays he’ll put up solid R and RBI numbers with a 270 average.  All the good stuff is gone, but playing in that Yankees line-up makes everyone relevant.

Even Jose Molina, maybe.

21. Miguel Olivo

Olivo is solid, and if he can put up 15 HR with 10 SB he’ll be relevant in the fantasy community. I really like the looks of this super-young Royals team, and they’ll go on some runs where they beat the big boys.

Of course, playing in the Central they’re going to get smashed on most days, but so-it-goes.

John Buck was just resigned, so Olivo wont get full-time at-bats but he’ll definitely up it from the 306 of last year.

22. J.R Towles

Post-Hype Sleeper. Towles was bad, really bad, last year. However, you don’t hit .300 at every minor league level, only to become a .140 hitter in the big leagues.

Towles will get better, much better.  12-15 Homers will go with a starting gig, and the kid can steal more than a couple bases.  While 10 SB may be out of reach, he’ll definitely add a hand full.

Even at an atrocious LD% of 11, his BABIP of .157 just screams bad luck.  If you decide to wait on a catcher, Towles might be a beautiful sleeper.

23. John Baker

John Baker, my favourite catcher, in 2009. Generally when you float around in triple-a for three years, you’re not going to have a bust-out year.

Anyways, his OPS of .840 may only be in 200 AB, but he should produce. Whenever you see an average of .299 that gets bumped up 100 points when you calculate OBP, you’re onto something.

Sleeper? Yes, Please.  He’s got the gig in Florida.

24. Brandon Inge

Looks like he’ll be playing every day at third base, while Carlos Guillen moves to left field.  I’m not sure why it’s not the other way, but Inge played 60 Games at Catcher last year and might be someone to keep an eye on.

25. Jesus Flores

Proved to be useful for at least a few stints last year.  He’s got the Gig, and his BA wont kill you dead.  He’s still young enough to improve (24), so definitely keep an eye out.

26. Kurt Suzuki

Lots of AB, not much production.  Decent enough average to keep your catcher position from killing you.  There are a lot of boom/bust type guys that i’d choose over Suzuki.

If you want someone consistant, just go ahead and slot Suzuki at about 15th overall.

The Best of The Rest

27. Gerald Laird – I’m moving him up once spring training rolls around. He has the power to knock out 15-20, it just depends on playing time — which it looks like he has as of January, 2009.

28. Jason Varitek – The Captain.

29. Jason Kendall – Really, not all that useful. At all.

30. Rod Barajas – End with a Blue Jay.

[ Mauer Photo by keith allison / flickr ]