Streaming catchers can be like stubbing your toe on the corner of your bed in the middle of the night. Unless you have one of the top catchers, you are left guessing what to do with the position.
Catchers are similar to kickers in fantasy football – you don’t think about your catcher slot as much as the other high-scoring positions – but if you’re looking for an advantage over your competition it makes sense to monitor what is happening. Why wouldn’t you research every position on your team?
We have all been on the losing end of a matchup when we needed just one more hit or one more steal so that deep-cut catcher you just picked up and who homered on Sunday – that guy could deliver you to victory.
So join me gluttons of fantasy baseball punishment and without further ado – let’s kick off the third week of the season!
Reviewing Last Column’s Picks
Here are the established guidelines from last season for determining whether or not streaming was a “win”, and I’ll leave these up here each week as a reminder.
- When we stream a catcher, we’re not expecting multiple home runs, so a guy hitting .250 is helpful, and I’ll consider that a plus. Anything over .300 is a super plus and a near-automatic win. We must keep in mind the number of plate appearances — under 10 PA diminishes that boost.
- Home runs have a significant impact. If you get two homers from the catcher position, it’s a guaranteed win unless the catcher bats under the Mendoza line. However, if other factors exist, a catcher can still be a streaming win without home runs.
- Counting stats (R+RBI) is the lowest stat consideration because you’re not expecting them from your catcher, and they’re a nice bonus.
I write this column every other week, so these were my streaming picks from the week of April 17:
12-Team Streamer
Díaz has slowed down a bit from a few weeks ago but is still hitting over .300 with a .373 OBP (as of April 29) for the season. During the week of April 17, he was relatively quiet with three RBI and no home runs.
However, he still managed to hit .263 over the week which doesn’t do a lot for your lineup, but at the same time doesn’t hurt your lineup. And it is still better than what you would typically get from a catcher. Díaz is someone to keep an eye on moving forward as he continues to consistently get on base and plays his home games in the friendly confines of Coors Field.
15-Team Streamer
This pick may be tough for me to top as Heim hit a sizzling .375/.524/.813 during the week of April 17.
He finished the week with totals of two home runs and eight RBI, highlighted by back-to-back home run and three RBI games against the Royals and A’s. Heim also tallied four runs, four walks, and only one strikeout in 21 plate appearances during this time.
Heim’s ownership has increased accordingly (72% rostered as of 4/29) and depending on your league format, he is now in the top three-to-five catchers thus far this season from a statistics standpoint.
Heim will continue to start for the Rangers at catcher and see most of the at-bats as Mitch Garver’s recovery from a knee injury has been prolonged. The Rangers recently announced that Garver’s timeframe for return is mid-to-late May.
Nate Kosher’s Streaming Record for 2023 Season: 3-1
Notes & Transactions From Week 4
- A few weeks ago it seemed that Gary Sánchez would be back in the majors with the Giants making him someone to target if you needed a catcher. However, through 13 games with Triple-A Sacramento Sánchez is hitting only .192 with no home runs and 15 strikeouts. The Giants and Sanchez agreed on the deadline of May 1 for a major league promotion so it looks like he will be looking to latch on with a different team.
- After departing from Thursday’s game, Francisco Álvarez was cleared and started on Friday for the Mets. He had been hit with a couple of swings in the head and left Thursday’s game as a precaution.
- The Cubs designated Luis Torrens for assignment upon Cody Bellinger’s return from the paternity list. Torrens had started five games for the Cubs and was hitting .250 on the year.
- Salvador Perez was back in the Royals’ lineup Friday so the team sent backup catcher Freddy Fermin to Triple-A Omaha. He had been called up a week ago and made two starts in Perez’s absence.
Have more questions? “Catch” up with me on Twitter @NathanielKosher!
Week 5 Streamers
Each week, we’ll highlight an option for a 12-team league and a 15-team league. Before we examine the players who might provide added value for the upcoming week, let’s give an update on Logan O’Hoppe. O’Hoppe was one of the top fantasy catchers during the first month of the season with a .283 average, four home runs, and 13 RBI for the Angels before a torn labrum in his left shoulder appeared to shelve him for the rest of the year. O’Hoppe underwent surgery last week and is facing a 4-to-6-month recovery period. However, he stated that he hoped to return this season. For re-draft leagues, you probably want to move on. But if you are in a dynasty league and have an extra IL spot sitting vacant, he’s worth holding to see how the recovery proceeds. Now let’s examine the players who might provide added value for the upcoming week:
12-Team Streamer
Shea Langeliers, Oakland Athletics
The big news this week in Oakland Athletics updates is that the team has signed an agreement for a 49-acre site in Las Vegas with the plan to begin play there in 2027. The A’s have had a lot of great and memorable players over the years (Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rickey Henderson) not to mention four World Series titles so it is a shame for Oakland fans to hear this news.
But in more specific news for this column, Shea Langeliers is the 12-team streamer pick for this week. Langeliers is hitting .222 with six home runs and 13 RBI on the season. However, he’s heating up with three home runs and five RBI over his last five games. He also threw in a triple for good measure.
The A’s face the Mariners for a three-game set at home before traveling to Kansas City to face the Royals. Batters are hitting .269 against the Royals this season (25th in baseball) and KC has the third-worst ERA (5.37) and fifth-worst WHIP (1.43) in baseball. Langeliers has some considerable power (his max exit velocity of 111.6 puts him in the 84th percentile) and he should be able to take advantage of the Royals’ weak pitching.
He also has two starts at DH this season so he has the flexibility to be kept in the fantasy lineup even if he isn’t playing catcher that day.
15-Team Streamer
Yan Gomes, Chicago Cubs
Yan Gomes is currently in a platoon with Tucker Barnhart despite Gomes hitting .302 with five home runs and 12 RBI and Barnhart hitting .214 with zero home runs and two RBI on the season. It seems like an easy equation to solve and that the Cubs should bump Gomes up to number one on the depth chart, but the Cubs continue to start Gomes primarily against left-handers. That should be changing soon with the way Gomes is hitting.
Gomes is hitting .429/.429/.762 over the past week with two home runs and four RBI, including a 4-4 day with three RBI against the Padres on April 25th. He has always hit well for a catcher with a career average of .247 and individual high seasons of .278 and .266. Additionally, whenever he has played more than 100 games in his career, he tends to come close to the 20-home run mark. With five home runs thus far, Gomes could again eclipse the 20-home run mark this year.
The Cubs have a four-game set against the Nationals to start the week and conclude with a three-game series against the Marlins. Both teams feature two lefties in their starting rotation so if the calendar falls right and the weather cooperates, Gomes could be looking at multiple starts in each series.
Catcher List
Added to each week will be a ten-player list of potential streamers by weekly rank. For example, if Christian Vázquez is already rostered in your 12-team league, the next in line should be Gabriel Moreno, and so on down the list. Also, 15-team leagues are much deeper, so attention to roster% is added to the process. If a 12-team player is available, they are considered the player before the 15-team streamer. Lastly, the Roster% is based on Yahoo leagues.