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2022 Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Catchers

The fantasy baseball catcher position is very much like the tight end position in fantasy football.

They're similar in that things could get frustrating very quickly. It seems like, year in and year out, the catcher ends up being top-heavy (like the tight ends) with three or four secure, trustworthy fantasy options.

Then, things fall off a cliff. You either have to hope you draft a breakout or you throw caution to the wind and draft a placeholder with the plan to ultimately stream the position.

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Suffice it to say, the catcher is a tough position to navigate. But if you can nail it, your team will reap the benefits.

Reaping the benefits is probably what many teams who had Salvador Perez in their 2021 lineup did.

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) is the top-ranked fantasy baseball catcher
Salvador Perez was a fantasy baseball beast at catcher in 2021. (Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images),

Salvy put together a monstrous season last year, slashing .273/.316/.544 with an .859 OPS. Perez also tied for the league lead in home runs (48) with Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

So, it's no surprise that Perez is our consensus top-ranked catcher for the 2021 fantasy baseball season.

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Behind Salvy you'll find catchers like the Philadelphia Phillies stalwart J.T. Realmuto (long considered the cream of the fantasy catcher crop), the Los Angeles Dodgers young backstop Will Smith, and Willson Contreras, the Chicago Cubs' 24-year-old catcher.

But a new face enters our analysts' top five this season. Daulton Varsho, Arizona's 25-year-old backstop who showcased his serious skill set in 95 games last season, is the fifth-ranked catcher in our analysts' consensus rankings. Varsho has shown he can hit for a high average throughout his minor league career, so he's someone to watch as a potential breakout at the position in 2022.

Check out how all the catchers stack up in our analysts' rankings at the position:

2022 Fantasy Baseball Rankings powered by FantasyPros