Top 10 Catchers for the 2026 Fantasy Baseball Season
SportsGrid Contributor Just Baseball
Host · Writer
The catcher position is always a difficult position for fantasy baseball. Not only do you have to navigate a world where we see fewer and fewer players logging 150 games, but the position also accepts a lower standard of offense in favor of defense.
Last season we were lucky enough experience a historical season from Cal Raleigh. Clouting 60 home runs, 125 RBI, and stealing a sneaky 14 bags makes him the clear number one on our list. From there, you could have debates about the rest of the top five.
After William Contreras, the other lists start to be scrambled.
The hardest part about this year’s crop is knowing where to rank players with smaller sample sizes or down 2025 seasons.
Oh yeah, there are a couple of rookies pushing their case to crack the rankings. While the position might not be as deep as others, there’s still enough offensive talent to get excited about a number of the options on this list.
The following rankings came from our top 200, ranking all the best players in fantasy baseball for the 2026 season. There were 13 catchers who ranked inside our top 200. The following trio just missed making our top 10, but are still worth monitoring.
Honorable Mentions:
Ivan Herrera No. 158, Yanier Diaz No. 165, Samuel Basallo No. 179
1. Cal Raleigh – C – Seattle Mariners
- Age in 2026: 29
- 2025 Stats: 159 G, 705 PA, .247/.359/.589, 60 HR, 125 RBI, 110 R, 14 SB
Cal Raleigh ranks as far and away the number-one catcher in fantasy after a 60 home run outburst in 2025. Given that his power is so extreme at a shallow position, it’s hard to pass on Raleigh in the mid-second round.
It’s possible that Raleigh may go in the first round in some leagues, as managers will have differing opinions regarding the value of legitimate power from a catcher.
2. William Contreras – C – Milwaukee Brewers
- Age in 2026: 28
- 2025 Stats: 150 G, 659 PA, .260/.355/.399, 17 HR, 76 RBI, 89 R, 6 SB
Last season was a slight step back for William Contreras, who saw his power dip below 20 home runs and his average below .275 for the first time in the past four seasons.
However, under the hood, nothing looked too alarming. We still view Contreras as a high-end offensive catcher and are more than willing to draft him in this range. Catcher is too thin to get cute.
3. Shea Langeliers – C – Athletics
- Age in 2026: 28
- 2025 Stats: 123 G, 523 PA, .277/.325/.536, 31 HR, 72 RBI, 73 R, 7 SB
Shea Langeliers, the ninth overall pick of the 2019 draft, erupted offensively last season and became one of fantasy baseball’s best backstops. His average exit velo was 20% better than league average and he struck out at about an average rate.
Given that he still gets to play half of his games in Sutter Health Park, Langeliers feels like a safe bet to hit for good power – especially as a catcher.
4. Ben Rice – C,1B – New York Yankees
- Age in 2026: 27
- 2025 Stats: 138 G, 530 PA, .255/.337/.499, 26 HR, 65 RBI, 74 R, 3 SB
Ben Rice having catcher and first base eligibility makes him even more interesting that his bat alone. Cutting his strikeout rate by nearly 10% and launching 26 home runs with a 133 wRC+ is strong no matter what position he plays.
They expected stats paint an even better picture for the slugger who is still growing into his game and could take a massive step forward in 2026.
5. Will Smith – C – Los Angeles Dodgers
- Age in 2026: 31
- 2025 Stats: 110 G, 436 PA, .296/.404/.497, 17 HR, 61 RBI, 64 R, 2 SB
WIll Smith may not hit a lot of home runs, but he’s a great offensive contributor otherwise. He hits the ball hard consistently, hits it in the air, and takes his walks.
After hitting nearly .300 with 17 homers in 436 plate appearances last season, there’s no reason not to expect Smith to be productive again in 2026.
6. Drake Baldwin – C – Atlanta Braves
- Age in 2026: 25
- 2025 Stats: 124 G, 446 PA, .274/.341/.469, 19 HR, 80 RBI, 56 R, 0 SB
Drake Baldwin had an outstanding offensive season from a rookie catcher and brought home some hardware as a result. The Braves do also have Sean Murphy on the roster, but they’d be foolish not to give Baldwin ample opportunities to improve upon his impressive 2025 campaign.
7. Salvador Perez – C,1B – Kansas City Royals
- Age in 2026: 36
- 2025 Stats: 155 G, 641 PA, .226/.284/.446, 30 HR, 100 RBI, 54 R, 0 SB
Salvador Perez is a household name for power at the catcher position. His batting average fell off a bit in 2025, but his xBA (.269) leads one to believe that he’ll be able to bounce back in that category this coming season.
At 35 years of age, “Salvy” still appears to be a slam-dunk top ten fantasy backstop.
8. Agustin Ramirez – C – Miami Marlins
- Age in 2026: 24
- 2025 Stats: 136 G, 585 PA, .231/.287/.413, 21 HR, 67 RBI, 72 R, 16 SB
Agustin Ramirez has the type of raw power that could make this a slam dunk pick. He also has an issue lifting the ball with consistency and could fall more into the line drive type than home run hitter. Regardless, 21 home runs as a rookie? And has catcher eligibility? Worth a selection even if the run production takes a hit due to a weaker lineup.
9. Hunter Goodman – C – Colorado Rockies
- Age in 2026: 26
- 2025 Stats: 144 G, 579 PA, .278/.323/.520, 31 HR, 91 RBI, 73 R, 1 SB
Hunter Goodman hit 30 home runs last season, which is enough to make any player – especially a catcher – a trendy pick. Goodman has well above average bat speed and despite some swing-and-miss, should be a valuable backstop in 2026.
10. Adley Rutschman – C – Baltimore Orioles
- Age in 2026: 28
- 2025 Stats: 90 G, 365 PA, .220/.307/.366, 9 HR, 29 RBI, 37 R, 0 SB
Adley Rutschman has regressed over each of his three full seasons in the majors. Last year, he was a below-average hitter by wRC+ (91) but was still striking out and walking at good rates. It’s a bit of a “prove it” year for Rutschman in a good Orioles lineup, so there’s some intrigue that he can turn things around this season.
The post Top 10 Catchers for the 2026 Fantasy Baseball Season appeared first on Just Baseball.
