The second half is officially underway which means it’s long past time to hold on to any illusions that you’re going to win your league with all of your brilliant draft picks intact. It’s time to throw out what you thought you knew around draft time and make adjustments. Time to decide whether you’re in it to win it this year, and what you might need to make that happen. Time to check narrative and sentiment at the door.
Nowhere is that more true than at catcher, that most dire of fantasy positions. We’re beginning to get a sense of whose slow starts are more than a fluke and whose breakouts look like they’re for real — and who we might’ve buried a bit prematurely. So if you’re like most of us, looking for any kind of production from behind the plate, here are three backstops likely available on the waiver wire who could return surprisingly solid production down the stretch.
Fantasy baseball catcher waiver wire: Week 16
Tyler Soderstrom, C/1B, Oakland Athletics
Roster percentage: 4.4%
Without a ton to play for over the rest of the season, the A’s are getting a jump start on their youth movement. First up: Soderstrom, the team’s top prospect (and No. 33 overall, per MLB Pipeline), who got the call for his MLB debut over the weekend. He’s been on our radar for a while, and when you look at his Minor League numbers it’s not hard to see why: The 2020 first-round pick slashed .254/.303/.536 with 20 homers across 69 games at Triple-A this year. Swing-and-miss is a bit of an issue, but Soderstrom barrels up enough balls to keep his average out of the danger zone — and has enough pop to be a 20-homer hitter in the Majors, with catcher eligibility despite only playing their a couple of times a week. Oakland has no excuse not to give him as much playing time as they can down the stretch, and given how ugly the catcher position is, Soderstrom is a must-add in all leagues.
Endy Rodriguez, C, Pittsburgh Pirates
Roster percentage: 0.6%
Speaking of catcher call-ups! We’ve been waiting on the Pirates to give Rodriguez a chance in the Majors seemingly all year, and the call finally came for MLB Pipeline’s No. 35 prospect on Sunday. Rodriguez will be in Pittsburgh for his MLB debut on Monday night, joining fellow top catcher/utility man prospect Henry Davis in the Show. He may not do as much damage on contact as Davis does — he slugged just .415 at Triple-A this year amid a lot of sub-optimal contact — but he tore through three levels of the Minors in 2022, and he has a pretty left-handed stroke that’s maximized for power when he gets a hold of one. There will likely be a learning curve here, but there’s 25-homer potential if it all clicks, and Rodriguez has played infield and outfield as well as catcher — crucial to him finding everyday playing time.
Bo Naylor, C, Cleveland Guardians
Roster percentage: 1.5%
The last of our top-prospect trio, Naylor got off to a chilly start to his 2023 promotion — but it’s starting to click now. After starting off just one for his first 16, MLB Pipeline’s No. 37 prospect has slashed .275/.326/.475 with a couple of homers over his last 12 games (10 starts), looking much more like the guy who tore up Triple-A earlier this year. He’s also not striking out nearly as much, and if he can figure out how to make more contact, his physical tools will do the rest.
