Top 10 OBP Catcher Prospects

Kicking off my first post on Substack are my Top 10 OBP rankings for the catcher position. I've already posted a YouTube video on this (Here), but the people have spoken and prefer written content over video. Also, if you’ve already watched my video, I’m removing Hunter Goodman from my catcher rankings as I just don’t think he really plays there enough professionally to be considered a catcher anymore. So without further ado, here we go!

10. Moisés Ballesteros - Age 20.072 - Cubs

Height: 5’7“ Weight: 215lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

A late addition to the rankings after I removed Hunter Goodman due to qualification concerns (who was previously ranked 7), Ballesteros had quite the coming out party in 2023. The youngster who is worthiest of the next “Pudge” nickname put up some big numbers with some solid plate discipline. He started his age 19 season in Low A ball and did a pretty good job his first 35 games, OPS’ing .772, but his next 21 games he went on a tear, slashing .311/.429/.554 (.983 OPS) which got him promoted up to High A, and things didn’t slow down much there despite the better and older competition. He’d go on to OPS .827 in 56 games (231 PA) before he’d get a handful of Double A games to close out his season. Overall, The Big Ballesteros hit 14 homeruns with a 15.8% K% and 12.7% BB%, which are excellent marks considering his age. Aside from DH, catcher is about the best position you can be a little out of shape, but I would like to see him get in better shape before the 2024 season as he continues to develop into a great catching prospect.

It remains to be seen if he starts 2024 back in High A, or goes up to Double A given his success in High A last season, but he’ll be looking to add more HR power. For his peak projection, at this time I’d put him in the .280/.360/.440 (.800 OPS) range with 17-20 HR.

ETA: Late 2025/Early 2026

9. Austin Wells - Age 24.191 - Yankees

Height: 6’2“ Weight: 220lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

A former 1st rounder selected 28th overall in 2020, Wells made a name for himself after two huge years in 2021 and 2022. He had an early injury in 2023 that delayed his season start, and perhaps that’s why he struggled a bit more than he had in seasons past. That being said, he didn’t have a “poor” year. The powerful lefty keeps his strikeouts in check and walks at a solid clip. After 58 games in Double A and 33 more in Triple A, the Yankees gave him his first MLB promotion in September and he was able to mash his first 4 MLB HR in 75 PA despite not hitting too well. It’s clear that Wells may have some struggles with hitting for a decent average, but he possesses 25-30 HR pop in his prime which should only be helped by the fact he’ll have that short porch in Yankee stadium for half of his games.

For 2024, he’s a near lock to be on the strong-side of a platoon in the MLB line-up and he should be a solid sleeper target in redraft leagues as well as a good asset to have in dynasty leagues. His peak projection years, I have him in the .260/.350/.500 (.850 OPS) range with 30+ HR, but more years than not, he may be batting .220/.300/.450. Nonetheless, his power potential and counting stats should be solid enough to make him a Top 8 fantasy catcher in his prime with the potential for a lot higher.

ETA - Debuted (Strong-side platoon on MLB club in 2024)

8. Edgar Quero - Age 20.288 - White Sox

Height: 5’11“ Weight: 170lb Bats: Switch Throws: Right

The Angels surprised us all when they inexplicably traded Quero to the White Sox in a deal that sent back Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez just before last season’s trade deadline. The Cuban born switch hitter has elite plate discipline and has already produced one of the better minor league seasons we’ve seen for a 19-year-old in 2022. He posted a .312/.435/.530 (.965 OPS) line with 17 HR in Low A. That alone would have put him as a Top 5 catching prospect, but things took a turn for the worse in 2023. It’s worth remembering, however, Quero skipped High A altogether and jumped up to Double A where he didn’t have quite the same success as his previous year. The power and extra base pop in particular is what took a huge nose dive. After homering in 3.3% of plate appearances and 41.9% of his hits going for extra bases in 2022, Quero saw those numbers drastically decline to 1.3% and 24.5% respectively. The important thing, however, is that he didn’t lose his elite plate discipline. Despite the struggles to drive the ball, he still only struck out at a 16.7% pace and walked at a 15.8% pace. Both of those numbers are outstanding, and when you consider he was 20 years old in Double A, they’re elite numbers. I’m still convinced there’s more pop in this bat, though, but he’ll need to show it in 2024.

If it were me, I’d start him back in Double A to begin 2024, but I’m not sure what the White Sox plan to do. There’s a reasonable chance if he puts together a solid season, we’ll see him as a September call-up, if not a little sooner, but it’s more realistic we’ll see him in 2025. As far as a peak projection for him goes, it’s tough to say given the massive disparity in power from 2022 to 2023, but I can’t totally discredit his 2022 season. Thus, I’m putting his peak projection in the .270/.390/.460 (.850 OPS) range with about 15-20 HR.

ETA - Early 2025 (Possibly late 2024)

7. Jeferson Quero - Age 21.103 - Brewers

Height: 5’11“ Weight: 215lb Bats: Right Throws: Right

No, there’s no relation to Edgar Quero

Admittedly, I wasn’t as high on Jeferson Quero (pronounced yef-erson) as others were prior to the ‘23 season. Even though he didn’t exactly have a huge breaking out last year, he showed me some things that really started to catch my attention. Notably, the then 20-year-old saw a noticeable power jump in Double A, a league he was considerably younger than. He was hitting balls over 110 MPH and saw his HR% raise from 2.4% per PA in 2022 to 4.2% in 2023. He also improved both his K% (17.8% from 18.8%) and BB% (9.9% from 7.4%). While the batting average fell slightly, I’m frankly not that concerned with it given the age/level and other improvements he made. I said this in the video referenced at the start of this article, but Quero just seems like a high floor prospect. He may not have the ceiling as some of the others in this Top 10, but he has a much safer floor than some and feels like a guy that’s going to have a long major league career being a steady, solid contributor year in and year out. The oddest thing I noticed about Quero, is he has reverse splits. Meaning, he hits right-handed pitching very well (.846 OPS) and struggles pretty mightily against lefties (.627 OPS). It’s not something I’m too concerned with and think it’ll work itself out as he continues to develop.

It’s up in the air whether Quero starts 2024 in Triple A, or if he starts back in Double A for a quick stint before a Triple A promotion, but regardless, the majority of his time in 2024 will likely be spent in Triple A. He’s still very young, and with a good catcher already at the MLB level ahead of him, it’s unlikely he debuts in the majors in 2024 and will instead get his promotion in 2025 sometime. His peak projection, I’m putting him at .270/.345/.465 (.810 OPS) with 20-25 HR.

ETA - Early/Mid 2025

6. Tyler Soderstrom - Age 22.056 - Athletics

Height: 6’1“ Weight: 200lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

Tyler Soderstrom has been a big prospect from the moment he was drafted 26th overall in 2020, having been ranked in the Top 100 every year since. The tall lefty has a nice smooth swing that generates a lot of power. He posted some nice numbers across three levels in 2022, OPS’ing .825 with 29 HR, and he actually developed even more power in 2023. Playing as a 21-year-old in Triple A, Soderstrom crushed 21 HR in 335 PA, which was good for a 6.3% HR%, up from 5.2% in ‘22. It’s certainly notable that he strikes out too much, doesn’t walk enough, and has posted low batting averages the last couple of seasons, but it’s perhaps even more notable he was playing in leagues well older than his age level. For that reason, I have confidence he can shave that K% down a bit as he develops more, but if not, he’s still going to be a 30 HR bat one day. After his big power display in Triple A, the A’s decided to give him a promotion to the majors and things went absolutely horrendous. He simply wasn’t ready yet and there was no reason to rush him. In 45 games (138 PA), Soderstrom flailed away to a .160/.232/.240 (.472 OPS) line with a 31% K%, but did manage to hit his first 3 MLB HR. The A’s then sent him back down, and be it the disappointment of the demotion, or the fact his confidence could have been rattled, he continued to struggle mightily the last month of the season in Triple A.

For 2024, unless Soderstrom absolutely tears the cover off the ball in spring training, he should hopefully start back in Triple A where he could use some additional seasoning. While I don’t think he’ll ever have above average plate discipline, he should develop into a big power bat that will likely be in the middle of a A’s line-up, in a new Las Vegas park that they’ll hopefully tailor to their young stars’ swings. For his peak projection, I have him at .275/.335/.495 (.830 OPS) with 30+ HR, though more years than not, I think his batting average and OBP will be well lower.

ETA - Debuted (For 2024, could break camp with the team)

5. Dalton Rushing - Age 22.332 - Dodgers

Height: 6’1“ Weight: 220lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

A 2nd rounder in 2022, Rushing has turned into quite the OBP monster. He possesses big raw power and walks the line as good as Johnny Cash. After a monsterous professional debut in 2022 where he OPS’d 1.263 in 30 games (134 PA) and got on base over half the time, Rushing continued to do some big things in 2023. Playing in High A, the average took a big hit, down to .228, but he still posted a mind blowing .404 OBP. His walk percentage was a robust 18.9%! He struck out at about league average and slugged 15 HR in 381 PA. I still believe there’s another level of power in his bat as well. Another great nugget for Rushing is that he has no problem hitting lefties, posting a .970 OPS in 88 PA last year. At this time, he’s shaping up to the be Dodgers catcher of the future, assuming they don’t pull a classic Dodgers move and block their prospects with veteran talent.

For 2024, he’ll likely start in Double A and should spend most, if not all of his time there. It’s highly unlikely he’ll get any major league time this next season, and we’ll likely see him sometime in 2025 with the option to give him the starting job in 2026, as current catcher Will Smith is a free agent then. For his peak projection, I have him at .265/.410+/.480 (.890+ OPS) with 20-25 HR. I think he’ll be a darling in OBP leagues and potentially a Top 3 fantasy catcher one day.

ETA: Late 2025/Early 2026

4. Kyle Teel - Age 21.338 - Red Sox

Height: 6’1“ Weight: 190lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

The Electric Teel is already off to a flying start in his professional career after being selected 14th overall in 2023’s MLB draft by the Red Sox. The tall left-handed swinger played across three levels, even reaching Double A to close out the season. In 26 games (114 PA), Teel didn’t struggle one bit, slashing .363/.483/.495 (.977 OPS) with 2 HR and an excellent 0.9% K-BB%, in large part due to a massive 18.4% BB%. His plate discipline and swing decisions are excellent, and even though he may not possess a ton of power, I still think he’ll develop into a 10-15 HR bat annually. Look, I HATE the player comp guy. Ya know, the guy that wrecklessly compares young players to all-stars or hall-of-famers, but I’d be lying if I said that Teel’s pedigree doesn’t remind me of one Joe Mauer.

Given the lack of good catching options on the Red Sox major league club, and the fact that Teel is showing no signs of trouble in the minors, it’s totally possible he could be fast tracked to the majors in 2024 if he’s still peforming well and the Red Sox are in contention. For his peak projection, I have it somewhere in the .310+/.400+/.430 (.830+ OPS) with 10-15 HR.

ETA: Mid-Late 2024 (2025 if the Red Sox are out of contention)

3. Harry Ford - Age 20.332 - Mariners

Height: 5’10“ Weight: 200lb Bats: Right Throws: Right

The 12th overall selection in 2021 is another prospect with a massive walk percentage, posting a 17.7% BB% in 1,172 minor league plate appearances. In fact, he posted a number higher than that (18.3%) last season in High A. Many baseball fans and Mariners fans got a glimpse of the future when they saw Harry Ford doing big things in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, but it’s worth remembering, he’s still only 20 years old and has a lot of development left. Still, the future looks very promising as he sports a career .859 OPS in the minors despite playing below the average age level at every stop. In 2023 specifically, Ford slashed .257/.410/.430 with 15 HR and even stole 24 bags, though stolen bases in the low minors don’t tend to translate to the majors. Ford’s average took a bit of a hit last year, but I’m not overly concerned with it at this time. Also, while 15 HR sounds pretty good, it was only a 2.6% HR rate, so there’s definitely some more room for growth there, which I think he does.

He’ll likely start 2024 in Double A and yet again, he’ll be younger than most of his peers. It’ll be intersting to see if he can develop his power and batting average further as well as keep the K’s in check as he’s done in the past. Assuming he does, we’ll likely see him get some time in Triple A to close the season with a strong chance he starts with the major league club in 2025. He’s certainly one of the games best prospects and I have his peak projection at .280/.385/.460 (.845 OPS) with 20-25 HR.

ETA: Early 2025

2. Samuel Basallo - Age 19.159 - Orioles

Height: 6’3“ Weight: 180lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

Basallo (pronounced Buh-sai-oh) had a massive coming out party in 2023 and exploded up the rankings. The Domincan-born left-handed swinger signed for $1.3M in 2021, the largest bonus the Orioles had ever given to an international prospect at the time, and boy has it paid off tremendously. After some mixed results in 2021 and 2022 playing in the Dominican Summer League and Rookie Ball, Basallo started 2023 as an 18-year-old in Low A ball. After the first 42 games, he fared pretty well, slashing .293/.339/.457 (.796 OPS) with 4 HR, but he would soon after go on an absolute tear. The next 41 games, Basallo slashed .306/.429/.556 (.984 OPS) with 8 HR in 175 PA. He was then promoted up to High A and he proceeded to get even better! In 27 games (115 PA), he mashed to the tune of a .333/.444/.688 (1.131 OPS) line with 8 more HR. The Orioles even gave him a handful of games in Double A to close the season and all he did was go 7 for 15 with 2 more extra base hits. Overall, Basallo slashed .313/.402/.551 (.953 OPS) with 20 HR on the season. He walked at a nice 12.6% clip and posted a below average 19.5% K%, all in route to becoming one of the games best prospects. He has massive power with off-the-charts batted ball data, already hitting balls over 110 MPH with ease. Additionally, this guy has that swag, that moxie, that whatever you want to call it. He bat flips, he pimps his home runs, he has all the fun you could possibly have on the baseball diamond. Best of all, it’s hard to find of a clip of him approaching homeplate without a big grin on his face.

For 2024, it remains to be seen whether he gets the nod to start the year in Double A or go back to High A for a sprinkle of work, but regardless, he should get most of his time in Double A with little helping of Triple A action if all goes well. It’s worth noting that Basallo likely won’t catch much in the major leagues since Adley Rutschman is holding down that spot for the unforeseeable future, but Basallo does get his fair share of time at first base in the minors, which is his likely destination perhaps as soon as early 2025. For his peak projection, I have him at .285/.355/.530 (.885 OPS) with 30-35+ HR.

ETA - Mid 2025

1. Ethan Salas - Age 17.232 - Padres

Height: 6’2“ Weight: 185lb Bats: Left Throws: Right

The Padres made headlines in 2023 when they decided to throw all of their international signing budget to a 16-year-old Ethan Salas. A year later, what a decision that looks to have been. Naturally, you’d assume a kid so young would have started his pro career in the Dominican Summer League, maybe Rookie Ball in the states if you were really pushing it, but NO ONE saw him starting in Low A ball, and that’s exactly what he did. After an impressive Spring Training performance, the Padres felt like they could be aggressive with this kid who was well developed beyond his years. The 16-year-old Salas soon after extenguished any debate, crushing an opposite field double in the gap in his first pro game while going 2 for 3. From there, the hype just took off. He continued to wow everyone as he posted a .267/.350/.487 (.837 OPS) line with 9 HR in 48 Low A games (220 PA). He walked at a solid rate (10.9%) but the strikeouts were a smidge over average, which was to be expected (25.9%). Getting him some additional work to close out the season, the Padres gave Salas 9 games each at both High A and Double A and things understandably went terribly, but it was still good experience for him. All things considered, to do what Salas did at his age was unbelievable. There’s a reason why most kids his age are in the Dominican Summer League, they simply aren’t ready or able to compete at the level Salas did. There’s still so much developing and projection to come here, but it’s clear that he’s on a short list for players that could be the #1 prospect in baseball if he has a big 2024 season.

Speaking of 2024, Salas will likely start the season in High A and it’ll be interesting to see how he does after an off-season to prepare for the more advanced level and older competition. If he performs well enough, he should end his season in Double A which would put him on track for the potential to debut in the majors in very late 2025 at age 19 if he’s playing well and the Padres continue to be ultra aggressive. Honestly, I can’t even put a peak projection on Salas right now because there’s still so much to learn from him but it’ll be fun to see how he does in 2024.

ETA - Realistically, Early/Mid 2026. Possibly late 2025 if Padres continue being aggressive.

And that wraps up the Top 10 OBP Catcher Rankings. I appreciate you giving it a read and let me know what you think in the comments below! Next up, we’ll dive into the Top 10 OBP First Base Rankings.

-Active Antics