![Salvador Perez has made six straight All-Star teams. [Image Source: Flickr | James Weatherly]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2019/1/25/660x290/b_502x220x82/salvador-perez-has-made-six-straight-all-star-teams-image-source-flickr-james-weatherly_2191339.jpg "Salvador Perez has made six straight All-Star teams. [Image Source: Flickr | James Weatherly]")
The backstop has become somewhat of a black hole for some teams when it comes to offense. Having a catcher who is consistently productive at the plate can be a real boon for franchises. There aren't too many of those in the Junior Circuit.
With every team beginning regular season play in just a little over two months, it is time to look at the projected starting catchers for the American League. The projected starting catchers, listed here, were taken from Roster Resource.
With someone like J.T. Realmuto on the trade market, and a few free agents remaining unsigned, there is the chance of these starting catchers changing by the time the regular season kicks off. Also, just because someone is listed as the projected starting catcher doesn't mean that will be the case come Opening Day.
There isn’t too much depth at the American League catcher position making it very hard to rank. As a subjective list, many of the catchers can almost be considered interchangeable as to where they are ranked.
Salvador Perez, Royals
The 28-year-old Perez has been named an All-Star each of the last six seasons. While his average dipped to .235 in 2018, he hit 27 homers and drove in 80 runs for the second straight year. He also won his fifth Gold Glove in the last six seasons.
Gary Sanchez, Yankees
It was an ugly season for the 26-year-old Sanchez in 2018, as he hit only .186 in 89 games. Though, the previous year saw him hit .278 with 33 homers in 122 games. According to the New York Post, he was thankful for 2018 for giving him more adversity. He has led the league in passed balls each of the last two years but has been throwing out baserunners at an above-average rate.
Robinson Chirinos, Astros
Chirinos joins the Astros after spending the last six years with the Rangers. The 34-year-old belted 35 homers in 623 at-bats from 2017-18. Normally around league average, he had an ugly season in 2018 throwing out just 10 percent of base stealers.
Welington Castillo, White Sox
The 31-year-old Castillo hit just six homers last season as he had an 80-game suspension for a positive PED test. He had his best offensive season with the Orioles in the previous year when he hit .282 with 20 long balls. He also led the American League throwing out 49 percent of base stealers in 2017.
Omar Narvaez, Mariners
Narvaez was traded to the Mariners by the White Sox in the offseason. Turning 27 on February 10, he had a solid season at the plate in 2018 batting .275 with nine home runs in 97 games. Arm strength isn't one of his specialities as he has thrown out just 22 percent of base stealers in his career.
Mike Zunino, Rays
The poster boy for feast or famine, Zunino (turns 28 on March 25) has an unsightly career .207 average and has stuck out in 34.2 percent of his plate appearances. Last year was the third time in his career that he has hit at least 20 homers though. He is one of the better defensive catchers and threw out a career-best 35 percent of baserunners in 2018.
Danny Jansen, Blue Jays
The 23-year-old Jansen was called up for his first taste of the big leagues in August of last year. He threw out just five of 33 base stealers but had a solid .779 OPS in his 95 plate appearances. He has a career .285 average at Triple-A in 109 games.
Jonathan Lucroy, Angels
Now 32 years old, Lucroy has seen a steep decline in his play over recent years. Last season with the Athletics, he batted .241 with just four home runs. He hit 24 long balls not too long ago in 2016. Lucroy has been right around league-average for much of his career throwing out baserunner (28 percent for his career, 30 percent in 2018).
Christian Vazquez, Red Sox
Boston won the World Series last season despite their subpar performances from their catchers. The 28-year-old Vazquez hit just .207 with a .257 on-base percentage in his 269 plate appearances in 2018. He has thrown out 42 percent of base stealers in his career though which is one of the better marks.
Jason Castro, Twins
Castro played in only 19 games last year after a knee injury cut his season short. The 31-year-old managed to bat just .143 before sitting out the rest of the year. He has been a low-average hitter much of his career but hit 64 home runs and 113 doubles from 2013-17.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Rangers
Turning 24 on March 23, Kiner-Falefa made his debut in the big leagues last April. He started at four different positions but is expected to become Texas' main catcher in 2019. In 111 games last year, he batted .261 with four home runs.
Roberto Perez, Indians
Perez has been a strong defensive catcher who has also done very little at the plate to help his team. His career average in parts of five seasons is just .205, and he hit only .168 in 179 at-bats in 2018. He has thrown out 39 percent of base stealers in his career.
Grayson Greiner, Tigers
Greiner made his MLB debut in early May of last year and totaled just 96 at-bats for Detroit. He finished with a .219 average but also a .328 on-base percentage. Whether he can continue to draw walks at an impressive rate remains to be seen as he has just a .317 on-base percentage in 1,367 plate appearances at the minor league level.
Josh Phegley, Athletics
Phegley, who turns 31 on February 12, has never had more than 243 plate appearances in any of his six seasons at the major league level. Over the past two years, he owns just a .202 average and .594 OPS in 263 plate appearances. He has graded out as a slightly above-average defensive catcher according to the metrics.
Chance Sisco, Orioles
Turning 24 on February 24, Sisco wasn't very successful in his 184 plate appearances last season. He hit just .181 with two homers. He did throw out 13 of 42 base stealers (31 percent) which is slightly better than league average.
