Is Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto the Best in Baseball?

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DENVER, CO – JUNE 24: J.T. Realmuto #11 of the Miami Marlins crosses the plate and starts to celebrate with Brian Anderson #15 after the two scored in the first inning of the of a game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on June 24, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /

To figure out who the best catcher in baseball is we must start by having a group of the top five catchers in baseball to draw from.

According to fWAR here are the top five catchers in 2018:

While WAR is a great starting point for a conversation, we must understand that it is far from a flawless stat, especially with the defensive intricacies that come with being a catcher. From this list, so far in 2018, four catchers have planted themselves in the top-five in all of baseball.

With that being said, Contreras finds himself outside of our Marlin Maniac top-five with Yadier Molina replacing. This is mostly due to the fact that Contreras ranks 94th out of 96 catchers on the defensive side of the ball.

Contreras is coming off a huge year in 2017 and he shows great potential behind the dish, but Molina has been amongst the best, if not the best catcher in baseball for a decade. While the defensive numbers are the main thing that kills Contreras’ quest to be in the top-five, it does not hurt that Yadier Molina also has a comparable 113 wRC+ to Contreras’ 114.

Other catchers that have solid arguments for inclusion within the top-five but fall short of taking home the top spot are, Willson Contreras, Wilson Ramos, Max Stassi, Yasmani Grandal, Yan Gomes and Gary Sanchez.

Marlin Maniac Group of Five (No Specific Order):

J.T. Realmuto
Francisco Cervelli
Buster Posey
Kurt Suzuki
Yadier Molina

Offensively

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – JUNE 18: J.T. Realmuto #11 of the Miami Marlins hits a double that scored a run in the ninth inning against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park on June 18, 2018 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

The biggest separator between Realmuto and the rest of the catchers in baseball is his talent with the bat. Outside of pitchers, catchers are usually least relied upon for their offensive contributions. As a whole, the catching position has an 86 wRC+ which is the worst out of all position groups (excluding pitchers).

Because of this, finding a catcher that can hit and handle the defensive responsibilities of the position is no easy task for any front office.

Either wRC+ or OPS+ are the best catch-all offensive statistics that measure a players performance relative to the league. In this case, we will be using wRC+ to rank our top-five catchers by their offensive abilities.

J.T. Realmuto- 150
Francisco Cervelli- 140
Kurt Suzuki- 124
Buster Posey- 118
Yadier Molina- 113

On this side of the ball, Realmuto is running away from the group which is not very surprising. What is surprising is seeing Buster Posey’s named fourth on this list. While nobody was expecting Posey to repeat his 2012 MVP season as a 31-year-old catcher, seeing his name behind Cervelli and Suzuki is surprising even though they are having career years.

Read: With Caleb Smith out, Who Will Step Up?

The recent improvements in J.T. Realmuto’s offensive game also must not be understated. This year, Realmuto is crushing his previous high in wRC+ (109) which came back in 2016. Without much help in a barren Marlins lineup, Realmuto has turned himself into a true threat.

Defensively

MIAMI, FL – JUNE 8: J.T. Realmuto #11 of the Miami Marlins throws towards first base on a double play in the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres at Marlins Park on June 8, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

On the defensive side of the baseball, things get a little bit more confusing. Defensive statistics are not as much of an exact science as offensive statistics are at this point in time. Baseball Prospectus does a very good job arranging the information that they receive in a way that you can sort through catchers by framing runs, blocking runs, throwing runs and fielding runs above average.

Fielding runs above average or FRAA is our measurement for the catcher’s abilities behind the plate. Just like WAR, FRAA is a good place to start when it comes to looking at a catcher defensively, but there are also many other unquantifiable considerations to take into play. The biggest of these unquantifiable separators is the way a catcher deals with the pitching staff.

Dating back to the beginning of baseball, this is what a catcher was looked at for. His ability or lack thereof when it comes to handling a staff. This is something that can only be measured between the heads of two people, the catcher and the pitcher and not on paper.

Defensive Rankings

Player	Framing Runs	Blocking Runs	Throwing Runs	FRAA	MLB Rank
Buster Posey	4.8	0.9	0.2	4.9	8th
Yadier Molina	4.3	0.4	0	3.1	17th
J.T. Realmuto	0.3	-0.2	0.1	1.4	28th
Kurt Suzuki	-1.7	1.1	-0.2	-0.4	61st
Francisco Cervelli	-5.3	-0.6	0.1	-4.6	88th

In this small data set, there is a lot that raises questions about who is the best catcher in baseball. There are two points specifically that stand out to me.

Suzuki and Cervelli have made a name for themselves as very solid defensive catchers. In 2018, they are swinging the bats well, but that may have led to poor performances behind the dish.
Max Stassi who is just outside of our top five so therefore not listed above, deserves some credit. The 27-year-old has one of the more interesting service time dynamics of all time. Stassi has appeared in the big leagues over the last six seasons, yet never collected enough service time so he is still considered a rookie. Rookie or not, some credit needs to go to the guy with a 128 wRC+ who also happens to be the best defensive catcher in baseball with 8.4 FRAA. His lack of experience is the main reason he sits outside our top-five.

Overall

MIAMI, FL – JUNE 11: J.T. Realmuto #11 of the Miami Marlins rounds second base after hitting a home run in the seventh inning against the San Francisco Giants at Marlins Park on June 11, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

Catcher is a difficult position to pinpoint one player to say that he is the best in baseball. It is a dynamic position and one that is hard to quantify by numbers. There are many factors that come into play when deciding who the best of the best is.

With the numbers that are publically available to us writers, when we ask a question like I did at the top of this article, we must arrive at an answer with the information that we have.

The final top-five catchers of 2018 ranking will be broken down by consistency on both sides of the ball, longevity, recent improvements and 2018 projections.

J.T. Realmuto
Buster Posey
Yadier Molina
Francisco Cervelli
Kurt Suzuki

Without any major injuries our terrible slumps, the top-three is firmly cemented this year. Yet, with Cervelli and Suzuki’s struggles behind the plate, do not be surprised if one of the other catchers mentioned on the first slide moves up into that four or five spot. Cervelli’s recent concussion also will not help his case for remaining in the top-five as will Sanchez’s groin strain will hurt his attempt to move into the group.

The Best of The Best

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As of now, J.T. Realmuto is the best catcher in baseball. I do not say this because this is a Marlins site, instead, Realmuto has proven to be the most complete catcher at this time. Defensively he is solid and offensively, he is in a league of his own at the position. The biggest thing that Realmuto could do to solidify his name in the top spot is working on his pitch receiving/framing and blocking. Those two things are what first turned Yadier Molina into a star and Jose Molina into a sabermetric legend. If Realmuto can continue to iron out that part of his game, he will hands down be the best catcher in baseball.

Next: The resurgence of Derek Dietrich

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Miami Marlins: Who is the Best Catcher in Baseball?

In this article, I will attempt to provide some closure in the recent debate over who is the best catcher in baseball. With so much talent at the position in recent years, it has been hard to separate the best from the rest.