MLB Baseball Sports Fan Blog

Only two catchers’ from the June top five list have remained into July. One of them moved up to number one and the other is almost off the list falling to number five. The three new entries come as a little bit of a surprise since one of them is just filling in for an injured starter. I’m sure by next month this list will change once again.

5. Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins: Previously I said Mauer will probably bounce back and have another MVP like year. Now, I think that time passed. Mauer is having a dissappointing year for his standards along with the rest of his Twins team. The Twins were the clear favorite to win their division once again. As of now the Twins are tied with the Tigers for second place with a paltry four games over .500. Saying all of that Mauer is still the fifth best catcher this year with four home runs, 44 RBI’s, and a .297 average. The only reason why he made the top five is because of his average. Most of the other catchers in the league have low averages. If the Twins want to turn things around, they need Mauer to give them even more. The Twins know Mauer is capable of hitting for more power and a higher average and they will need that from him if they want to be in the post-season.

4. Geovany Soto, Chicago Cubs: Soto, one of the newcomers to the top five, is having a rebound year after struggling in 2009. Soto’s average is currently 75 points higher than his final average at the end of the season last year. After starting off slow in the beginning of this season, Soto is now considered the fourth best catcher in baseball as of July. Soto has 12 hoe runs, 33 RBI’s and a .293 average. Just like Mauer, Soto doesn’t have great production numbers, but he does have a high average whic is a big advantage compared to other catchers. The Cubs are floundering this season, currently 10.5 games out of first in their division. On top of that Lou Pinella just announced that he will be retiring at the end of the season, which means he has pretty much had enough of the Cubs and their losing ways. Pinella is already giving up and it will be hard for his team to not do the same.

3. Mike Napoli, Los Angeles Angels: Another newcomer to the list is Napoli. Napoli has his time to shine with Kendry Morales on the DL for an extended amount of time. Napoli is technically a catcher, but with Morales down Napoli is also filling in at first base and he is doing a heck of a job. Napoli is considered as an everyday player for the first time in his career. He is on pace to have the most at bats in a season for his career. Napoli’s production numbers are through the roof. Napoli has 17 home runs, 43 RBI’s and a .261 average. Napoli has the best production numbers for a catcher so far this season, but his average brings him down to the third best catcher so far in July. Napoli definitely has potential to make it to number one by the end of the season.

2. John Buck, Toronto Blue Jays: After spending his whole career on the Kansas City Royals, Buck found new life catching for the Blue Jays this season. The Blue Jays players are all having better than average numbers this season, but it still isn’t enough to surpass the Yankees, Red Sox, or Rays. Buck has all things going for him this season, he has a high average for a catcher at .285 and high production numbers again for a catcher with 13 home runs and 45 RBI’s. Only Buck and the number one catcher coming up excel in all three of these categories.

1. Miguel Olivo, Colorado Rockies: No, number one is no longer Victor Martinez. Martinez fell al the way off the list from the number one spot back in June. Olivo was number two last time and he pretty much maintained his pace since June to land him at number one. Who would have thought Olivo would be the best catcher in the league at the end of July? Olivo is having the best season of his career and is helping the Rockies keep pace in the all of a sudden tough NL West. Olivo has 12 home runs, 43 RBI’s and a .313 average. No other catcher is hitting that well in all three of those categories. John Buck comes the closest, but Olivo’s average is well ahead of any other catcher in the league. Can Olivo keep going at this above normal pace for himself? Buck and Napoli will be fighting for his number one spot by the end of the season. Soto has a chance to make it to number one also, but is further off than the other two. Mauer, may be in the case of too little too late. Mauer has a lot of catching up to do in the home run department to be considered as the best offensive catcher this season. (mlb.com)

By Eric Heyer of Sports Fan Blog Network