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With 2021 MLB Opening Day only weeks away, it is a perfect time to discuss fantasy baseball and what should you do in your fantasy draft. After a 60-game sprint last season, this season could be one of the best with the talent across Major League Baseball.
When it comes to fantasy baseball, there will be a lot of good players at various positions that you could possibly wait for over another one. At the same time, we also have to beware of players, who might not live up to their new season expectations or what they did during the short 2020 season. We are going to discuss three potential catchers, who could be busts this season in fantasy.
Travis d’Arnaud, Atlanta Braves
D’Arnaud starts off this list not because he will struggle this season. But it’s more so we are not sure he can live up to what he did last season. The veteran catcher finally reached his potential in 2020, slashing .321/.386/.533 with nine home runs and 34 RBI.
He became another tough in a Braves’ lineup that features Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuna Jr. This season, the 32-year-old is projected to hit .260 with 20 home runs and 78 RBI according to Baseball Reference. Meanwhile, Fantasy Pros projects the veteran to slug .267 with 18 home runs and 70 RBI. If he’s able to accomplish either of those feats, it would be a career-high.
James McCann, New York Mets
McCann was an excellent signing for a New York Mets’ team this offseason, who needed an upgrade behind the plate. But unlike his time in Chicago, McCann will enter this season as the starting catcher for the Mets.
Last season for the White Sox, the 30-year-old posted slashed a career-high .289/.360/.536 with seven home runs and 15 RBI in 31 games. The previous season in 2019, McCann played in 118 games, where he hit .273/.328/.460 with 18 home runs and 60 RBI. He was named to the All-Star Game too.
Baseball Reference projects the new Mets catcher to only hit .249/.311/.418 with 14 home runs and 46 RBI. While Fantasy Pros projects McCann to slug .244 with only 16 home runs and 52 RBI.
Both projections would fall short from what he did in the last two seasons in the Windy City. But knowing the lineup that he is joining, McCann could certainly expectations, but it is a wait and see.
Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants
It’s tough to put Posey down in the bust category because we’ve seen how his career started on fire and where it was potentially going. But the 33-year-old did not have a great 2019 season and he opted out of the 2020 season.
With him opting out, it opened up the door for rookie catcher Joey Bart, who showed flashes last season and will be backing up Posey. In 2019, the six-time all-star slashed .257/.320/.368 with seven home runs and 38 RBI. It was the worst hitting season in his illustrious career.
Baseball Reference projects Posey to slash .256/.328/.374 with five home runs and 24 RBI. But Fantasy Pros projects the veteran catcher to play better, hitting .265 with eight home runs and 45 RBI.