Francisco Alvarez (C - Mets)
The Mets announced Alvarez will miss 6-8 weeks after undergoing hamate surgery. This is a big blow for owners who have already drafted as Alvarez has slugged 36 home runs over the past 2 seasons and is seen as one of the better young hitting catchers in baseball. This does continue an injury trend for him tho as he played in just 110 games a year ago as he was hurt in early April. For teams that haven't drafted, the injury isn't the worst thing in the world and I would say Alvarez is a good draft target a little later in the draft than normal. I love stashing injured players early on my IL; lets take a look at a few late round catcher targets for owners who want Alvarez for later in the season.
Hunter Goodman (C/OF - Rockies)
Being drafted outside the Top 30 catchers, Goodman makes a high-risk, high-reward option for your squad. He is having a good spring slashing .375/.500/.563 with more walks than strikeouts. He supplied some pop for the Rockies last year with 9 doubles and 13 home runs in 70 games despite a .190 average. The power is undeniably there as he hit 36 home runs in the minors in 2022 and 34 in 2023. Depending on the league you play in Goodman also may open the season with dual C and Of eligibility, another reason to snag him late if you need a catcher with some upside early.
Endy Rodriguez (C- Pirates)
Rodriguez is still battling for a roster spot but has had a strong spring with a .389 avg and 1.111 OPS over 9 games. With Joey Bart locked in as the opening day catcher there is a battle with Henry Davis for the backup spot. Rodriguez is interesting in that he may end up playing some first base and also played 2B and the OF earlier in his minor league days. Once a top rate prospect, elbow surgery took away most of 2024 as he played a handful of games in AA last season. Rodriguez hit for power and average while drawing walks in the lower minor leagues and if his spring continues its possible he breaks camp with the team as a backup.
Bo Naylor (C-Guardians)
Naylor stands a bit higher on the catcher rankings and carries a .828 OPS with 2 HR this spring. With the defensive minded Austin Hedges on the roster Naylor figures to see the bulk of the playing time and will look to improve on his .201/.264/.350 line from a year ago. Naylor hit better in 2023 but last year his walk rate dropped 6% and his K rate rose 8% not at all uncommon as pitchers adjusted to him. Naylor is among a group of young catchers who could be in store for a breakout and a 20 homer 10 steal season would be a good counting stat mark for owners to shoot for ceiling wise here.
Miguel Amaya (C-Cubs)
Amaya has been white hot this spring with 11 hits in 21 at bats. The 26 year old should be the primary catcher with Carson Kelly spelling him on occasion. At this point Amaya has appeared in 170 major league games over the past 2 seasons and has produced below league average results with a career .658 OPS. Amaya hasn't showed much pop in the minors but as he K rate has come down he could be a plug and play C if you want to go cheaper towards the end of your draft.
Austin Wells (C-Yankees)
For those looking for a slightly higher end catching option Austin Wells may be a play. Wells has been hitting leadoff throughout spring training after hitting 13 home runs with a 11% walk rate a year ago. The .229 batting average may seem a bit low but his combination of power and plate discipline makes him an intriguing catching option. I think with Wells I could see him getting his batting order up slightly but expect around a .250 ceiling. Well has been going between catcher 13-15 which is right around the spot Alvarez was going which could be a good fallback if you want to prioritize stability at catcher.
Around the League
Cam Smith (3B- Astros)
Smith got the start at 3B Monday and went 1 for 4. Smith has excelled this spring going 8-13 with 2 home runs and 5 walks vs 3 strikeouts. It would definitely be a surprise if Smith made the roster out of spring training as Smith played just 5 games at AA last year but he might force the Astros hand especially with the Christian Walker injury. He did hit 7 homers with a 1.004 OPS across three levels for the Cubs last year. Smith offers a high upside on power and the right hander could be dangerous hitting in the short porch in Houston for half his games.
Jake Bloss (SP - Blue Jays)
Bloss has had a tough spring surrendering 8 ER over 5 innings while walking 5 and giving up 3 HR. Bloss also got off to a rough start last year in AAA after being acquired by Toronto with a 6.91 ERA and 4.9 BB/9. That being Bloss is part of a strong listing of Blue Jays pitching prospects and with the signing of Max Scherzer he figures to be a first call up if Toronto suffers a spring training injury. His 2025 outlook may be uncertain but Bloss features a solid 5 pitch arsenal and should be a solid pitching option in 2026 and beyond if you play in a dynasty league.
Joe Boyle (SP - Rays)
Boyle allowed 2 ER over 3 innings while striking out 4 Monday. Boyle had a 6.42 ERA and walked 40 batters in 47 innings last year. Other than the walks I think there is still upside here. He held batters to a .235 batting average against with a solid 24% K rate; his 4.68 tells a slightly better tale. Boyle has always struggled a little with his command but entered Monday's start issuing just 1 walk over 4 innings. A small sample size of course but Boyle could eventually work his way into the rotation or a long relief role for Tampa.
Matt Olson (1B - Braves)
Olson had a letdown of a season in 2023 as his 29 home runs, 98 RBIs and 78 runs scored paled in comparison to the 54/139/127 line in those categories he put up the season before. Last seasons efforts were still strong - but he saw a 5 mph drop in max exit velo, 2mph drop in overall exit velo and 8% drop in hard hit rate. Olson settled for more double last year then the previous year and it's conceivable something nagging sapped a bit of his power. 41 home runs this year would give Olson 300 for his career; his 54 home runs season is a bit of an outlier - I would expect 35 home runs to be a good bet for the Top-5 Fantasy 1B.
Spencer Torkelson (1B- Tigers)
With the Tigers shifting Colt Keith to 1B this year Torkelson may find at bats a bit tricker to come by. The first overall pick in 2020 he flashed promise with 31 home runs in 2023 but came crashing back to earth last year as all his underlying power numbers dropped off and he was relegated to the minor leagues for part of the season. In particular his batting average vs fastballs drops 40 points from 2023 to 2024 - but his strikeout rates stayed similar indicating his hard and productive contact dropped. He has hit three home runs this spring and he should get some run at both DH and 1B; but if the bat continues to stall he has 1 minor league option remaining.
Michael Harris (OF - Braves)
Harris is someone I have my eye on as a "breakout" performer of 2025. If you look through the numbers there has been a drop off every year since he debuted in 2022 however. After winning ROY in 2022 with a .853 OPS that number has steadily fallen to a .722 clip last year. Harris did have a strong finish to last year hitting .316 with 8 HR and 18 RBIs. Harris battled injuries early last year and I love the way he ended in addition to his underlying metrics. While his slash lines have gone the wrong way his exit velocities have risen and he has pulled expected batting in the top 6% the past 2 years. A healthy Harris has a 20/20 floor in my opinion with a shot to push those numbers a bit higher while contributing to your counts stats too.
Pablo Lopez (SP - Twins)
Lopez had another rough outing Monday allowing 4 ER on 7 hits over 2 innings. Lopez entered the outing with 5 ER over 5 innings with 4 walks and added to the tough spring start. The Twins ace's spring number per usual can be taken with a grain of salt but the walks are something to watch as Lopez has traditionally not walked a lot of guys. The strikeouts are still there and Lopez has been a model of consistency make 32 starts 3 seasons in a row. From a fantasy perspective this might be a good time to trade him from your dynasty roster if you can find a comparable bat to acquire. There is nothing to say that there is any sort of issue - I am just a fan of trading starting pitching for bats and Lopez even with the rough Spring has strong value at the moment.
Brice Matthews (SS - Astros)
The Astros second ranked Prospect, Matthews played both 2B and SS in Mondays game and has a .214/.313/.429 line this spring. A first round pick in 2023 Matthews made it to AAA at the end of last season and he should get a refresher there to open the season. He has profiled as a power speed guy but will need to get his strikeouts in order as he has had trouble making contact on pitches in the zone. With Jose Altuve shifting at least part time to the outfield there is an opportunity perhaps later this year or next year for Matthews to make the team especially is he can handle a few positions well enough.
Matt Mervis (1B - Marlins)
Mervis slugged his second home run of the spring Monday and is slashing .304/.333/.652. Mervis garnered attention while with the Cubs for his power profile as he hit .309 with 36 home runs in 2022 and .282 with 22 home runs in AAA in 2023. He appeared in MLB games the past two years with underwhelming results delivering a .155 average with 3 home runs and 40 Ks in 36 games. Mervis has the frame to hit for a lot of power and should break camp with a role at least as a short-side platoon playing first and DH. If you want to gamble with big time power but with big time strikeouts, Mervis is for you.
