2026 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers – Catcher

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  • By SportsEthos Staff

    Last Updated on January 19, 2026 2:18 pm by Paul Williamson | Published: January 19, 2026

    2025 was a resurgence at the catcher position for fantasy baseball.

    Hunter Goodman, Shea Langeliers, Ben Rice, Drake Baldwin and Agustin Ramirez all busted onto the scene in 2025 and helped fortify a position that was once thought to be one of the shallowest in fantasy.

    Headed into 2026, which names will be the next ones to make the jump and are undervalued?

    That is what we are here for.

    Each of our contributors have identified sleepers based on their current ADP.

    NOTE: The ADP listed is for NFBC Draft Champion leagues.

    CHECK OUT OUR ‘BUSTS’ HERE

    Larry Vannozzi

    Adley Rutschman – ADP – 163.83/C11

    He had a terrible .220 batting average last year when two injuries limited him to just 90 games. However, he maintained excellent walk and strikeout rates, established a career-high in exit velocities and significantly underperformed his expected stats.

    Early projections are for nearly 20 HRs with 65-70 runs and RBI. Those numbers resemble Rutschman’s 2024 season when the Fangraphs Player Rater had him in the Top 75. That’s far better than his January 14 ADP of 164.

    Jeff Clowers

    Gabriel Moreno – ADP 177.6/C14

    In analyzing potential catcher breakouts and sleepers, it’s often useful to consider the old adage about catcher growth and how it is rarely linear. It also doesn’t hurt if they’re a former top prospect who’s carried strong underlying numbers in limited playing time due to injury – rather than performance.

    Moreno fits neatly into this bucket, as he’s been an above average hitter in each of his four seasons in the majors but has clearly not reached the level where he’s considered a safe fantasy option thanks to playing in only 203 of a possible 486 games the past three seasons combined. Over that time, he’s slashed .278/.348/.406 with 21 home runs and 11 steals. The counting stats are definitely below what we’d like to see but the rates are impressive nonetheless.

    Most importantly, despite the stop-and-start nature of his career so far, we’ve seen consistent growth in Moreno’s ability to really drive the ball;

    Year Barrel% Hard-hit% xSLG
    2023 4.8% 41.8% .387
    2024 6.6% 41.0% .384
    2025 7.1% 43.4% .442
    WordPress Data Table Plugin

    The Diamondbacks seem to be turning their focus toward a youth retool so they’ll be incentivized this upcoming season to really see the capabilities of their potential catcher of the future. I like Moreno as a top-8 option at the position going into the year.

    Francisco Alvarez – ADP – 182.87/C15

    To me, Alvarez projects a lot like Gabriel Moreno. A top prospect who was crowned as the heir apparent long before they reached the majors, Alvarez also struggled with injuries that sapped his abilities but performed well when healthy – in this case, a nagging thumb ailment that sapped his power. He’s also reaching the age where sudden jumps often happen for catchers, with them finally able to successfully manage the myriad of responsibilities they carry, including calling the game. Assuming the thumb injury is a thing of the past, I think the 2026 season could be the year Alvarez’s season-long line finally matches his potential.

    Nathan Baker

    Ben Rice – ADP – 60.29/C4

    Yes, I know what a sleeper is, and yes, I know that sleepers are generally not players picked inside the top 60, but when a potential C1 is available past the fifth round of many drafts, it would be remiss of me not to discuss this opportunity.


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    January 19, 2026, 1:41 pm