Thursday's Catcher Value Rankings
Here are theScore's catcher value rankings for Thursday, May 12 (all stats exclude Wednesday's games):
Value Rankings
C | 1B/DH | 2B | SS | 3B | OF | SP
Top Options
| NAME | OPPONENT | VALUE |
|---|---|---|
| Brian McCann (NYY) | vs. KC | 8 |
| Yadier Molina (STL) | at LAA | 8 |
It's well worth paying up for one these veteran catchers on Thursday. McCann led all big league catchers with 26 round-trippers a season ago. He will be facing Ian Kennedy, who allowed the fourth-most home runs in all of baseball last year. Kennedy has been great with the Royals, but McCann - a left-handed hitter - is red-hot and will be hitting at Yankee Stadium's short right field porch.
While McCann and his big time power are ideal for tournaments, Molina can safely be drafted in cash games. Yaddy has a .408 OBP and hits in the middle of a Cardinals batting order that has scored the third-most runs in all of baseball. Struggling veteran Jered Weaver will have a tough time navigating his way through a patient lineup of hitters.
Mid-Tier Targets
| NAME | OPPONENT | VALUE |
|---|---|---|
| Welington Castillo (ARI) | vs. SF | 7 |
| Buster Posey (SF) | at ARI | 7 |
| Jonathan Lucroy (MIL) | vs. SD | 7 |
| Carlos Ruiz (PHI) | at ATL | 6 |
| Max Stassi (HOU) | at BOS | 6 |
| Jarrod Saltalamacchia (DET) | at BAL | 5 |
| Matt Wieters (BAL) | vs. DET | 5 |
| Geovany Soto (LAA) | vs. STL | 5 |
Stassi will be making his first start of the season on Wednesday with Jason Castro hurt. If he get's himself on the lineup card on Thursday he's well worth a tournament flier considering his minimum DFS salary. In his brief big league career, Stassi is 15-for-42 (.357 average) with one home run and seven RBIs. The right-handed hitter will face struggling lefty David Price on Thursday.
Nothing to See Here
| NAME | OPPONENT | VALUE |
|---|---|---|
| Salvador Perez (KC) | at NYY | 4 |
| A.J. Pierzynski (ATL) | vs. PHI | 4 |
| Christian Vazquez (BOS) | vs. HOU | 3 |
| Kevin Plawecki (NYM) | at LAD | 3 |
| A.J. Ellis (LAD) | vs. NYM | 3 |
| Derek Norris (SD) | at MIL | 2 |
Norris has a brutal .450 OPS against right-handed pitchers this year. He isn't worthy of any consideration against underrated righty Jimmy Nelson.
Ellis will get the start over Yasmani Grandal with Clayton Kershaw on the mound for the Dodgers. Ellis has had multiple seasons with a OBP above .350, but it's tough to get the bat going when playing just once every five games. He has just 10 hits in 50 trips to the plate so far this season.