Early 2027 Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Top 20 at catcher led by Hunter Goodman, Drake Baldwin — SkimNews
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- Hunter Goodman (Colorado Rockies) tops the early 2027 catcher rankings after following up a 30-homer season with what verges on a 40-homer campaign, though his strikeout rate has climbed back over 30 percent.
- Drake Baldwin (Atlanta Braves) ranks No. 2 and is called the best pure hitter at catcher; a midseason oblique strain produced a brief slump, but his year-end line essentially replicated his rookie numbers, and Atlanta bats him first or second.
- The catcher position remains deep enough for one-catcher fantasy leagues thanks to upstarts Dillon Dingler and Liam Hicks, though it may offer only just enough for two-catcher formats.
- Cal Raleigh (Seattle Mariners) follows a historic 60-homer 2025 with the worst season of his career due to injury-induced mechanical flaws, though he appeared to smooth them out by season's end.
- Recent call-ups Leonardo Bernal (Cardinals) and Ethan Salas (Padres) earned top-20 spots after impressive debuts, but neither is expected to contend for the No. 1 spot yet.
- Adley Rutschman (Boston Red Sox) is now labeled an also-ran after three years of disappointment, having spent three separate IL stints in 2026 while playing through a hyperextended elbow.
Why it matters: The 2027 catcher rankings establish Goodman and Baldwin atop a position deep enough to wait on in one-catcher fantasy leagues, but volatile at the top given injury-driven declines for 60-homer man Cal Raleigh and former top prospect Adley Rutschman. Managers drafting in 2027 must weigh upside against heavy injury attrition spread across nearly the entire top 20.
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