Will Smith became the first-string catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers during the Covid-shortened 2020 season, yet it took quite awhile for him to earn wider acclaim.
Smith bashed 25 homers in 2021 and followed up with 24 the next year. He drove home a total of 163 runs in those two seasons.
Those are highly respectable numbers, yet Smith wasn’t named to his first National League All-Star team until 2023, an honor he repeated in 2024. He also received his first nomination for a Gold Glove this year.
These recent accolades reflect Smith’s steady climb to the highest echelon of big-league catchers.
I should say very highest, at least in terms of overall base value. Smith accumulated an OBV of plus-207 during the half-decade from 2020 through 2024, a figure unsurpassed by any other catcher.
Overall base value is a stat that measures a player’s productivity at the plate. A positive OBV indicates that a batter reached more bases (through hits, walks, hit batters, stolen bases, and sacrifices) than a typical hitter would have attained under the same circumstances.
Today’s rankings are confined to major leaguers who made at least 1,400 plate appearances during the 2020-2024 period — and who spent more than 50 percent of their time as catchers.
Smith was the only catcher to post a five-year OBV higher than plus-200. Three runners-up exceeded 100: brothers Willson and William Contreras and J.T. Realmuto.
Willson Contreras (plus-168) split time between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals during the half-decade, while William Contreras (plus-144) played for the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers. Realmuto (plus-139) has served as the regular catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies since 2019.
Scroll down to see the 10 best catchers in the half-decade’s OBV rankings. Each player is followed by parenthetical stats for 2020-2024 — games, home runs, runs batted in, and batting average — capped by his overall base value.
Subscribe — free — to Baseball’s Best (and Worst)
A new installment will arrive in your email upon posting
Top 10 catchers (2020-2024)
1. Will Smith (G 558, HR 96, RBI 339, BA .259) — OBV +207
2. Willson Contreras (G 507, HR 85, RBI 241, BA .250) — OBV +168
3. William Contreras (G 449, HR 68, RBI 239, BA .277) — OBV +144
4. J.T. Realmuto (G 554, HR 84, RBI 299, BA .264) — OBV +139
5. Salvador Perez (G 610, HR 132, RBI 413, BA .268) — OBV +94
6. Adley Rutschman (G 415, HR 52, RBI 201, BA .261) — OBV +83
7. Sean Murphy (G 490, HR 73, RBI 232, BA .233) — OBV +45
8. Tyler Stephenson (G 470, HR 50, RBI 208, BA .267) — OBV +41
9. Cal Raleigh (G 464, HR 93, RBI 251, BA .218) — OBV +32
10. Yasmani Grandal (G 428, HR 53, RBI 176, BA .226) — OBV +6