Top 10 MLB catchers for 2023 season

Ahead of the 2023 Major League Baseball season, here are Audacy Sports' rankings of the top 10 catchers in baseball right now:

10. Jonah Heim, Texas Rangers

Jonah Heim is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: .227/.298/.399 with 16 home runs, 48 RBIs, 41 walks, .697 OPS, eight defensive runs saved and a 2.8 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 28

If you don't employ one of baseball's limited star catchers, having one that grades out well defensively and occasionally hits the ball out of the ballpark is the next best thing. Heim was that type of player in Texas a season ago, and he'll now get to call pitches for Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi.

9. William Contreras, Milwaukee Brewers

William Contreras is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Eric Hartline/USA Today)

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: .278/.354/.506 with 20 home runs, 45 RBIs, 39 walks, .860 OPS, -4 defensive runs saved and a 2.4 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 25

The Brewers desperately needed to add some thump to their lineup, and did so in acquiring Contreras as part of a three-team trade this offseason that also included the Atlanta Braves and Oakland Athletics. Willson's younger brother emerged as a legitimate threat at the plate in 2022, and should help the Brewers as they attempt to return to the postseason in 2023.

8. Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals

Salvador Perez is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Ed Zurga/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 3
2022 Statistics: .254/.292/.465 with 23 home runs, 76 RBIs, 18 walks, .757 OPS, -4 defensive runs saved and a 0.5 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 33

Perez perhaps didn't match his 2021 campaign when he led baseball with 48 home runs and 121 RBIs, but 23 home runs and 76 RBIs is still pretty excellent power production from your catcher in just 114 games. A five-time Gold Glove Award winner, Perez doesn't grade out like he once did behind the plate. Nonetheless, he's a Royals icon and remains one of the best offensive catchers in baseball when he's on the field.

7. Cal Raleigh, Seattle Mariners

Cal Raleigh is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: .211/.284/.489 with 27 home runs, 63 RBIs, 38 walks, .774 OPS, 14 defensive runs saved and a 4.2 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 26

Some more traditional observers might scoff at Raleigh being this high on the list given that he hit just .211 and posted an on-base percentage below .300 a year ago. At the same time, a .774 OPS is excellent for a catcher, and his 14 defensive runs saved were third among all players at the position in 2022, despite playing in just 119 games.

6. Willson Contreras, St. Louis Cardinals

Willson Contreras is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 5
2022 Statistics: .243/.349/.466 with 22 home runs, 55 RBIs, 45 walks, .815 OPS, -1 defensive runs saved and a 3.3 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 31

With 10-time All-Star Yadier Molina retiring after the 2022 season, the Cardinals added their long-time division-rival in Contreras on a five-year/$87.5 million deal in free agency. Contreras, of course, isn't the impact defensive player that Molina was even at the end of his career. But the Cardinals would be happy if he could match the offensive production that Albert Pujols shockingly delivered for the Cardinals a season ago.

5. Alejandro Kirk, Toronto Blue Jays

Alejandro Kirk is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 24
2022 Statistics: .285/.372/.415 with 14 home runs, 63 RBIs, 63 walks, .786 OPS, nine defensive runs saved and a 3.8 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 24

Kirk emerged as one of the game's elite catchers in 2022, making his first All-Star Game appearance and winning the Silver Slugger Award for American League catchers. What's more, in addition to adding more thump to a Blue Jays lineup that already wasn't short on run producers, he graded out well in terms of framing behind the plate.

4. Sean Murphy, Atlanta Braves

Sean Murphy is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 8
2022 Statistics: .250/.332/.426 with 18 home runs, 66 RBIs, 56 walks, .759 OPS, one defensive run saved and a 5.1 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 28

As they look to fend off both the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East, the Braves -- already doing pretty well at catcher -- got even better this offseason when they landed Murphy in a three-team trade. Since the start of the 2019 season, Murphy ranks third among all catchers in terms of WAR, according to FanGraphs.

3. Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers

Will Smith is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 1
2022 Statistics: .260/.343/.465 with 24 home runs, 87 RBIs, 56 walks, .807 OPS, seven defensive runs saved and a 3.9 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 28

Still only in his first of three years of arbitration eligibility, Smith has been one of baseball's best catchers over the past three seasons, even if he doesn't have any All-Star Game nods to show for it. He has dipped from No. 1 on last year's countdown to No. 3 this year, but that's more indicative of how good the two players above him are than anything.

2. Adley Rutschman, Baltimore Orioles

Adley Rutschman is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Paul Rutherford/USA Today)

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: .254/.362/.445 with 13 home runs, 42 RBIs, 65 walks, .806 OPS, 18 defensive runs saved and a 5.3 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 25

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, Rutschman immediately looked like one of baseball's best catchers in his first 113 big league games. He finished runner-up in AL Rookie of the Year Award voting, but that's only because he happened to debut in the same year as Julio Rodríguez. That's fine, Rutschman still got some down-ballot AL MVP votes in his rookie campaign, and it would hardly be a surprise if one day he becomes the first catcher to win the junior circuit's MVP since Joe Mauer did so in 2009.

1. J.T. Realmuto, Philadelphia Phillies

J.T. Realmuto is one of the best catchers in baseball right now. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Ranking Last Year: 2
2022 Statistics: .276/.342/.478 with 22 home runs, 84 RBIs, 41 walks, .820 OPS, 11 defensive runs saved and a 6.5 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 32

Realmuto re-emerged as the best catcher in baseball during a monster second half, which saw him slash .307/.367/.583 with a .949 OPS. During a magical postseason run for the Phillies, Realmuto hit an inside-the-park home run in Game 4 of the NLDS and the game-winning home run in Game 1 of the World Series. It's fair to wonder how much longer Realmuto can handle the insane workload behind the plate that he's had the past few seasons, but in a post Buster Posey/Yadier Molina era, he's become the face of the position. And some food for thought: Baseball Reference says that the average WAR 7 -- top seven single-season WAR totals added up, not necessarily in order -- of a Hall of Fame catcher is 34.7. Realmuto is currently at 28.4 after seven full 162-game seasons, putting him within striking distance of that mark.