Martin Maldonado (C, LAA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Two-Catcher Leagues

OWNED IN: 6% of Yahoo! Leagues

ANALYSIS: Catcher is and always will be the thinnest position in fantasy baseball. Because of that, two-catcher leagues present their own unique challenges. Trying to have elite offensive production from two different catchers on the same fantasy team is next to impossible, so the next best thing is making sure you have a catcher who plays regularly and can at least contribute in one category. Angels catcher Martin Maldonado meets those requirements and then some. Maldonado is in his seventh MLB season but his first as a regular, having already eclipsed his career high in games played and at-bats in mid-July. Maldonado also has 10 home runs and a respectable .242 batting average, numbers that won’t blow you away but that will hold value in two-catcher formats. He has set career highs in home runs, runs, RBI and batting average, with a respectable .293 BABIP. His 4% walk rate is substantially lower than it has been in seasons past, meaning a jump in his .304 OBP is reasonable to expect as well.

Overall, Maldonado is a starting catcher with a little bit of pop, enough to warrant consideration in two-catcher formats and AL-only leagues. His value is unlikely to climb beyond that.