Cal Raleigh Appreciation Put up | FanGraphs Baseball

Earlier than I began researching this text, I assumed that Cal Raleigh had been an All-Star earlier than. I used to be unsuitable. Raleigh is in simply his third full season as an enormous leaguer, however he’s spent all of that point as among the best catchers in baseball, so I used to be shocked to search out out that the final time he received an award of any variety was 2019, when he was named the California League’s Rookie of the 12 months as a member of the Modesto Nuts. Now that I do know, I really feel even stronger in regards to the premise of this text, so please forgive me for stating it so baldly: Cal Raleigh is a star, and it’s about time all of us acknowledged it.

Raleigh has turned on the afterburners over his final 9 video games getting into Wednesday, slashing .314/.390/.629 with three house runs for a 187 wRC+. With that, he pushed his WAR to 4.3, tying his whole from the 2023 season. Based on WAR, he was the sixth-best catcher in baseball in 2022, the fourth greatest in ’23, and he’s now the second greatest in ’24. Except my sample recognition abilities have fallen off since elementary college, subsequent 12 months he’ll should discover a method to be quantity zero.

Right here’s what Kevin Goldstein wrote in June 2021, only a bit over a month earlier than Raleigh made his large league debut:

Groups had been virtually universally enamored with Raleigh’s bat within the 2018 draft, however the Florida State product fell to the third spherical as a result of most had large considerations about his potential to remain at catcher, projecting a fast transfer to first base, the place the strain on the participant to hit will increase exponentially. The Mariners determined to no less than attempt to hold him behind the plate, and to the participant’s credit score, Raleigh has put an unbelievable quantity of labor into his protection, and out of the blue seems to be like a median defensive catcher.

Because it turned out, Raleigh struggled mightily on the plate throughout his 43-game rookie stint with the Mariners, however his protection graded out nice. In that quick pattern, each FRV and DRP rated his framing extremely, and DRS would hop on board the next season. This 12 months, in an unusual little bit of excellent concord, all three of these superior defensive metrics agree that Raleigh is having his greatest season ever behind the plate. DRP says he’s saved 17.5 runs, DRS has him at 17, and FRV at 13, all of that are adequate to price him the perfect defensive catcher within the American League and second greatest within the recreation, behind Patrick Bailey.

Raleigh has paired that defensive excellence with the traditional profile of an influence hitter. He strikes out an excessive amount of, however when he does make contact, look out. That’s to not say that he’s uncontrolled: This 12 months, he’s been particularly aggressive on pitches over the center of the plate, so regardless of his elevated chase price, he ranks within the eightieth percentile in Robert Orr’s SEAGER metric, which measures selective aggression. Opposing pitchers, hopeful that they will induce a chase and scared of what may occur in the event that they hit the zone, are throwing Raleigh lots of balls, and he’s working a career-high 10.8% stroll price regardless of placing out practically 30% of the time.

Even with the upper stroll whole, Raleigh’s profile nonetheless relies upon rather more on energy than his on-base potential. First, as befits a catcher nicknamed Huge Dumper, he doesn’t beat out too many hits, which drives down his batting common. Extra vital is the way in which Raleigh swings. He doesn’t simply have the profile of a traditional energy hitter; he’s received the elevate-and-celebrate profile of at the moment’s energy hitters. He makes a speciality of barrels, hitting the ball arduous and lifting it like few others. His 53% fly ball price is second amongst certified gamers, and for the third season in a row, he’s within the 94th percentile or higher in pulled fly ball price. If you happen to take a fast look at his spray chart, you’ll see house runs to all fields, and also you’ll suppose, “What a balanced batted ball profile.” And then you definately’ll do not forget that he’s a switch-hitter. Raleigh is trying to elevate the ball and yank it from either side of the plate. His 30 homers are tied for twelfth in baseball, however his 25 pulled homers are good for third. On the left is a sprig chart that reveals all of Raleigh’s profession homers to the pull facet and straightaway. On the best is a chart that reveals his reverse discipline house runs.

This 12 months, Raleigh’s 30 homers lead all catchers. He led all catchers with 30 final season too, and regardless of showing in simply 119 video games and taking part in via a damaged thumb and a torn ligament in his catching hand for greater than a month, he additionally led all catchers with 27 in 2022. Solely eight gamers have ever put up three 27-homer seasons whereas catching no less than half the time. Right here’s the record of gamers who’ve accomplished it thrice in a row: Lance Parrish, Mike Piazza, Johnny Bench, and Cal Raleigh. If you happen to’re conserving rating at house, that’s one eight-time All-Star, two inner-circle Corridor of Famers, and Cal Raleigh, who once more has by no means had a full season when he didn’t hit no less than 27 homers. Amongst catchers with no less than a thousand profession plate appearances, Raleigh’s .227 ISO ranks fifth all-time, and his 144 ISO+ ranks thirteenth.

Put all that collectively, and Raleigh combines first-rate protection with a homer-heavy 109 profession wRC+ (115 during the last three seasons). That’s a reasonably compelling bundle, and it’s made Raleigh the second-best catcher in baseball it doesn’t matter what timeframe you take a look at.

Our total database reveals 278 four-win seasons from 106 completely different catchers. Together with Raleigh, I counted simply 20 who had put up three in a row, and the record as soon as once more reads like a who’s who of Corridor of Famers, together with newer framing standouts.

I’m not attempting to say that Raleigh is destined for the Corridor of Fame. I’m simply attempting to exhibit that what he’s been doing doesn’t occur all that always, particularly proper out of the gate. From the second he turned a full-time starter, Raleigh has been among the best catchers in baseball, and regardless of taking part in via damage at occasions, he’s been hands-down probably the most constant. There’s no assure that this can proceed. It’s arduous to remain on high defensively, particularly as a result of catching strategies have modified radically in the previous few years. Take a look at J.T. Realmuto, who was one of many league’s premier defenders for years, after which out of the blue noticed his framing fall off out of nowhere final season. It additionally seems to be an increasing number of probably that the ABS system will likely be coming quickly in some type to erase no less than a part of a catcher’s framing worth. If nothing else, that simply implies that we should always respect Raleigh’s present greatness all of the extra. He belongs in any dialog in regards to the biggest catchers within the recreation proper now, and it’s time he had the {hardware} to show it.