Ranking AL East catchers after Rays’ Danny Jansen signing

The Rays recent signing of former Blue Jays catcher, Danny Jansen was a pleasant surprise to fans. We knew Erik Neander was hunting for a new backstop for the 2025 campaign, but few people thought they would test the waters of free agency to snag this high-end player.

Nevertheless, Tampa Bay will be much deeper at that part of their depth chart and hopefully there is more work to be done to add to the starved offense. Meanwhile, let's glance at the field of catchers that Jansen will compete against in the American League East division.

1. Adley Rutschman

Since his debut in 2022, Rutschman has been a part of at least 100 games in every season. This is a very impressive feat for any player, but especially for the laborious catcher position. Drafted as the first overall pick in the 2019 draft, the Oregon State product zoomed through the Orioles minor league system.

His long-anticipated debut left nothing to be desired, as he recorded his first of many base hits. The Portland native has gone on to produce a .250 AVG with at least 100 hits in each of his three MLB seasons. Moreover, since 2022, Rutschman leads AL catchers in runs scored and OBP with a .351 mark.

2. Alejandro Kirk

Mexican catcher, Alejandro Kirk has been in the league with the Toronto Blue Jays since the shortened 2020 campaign. The stout contact hitter has been a model of consistency at the plate throughout his career.

Kirk's best season came in 2022, as he led all major league catchers in AVG and OBP. The talented backstop also manufactured the lowest strikeout percentage among qualified catchers at an astounding 10.7% clip.

In fact, Kirk finished 4th in the entire MLB in that statistic, trailing behind amazing contact hitters, Luis Arraez, Steven Kwan and Jeff McNeil. The only factor keeping Alejandro Kirk from the top spot on this list is his descent in the last few seasons, especially in his power numbers as he's racked up only 13 home runs from 2023-present.

3. Austin Wells

Although he's only 134 games removed from his debut, Wells has proven to be a very consistent defensive catcher for a deep Yankees lineup. The 25-year old also wields a pretty powerful bat, as the lefty finished 2024 with 13 homers.

His .229 AVG in his rookie season was a bit of an eye sore, but we're sure Aaron Boone and company approved of his 55 RBIs, especially the four clutch postseason RBIs. MLB writers also took a liking to his production as he finished 3rd in Rookie of the Year voting.

4. Danny Jansen

The seven-year MLB catcher is a veteran among his AL East counterparts, but his talent level doesn't quite match up. Although, Jansen has been a consistent player at this strenuous position and he's projected to have another solid season in 2025. According to FanGraphs, the former Red Sox catcher is expected to collect 14 home runs and 43 RBIs.

Now a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, we're hoping that the positive effect of their clubhouse will increase his productivity.

5. Connor Wong

Lastly, the Red Sox starting backstop, Connor Wong has improved each season since he was called up in 2021. Before his debut, Wong was an elite hitter at the minor league level, as he produced a .276 AVG in the Boston farm system.

Since his emergence in the big leagues, the Houston native has been slowly gaining his footing against MLB pitching. However, the 28-year old had a breakout-type campaign last season as he completed the year with the second-best AVG among AL catchers, behind only Yainer Diaz of the Astros.

Despite the fantastic showing, we'll need the inexperienced catcher to prove himself more in 2025 to climb these rankings. Wong should get plenty of opportunities as Boston's current starting catcher.