A while back we gave some love to Luis Campusano and his early season framing numbers. Now it is time to update those numbers but with a little something added on — in-zone called balls. While we love to take a look at what catcher’s can do when they steal strikes, that is only half the job. Here’s are the leaders in net framing this season:
Elias Diaz for the Rockies is the best framer this season through games on April 29 with a +46. He has generated the most called strikes on pitches out of the zone this season but number two is quite interesting. Jose Trevino has played in just 15 games for the Yankees this season and he already has framed 69 strikes out of the zone. Now, let’s look at which catchers have given the most back with called balls in the zone.
Despite Luis Campusano stealing 77 strikes, he has given 105 back and is -25 on the season when it comes to framing. Another notable name low down on this list is J.T. Realmuto who many regard as a very strong catcher.
Are there any names that stand out positively or negatively for you?
While stealing strikes as a catcher is cool for your team, it can be frustrating for batters. There are two batters this season that have 20+ strikes called on them on pitches out of the zone, Mookie Betts (24) and Wyatt Langford (23).
How about on the pitcher’s side? Marcus Stroman (34) and Logan Allen (31) are the only two pitchers at this point in the season with 30+ called strikes on pitches out of the zone. There is one pitcher that has gotten the short end of the stick more often than his competitors this season, Garrett Crochet. He has 25 pitches in the zone that have been called balls this season.