Victor Martinez No. 2 in NESN.com’s Fantasy Catcher Rankings

Apart from second base, the catcher position on your fantasy team may be the hardest one to fill.

Those who are lucky enough to grab Joe Mauer in the second round can rest assured that the 2009 AL MVP will hold down the fort, but if you miss out on Victor Martinez and Brian McCann after him, finding the right backstop becomes a tricky venture.

Here are the top 16 catchers according to their 2010 projections to help you sort things out on draft day.

See position-by-position rankings here: C
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300

Name	Team	2009 Stats	2010 Projection	Notes
Joe Mauer	Twins	.365 AVG, 28 HR, 96 RBI, 94 R, 4 SB	.342, 22 HR, 90 RBI, 89 R, 4 SB	The 2009 AL MVP is likely to come back to earth a bit but is head and shoulders above other catchers.
Victor Martinez	Red Sox	.303 AVG, 23 HR, 108 RBI, 88 R, 1 SB	.308 AVG, 21 HR, 95 RBI, 87 R, 0 SB	Hit .336 with eight home runs and 41 RBIs in 56 games after 2009 deadline trade to Boston.
Brian McCann	Braves	.281 AVG, 21 HR, 94 RBI, 63 R, 4 SB	.287 AVG, 24 HR, 96 RBI, 65 R, 2 SB	Primed to improve after undergoing second LASIK eye surgery.
Matt Wieters	Orioles	.288 AVG, 9 HR, 43 RBI, 35 R, 0 SB	.306 AVG, 18 HR, 87 RBI, 72 R, 0 SB	Erupted for .362 average and 14 RBIs in 25 games last September.
Jorge Posada	Yankees	.285 AVG, 22 HR, 81 RBI, 55 R, 1 SB	.280 AVG, 21 HR, 84 RBI, 62 R, 0 SB	Has more RBI opportunities than most catchers — 181 of 386 at-bats came with runners on last season.
Miguel Montero	Diamondbacks	.294 AVG, 16 HR, 59 RBI, 61 R, 1 SB	.289 AVG, 19 HR, 68 RBI, 62 R, 1 SB	Broke out with .316 average and 11 homers after All-Star break.
Geovany Soto	Cubs	.218 AVG, 11 HR, 47 RBI, 27 R, 1 SB	.273 AVG, 20 HR, 78 RBI, 60 R, 2 SB	.246 BABIP suggests that 2009 was an aberration.
Yadier Molina	Cardinals	.301 AVG, 6 HR, 54 RBI, 45 R, 9 SB	.299 AVG, 10 HR, 54 RBI, 47 R, 3 SB	One of few remaining catchers with potential to hit over .300, but eight stolen bases were a fluke.
Russell Martin	Dodgers	.250 AVG, 7 HR, 53 RBI, 63 R, 11 SB	.281 AVG, 12 HR, 59 RBI, 61 R, 10 SB	Has rare double-digit home run and stolen base potential, and lowly .284 BABIP from last season does not jive with his ability.
Mike Napoli	Athletics	.274 AVG, 15 HR, 88 RBI, 74 R, 8 SB	.280 AVG, 17 HR, 82 RBI, 71 R, 9 SB	Power spike from seven homers to 15 last season, but 37 doubles suggest more could be on the way.
Kurt Suzuki	Angels	.272 AVG, 20 HR, 56 RBI, 60 R, 3 SB	.264 AVG, 21 HR, 63 RBI, 62 R, 2 SB	Only remaining catcher with 25 home run potential, but strikeouts keep batting average under .270.
Bengie Molina	Giants	.265 AVG, 20 HR, 80 RBI, 52 R, 0 SB	.271 AVG, 16 HR, 59 RBI, 40 R, 0 SB	Unlikely to repeat career high home run and RBI totals hitting lower in bad Giants lineup.
A.J. Pierzynski	White Sox	.300 AVG, 13 HR, 49 RBI, 57 R, 1 SB	.286 AVG, 13 HR, 51 RBI, 59 R, 1 SB	Underrated, yet provides acceptable production in four of five categories.
Ryan Doumit	Pirates	.250 AVG, 10 HR, 38 RBI, 31 R, 4 SB	.269 AVG, 15 HR, 53 RBI, 49 R, 3 SB	Good upside based on 2007-08 potential, but is coming off tough wrist injury.
Chris Iannetta	Rockies	.228 AVG, 16 HR, 52 RBI, 41 R, 0 SB	.231 AVG, 23 HR, 61 RBI, 42 R, 0 SB	Tremendous power potential, but hits too many flyballs and must wrest playing time from Miguel Olivo.