Fantasy baseball managers in redraft formats need not worry about how Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez ages when his new long-term contract extension, announced this past weekend, nears its end. They worry about this season and based on current ADP figures, they do not seem to be worried at all. Perez is going in the ninth round of ESPN drafts, the No. 2 catcher off the board.
It makes some sense, I suppose, though I am not the one to be recommending catchers in the first 100 picks of a standard mixed draft, especially ones that have already hit the magic age of 30. By any measure other than drawing walks, Perez was awesome in 2020, winning AL Comeback Player of the Year honors and ending up the No. 2 catcher on our Player Rater. Few expect him to hit even 50 points close to his 2020 batting average this year, but he boasts clear value. So does Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto, the first off the board at the position.