Yadier Molina

2013

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2012

Molina notched career-highs in many offensive categories, with his 14 home runs nearly doubling the eight home runs he hit way back in 2005. He cracked .300 for the second time in four years, and his .814 OPS was easily his best figure ever. He's always been a defense-first catcher (he won his fourth Gold Glove in a row last year), but if he can repeat his 2011 offensive numbers, he'll be worth a nice amount again this year.

2011

Although Molina won another well-deserved Gold Glove in 2010, his offense, which had been steadily improving the last few years, took a step back. His slash numbers were his lowest since 2006, and he struck out a career-high 51 times. On the other hand, he also drove in a career-high 62 runs and stole eight bases, so given the lack of options, he's still one of the best fantasy catchers in the National League. He's in line to start about 130 games behind the plate again in 2011.

2010

Molina reached career highs in runs, stolen bases, walks, on-base percentage, and OPS in 2009. It was a far cry from three years ago, when it looked like he couldn't hack it as a major league hitter. Now, in addition to being the best defensive catcher in the game, he has a few offensive skills that will help fantasy teams as well. He should be able to hold off Bryan Anderson for a few more years.

2009

Molina keeps getting better and better. He's already the best defensive catcher in the league, but after hitting .304 with 56 RBI - both career bests - he's starting to show plenty of fantasy relevance as well. He's still just 25, so even though Bryan Anderson should be up in the bigs soon, Molina isn't going anywhere. This could be the year he finally makes the All-Star team.

2008

Lost in an injury-plagued season were improvements across the board for Molina. He hit .275/.340/.368 last year, all career highs. Considering these numbers came on the heels of a miserable .216 campaign in 2006, the Cardinals are happy that Molina's offense is starting to catch up with his outstanding defense. Knee surgery ended his season prematurely, but Molina will be ready to serve as the Cards' top backstop again in 2008.

2007

Molina was one of the worst hitters in the National League in 2006, hitting .216 and scoring only 29 runs in 129 games. He’s obviously in the lineup for his defense, but when your own pitchers show more patience and skill with the stick, you know you have a problem. There are some signs that he’s not all that bad—he’s tough to strike out and he has a little bit of doubles power that could turn into home runs eventually. Ten home runs and a .250 batting average in 2007 wouldn’t be a huge surprise, but don’t expect it. A $1 catcher with 200 at-bats could end up being more valuable than the full-time Molina.

2006

Molina is a future gold-glover and showed flashes offensively in his first year as the Cardinals backstop. He could develop some power when he matures as a hitter, although the eight homers in 2005 aren't bad after missing six weeks with a fractured hand. You could do worse than taking a flyer on him.

2005

Molina wows with his arm and defense and teases with his bat. He's been major-league ready behind the mask for a couple of years but he's never shown very much with a bat in his hands. Cardinals coaches think he could develop some power and his 13/20 BB/K ratio shows a hitter patient enough to learn how to hit. The Cardinals will likely turn full-time duties over to him after the departure of Mike Matheny. However, Molina may need some more time in the minors to hone his offensive skills.

2004

His stat lines look terrible, but there was some improvement during 2003, and Molina turned 21 at midseason, making him very young for the Southern League. Like his brothers, he gets raves for his work behind the plate. Unlike them, he might someday be an asset at the plate. No fantasy value until 2005, maybe later.