In the world of baseball, few positions demand as much grit and adaptability as catcher. For the Toronto Blue Jays, the early season has become a tale of two backstops—one rising unexpectedly, the other struggling to find his footing.
At the quarter mark of the season, the pleasant surprise behind the plate is Brandon Valenzuela. In just 24 games (five of which he didn't start), the 24-year-old has posted a .226 batting average with four home runs and an OPS+ of 103 over 69 plate appearances. Those numbers might not jump off the page, but for a player expected to be a glove-first backup, they're a welcome boost. Defensively, he's thrown out 35% of would-be base stealers—well above the league average of 23.5%—and while he's committed three errors, no one's perfect behind the dish. More telling: Blue Jays pitchers have a 3.77 ERA when throwing to Valenzuela, compared to 4.52 with his counterpart. It's a small sample size, but the hurlers seem to appreciate his game-calling. By bWAR, he's tied for the best among all Jays batters, a remarkable feat for a player with limited big-league history. If he keeps this up, he'll force the team to keep him as Alejandro Kirk's backup once the starter returns from injury.
On the flip side, Tyler Heineman has hit a rough patch. After a career-best 1.9 bWAR in 61 games last season—an outlier for a player whose previous marks ranged from -0.1 to +0.3—he's slumped to -0.9 bWAR this year. Over 63 plate appearances, he's hitting just .158/.200/.158, and it's clear his confidence at the plate has taken a hit. Defensively, he's thrown out 20% of base stealers (close to the league average of 23.5% in such a small sample), down from 30.2% last season. And as noted, pitchers have fared worse with him behind the plate. Heineman is out of minor-league options, though it's uncertain if another team would claim him off waivers. Meanwhile, Valenzuela has three option years remaining, giving the Jays flexibility.
With Kirk still weeks away from rejoining the lineup, there's plenty of time for the narrative to shift. But for now, Valenzuela is looking a lot like the backup catcher Heineman was last year—a diamond in the rough the Blue Jays can build around.