MLB Top-10 Catchers Right Now 2026: Will Smith Underappreciated?

Oct 29, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (16) warms up before game five of the 2025 MLB World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers are represented by Will Smith on the list of MLB Top-10 Catchers Right Now heading into the 2026 season.

Seattle Mariners All-Star Cal Raleigh was ranked the best catcher in baseball, unseating the Milwaukee Brewers' William Contreras, who slipped to second place for this year. Raleigh was ranked the No. 4 catcher by The Shredder heading into the 2025 season.

The Shredder ranks players by evaluating past performance, offensive and defensive metrics, including advanced stats and traditional numbers, and analysis by the MLB Network research team.

Catchers was the sixth position group to be unveiled for 2026, and it's the fourth list the Dodgers had a player make the top 10. The Dodgers did not have anyone included on the rankings at second base or left field, while only Yoshinobu Yamamoto made the list of the best starting pitchers,  Mookie Betts was named the No. 5 shortstop and Andy Pages made his debut on the rankings.

Will Smith a consistent presence on The Shredder

Smith has now been ranked in the top three of catchers for a sixth consecutive year. He is third for the second season in a row, which comes after rising to No. 2 on the top-10 catchers lists for 2023 and 2024.

Smith has appeared on the MLB Top-10 Catchers Right Now rankings each year since 2021.

Current analyst and former All-Star catcher Alex Avila ranked Smith at No. 2, and that's where he placed among fan voting and on MLB Network host Brian Kenny's list as well.

Smith is coming off a season in which he earned a third All-Star Game selection in a row and hit .296/.404/.497 with 20 doubles, 17 home runs and 61 RBI. His on-base percentage was good for third-best among all players who logged at least 300 plate appearances last season.

Smith missed the final 17 games because of a hairline fracture in his right hand.

The Dodgers initially believed the injury to be a right hand contusion but Smith continued to deal with lingering discomfort and swelling, which prompted further examation that revealed the full extent of the issue.

While Smith was in the midst of another strong first half, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts declared him the best catcher in baseball.

“Well, I’m biased, number one,” Roberts said last June. “I just think that his ability to get a big hit, I think that the throwing, I think what he does with our pitchers, which I don’t know what Cal does, the ability to drive in runs, to hit left, hit right.

“So that’s for me. And I think the consistency. I think Will has done it for four years, something like that, and performed at a high level.”

Rank	The Shredder	Alex Avila
1	Cal Raleigh (Mariners)	Cal Raleigh (Mariners)
2	William Contreras (Brewers)	Will Smith (Dodgers)
3	Will Smith (Dodgers)	William Contreras (Brewers)
4	Drake Baldwin (Braves)	J.T. Realmuto (Phillies)
5	Alejandro Kirk (Blue Jays)	Alejandro Kirk (Blue Jays)
6	Gabriel Moreno (Diamondbacks)	Shea Langeliers (A's)
7	Yainer Diaz (Astros)	Dillon Dingler (Tigers)
8	Sean Murphy (Braves)	Hunter Goodman (Rockies)
9	Iván Herrera (Cardinals)	Yainer Diaz (Astros)
10	Shea Langeliers (A's)	Drake Baldwin (Braves)