Yan Gomes

Gomes joined the Cubs on a two-year deal before the 2022 season to serve as a veteran backup to Willson Contreras. As a 34-year-old, Gomes produced about as expected, posting a .625 OPS and eight home runs across 86 games. He mostly appeared behind the plate, but Gomes also picked up a handful of starts at designated hitter, so the Cubs seemed to like his presence in the lineup. Heading into 2023, Gomes could see his role expand, as the Contreras declined the team's qualifying offer and became a free agent. That leaves Gomes and P.J. Higgins as catching options on the roster. Both project more as backups than regular starters, though the Cubs could add to the position in free agency. In the short-term, Gomes could have some elevated fantasy value if he sees an uptick in playing time, but he doesn't really fit into Chicago's rebuilding timeline. At some point, 23-year-old Miguel Amaya could move into the picture, or the Cubs may decide to trade Gomes for prospects before the deadline. Fantasy managers may be able to squeeze a little value from him, but Gomes doesn't have much upside.

Gomes signed a two-year deal with the Cubs this winter, with Willson Contreras likely leaving by season's end and no real prospect options on the cusp of a promotion. Gomes has been an above-average offensive catcher in two of the past four seasons and is solid defensively, making him one of the best second catchers on a major-league roster. Despite his upside, Gomes has just once exceeded 450 plate appearances in a season and that was way back in 2014. The projections are as such due to lack of clear playing time with Contreras on the roster, but that will not be a season-long issue, making Gomes a sneaky target later in drafts.

In Gomes' second season with the Nationals, he rebounded from a subpar 2019, recording a career-low strikeout rate along with his highest average exit velocity since Statcast began tracking in 2015. The result was a 104 wRC+, his highest mark since 2014. After playing between 97 and 112 games the prior three seasons, Gomes split time behind the plate equally with Kurt Suzuki. With Suzuki joining the Angels in free agency, the Nationals plan on Gomes returning to the level of playing time from 2017-2019. Poor receiving skills and framing could be an issue, though his arm remains strong. It's likely Gomes incurs some regression from 2020 as he performed at the top of his skills range. However, if Gomes is indeed playing four or five times a week, he will merit consideration in two-catcher leagues.

The band is back together as Gomes re-signed with the Nationals after catching the final strike of the 2019 World Series. For the season, Gomes split time with Kurt Suzuki, essentially repeating his 2017 campaign with Cleveland. In between, Gomes had a more productive 2018, so last year was a bit of a disappointment, despite how it finished. Statcast data suggests 2018 was the outlier in terms of average exit velocity, responsible for the boost in batting average. Part of Gomes' downturn last year was due to facing southpaws proportionately less than usual, especially since his platoon splits were more exaggerated than normal (128 wRC+ vs. LHP, 64 wRC+ vs. RHP). Gomes is above average behind the dish which should help him continue to garner decent playing time, though likely still ceding the majority to Suzuki. Gomes is lumped with a large group of fungible low-average catchers with mid-teens pop.

Gomes saw his batting average jump by 34 points year over year, even though he walked fewer times and struck out more frequently. That kind of fortune occurs when your batting average on balls in play jumps 53 points. Gomes does not hit for the average he once did, but last year's overall numbers were slightly above league average. He has been much better against lefties than against righties throughout his career, but last season had his best numbers against righties since 2014, which helped pull up his overall line. Twelve of his 16 homers came against righties while he raised his average 31 points against righties from 2017. His defense (postseason troubles aside) should afford Gomes the bulk of the playing time over Kurt Suzuki behind the plate following a November trade to Washington. Just keep your fingers crossed that the batting average does not sink back to 2016-2017 levels.

Bouncing back from a downright abysmal 2016 season (32 wRC+), Gomes hit 14 homers and drove in 56 runs, with the latter total being good for 11th best at the catcher position. Improved patience fueled his bounce back, as Gomes upped his walk rate from 3.4 percent to 8.1 percent, resulting in an 82-point spike in wOBA (to .307). Gomes trimmed his strikeout rate slightly to 25.8 percent and lifted his isolated-power mark to .197 in the second half. Even so, he is still far from a good or even average major-league hitter, and his relevance will all but disappear if the Indians acquire an upgrade behind the plate this offseason or at any point in 2018. As a cheap catcher option at the end of a draft, you could do worse than Gomes, but don't feel the need to reach simply to fill the active roster spot.

Gomes stands as the reason that Jonathan Lucroy didn't get to play in the World Series. Gomes suffered a sinkhole of a season in which he only played in a little over one-third of the Indians' games and his bat failed to show up for most of them. Meanwhile, his extended contract and high likelihood of catching significant innings for Cleveland in 2017 was reportedly part of Lucroy's motivation to nix a deadline deal to the Tribe, given Lucroy's own free agent status at the end of the upcoming season. Gomes' injury is concerning on multiple levels going forward, as shoulder ailments tend to sap power at the plate and throwing strength behind it. His metrics have been trending in the wrong direction since his first year in Cleveland, with four consecutive seasons of declining batting averages, on-base and slugging percentages, and the prospect of a compromised shoulder contributing to that decline should raise the caution flag on draft day.

Gomes, a popular target at the catcher position in drafts last spring, suffered a sprained MCL in his knee just a week into the campaign that forced him onto the shelf until late May. From there, Gomes mostly struggled offensively, failing to hit above .260 in any full month and finishing with a .658 OPS in 389 plate appearances. The saving grace was his power, as Gomes' 12 homers were good enough for fifth in the American League among catchers (tied for 11th at the position in all of MLB). He coupled that power with a near-league-average contact rate, but Gomes' walk rate once again slid, down to a paltry 3.3% mark, and the strikeouts ticked up again to 26.7%. Regardless, Gomes' power and plus defense behind the dish has him locked into the starting role heading into camp, and the catcher position is thin, so he makes for a solid option outside of OBP leagues.

Expectations were high for Gomes entering 2014, as he was coming off a strong showing in a limited role in 2013 and had taken over primary catching duties in Cleveland from Carlos Santana. He easily surpassed those expectations by posting impressive numbers in all but one roto category, finishing fourth among catchers in 5x5 rotisserie value, only behind Buster Posey, Jonathan Lucroy and Devin Mesoraco. The 27-year-old played plus defense and was outstanding down the stretch, with an .847 OPS, nine homers and 38 RBI after the All-Star break, exceeding his RBI output from the first half in 89 fewer at-bats, en route to being named the Silver Slugger at the position in the AL. Some skepticism is understandable, as Gomes drew just 24 walks last season (4.6% BB%) while striking out at a 23.2% clip, and he still swings at too many pitches out of the zone, but the power is real and the Indians figure to continue relying on him as a key run producer, likely batting him fifth or sixth in the order.

Gomes parlayed an injury to backup Lou Marson into a significant role with the Indians, hitting 11 homers in just 88 games and grabbing a larger chunk of the catching duties as the season wore on. He struggled to control the strike zone down the stretch (25 strikeouts in 90 plate appearances) as the scouting reports made the rounds, but Gomes still managed to punish mistakes. Over his limited time in the big leagues, Gomes has carried a low (5.5%) walk rate, and it should be noted that his .294/.345/.481 line is supported more by hard contact than a discerning eye at the plate. Carlos Santana expressed some displeasure with his decreased time behind the plate, but Gomes figures to get most of the time as the Indians' primary catcher while the team moves Santana to DH and first base on a more regular basis.

Gomes made history in May, becoming the first Brazilian-born player in Major League Baseball history. The callup was well deserved as he was hitting .359 in Triple-A, and he proved to be a capable fill-in at first, third and catcher for the Jays. Of course Gomes didn't hit, so he was optioned back to the minors, only to get called up four more times during the year. The Indians acquired Gomes in November, and if the pre-PCL numbers are any indication, Gomes offers pop at the expense of mediocre plate discipline, but his versatility could lead him to a 25-man roster spot in Cleveland.