Zack Collins

A first-round draft pick in 2016, Collins made his big-league debut with the White Sox a few years later but has never been able to put everything together enough to keep a consistent spot in the majors. The 27-year-old offers some power potential, having slugged 19 homers in 88 games for Triple-A Charlotte in 2019, and draws enough walks to sport a decent OBP, but his hit tool remains subpar and his defensive work isn't strong enough for regular duty behind the plate, leaving him stuck in limbo. Chicago flipped him to Toronto for Reese McGuire, a catcher with a better reputation behind the plate but an inferior offensive profile, just before the 2022 campaign began, but Collins is now in an organization with plenty of young talent at his position including Alejandro Kirk and Gabriel Moreno, giving him no clear path to consistent at-bats beyond pinch hitting duties.

Collins made the White Sox's Opening Day roster, but with Yasmani Grandal and James McCann holding down the fort behind the plate at the major-league level, he played sparingly before being optioned to the alternate site in late August. Collins was not recalled down the stretch but did make the playoff roster. Collins' primary strength is plate patience and there is still some hope he develops power. However, the lack of a minor-league season curtailed those efforts along with depriving Collins a chance to work on his defensive. With McCann signing with the Mets, Collins has an opportunity to win the backup catcher job with a strong spring. If he does, Collins will be in play in points and OBP leagues given his ability to take a walk. Catcher eligibility would come quickly, but beware Collins is UT-only in many leagues again on draft day after he made five of his nine appearances at DH in 2020.

Collins can take a walk and has big raw power, demonstrating those skills with a 16.9 BB% and 19 homers in 88 games for Triple-A Charlotte last season. There are reasons for pessimism, however, with his small-sample rookie struggles (.186/.307/.349 in 102 plate appearances) representing just one of them. When factoring in defense, he is at best third on the catching depth chart behind Yasmani Grandal and James McCann, and Seby Zavala lingers as another big-league ready option. The White Sox have said all the right things about Collins' defense behind the plate, but actions speak louder than words, and their actions say that Collins will be competing for at-bats at designated hitter this year. After making 14 starts at DH compared to only 10 behind the plate in 2019, he's UT-only to begin 2020, and it might take a while for him to add catcher eligibility in season, if he adds it at all.

Collins has massive raw power, walks a lot and is reasonably close to the majors (134 games at Double-A), but the rest of his profile is pretty unappealing. He might end up as a below-average defensive catcher with a below-average hit tool, and that simply won't translate into significant playing time on a competitive big-league team. Current White Sox brass selected Collins with the 10th overall pick in 2016, so they have every incentive to try to make it work with him behind the dish. He has never posted an OBP lower than .365 above rookie ball and has enough raw power to hit 20 homers in 400 PA, so he could be a serviceable option in many formats if Chicago does give him significant playing time in 2019 or 2020. However, giving him starts over a no-offense/all-defense catcher would hurt them in the standings. If Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn want to win games, Collins may languish in the upper levels of the minors.

The gap between Collins' projected value in OBP leagues and standard rotisserie leagues is sizable. His best batting average above rookie ball is .258, when he had by far his highest BABIP (.333), yet he has notched an OBP of .418 or better at two of his last three stops. He is probably a little too patient at this point, regularly flirting with, and occasionally eclipsing a 20 percent walk rate. The plus power is real, as he finished third in the Carolina League in ISO (.220) and tied for third in home runs (17). If he could tap into that power a little more regularly, he would project as a top-10 fantasy catcher, assuming, of course, that he sticks at catcher. He has the arm for the position, but he is a below-average receiver, which could end up forcing a move to DH. The best-case scenario would be Yasmani Grandal-level production at catcher, while also getting starts at DH. The worst-case scenario is that he gets moved to DH full time, where he may not be very useful in standard formats.

Collins was selected in the first round of the 2016 draft out of the University of Miami, and the White Sox aggressively pushed the 21-year-old to High-A. The polished catcher more than held his own, notching almost as many walks (33) as strikeouts (39) over 36 games played at High-A Wilmington. Collins also clubbed six home runs en route to a slash line of .258/.418/.467. His professional approach at the dish and significant power potential make him one of the top catching prospects in the game, although there are some questions as to whether he has the overall defensive prowess to stay behind the plate long term. A move out from the catcher position would damper his fantasy potential a tad, but Collins' bat should play just about anywhere.