Dodgers' Dave Roberts Has Surprise Pick for Best Catcher in Baseball

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts believes Dodgers catcher Will Smith is the best catcher in baseball, placing him above American League MVP candidate Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners.

“Well, I’m biased, number one," said Roberts. "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.”

Smith is having a great season with the Dodgers, posting an OPS of .969 and a 173 OPS+, the highest of his career thus far.

Smith has undoubtedly been a large part of the Dodgers' success this season, as he leads the National League in both batting average and on-base percentage. He's proven himself time and time again as a clutch player, the most recent instance being a walk-off home run against the Padres on June 18.

Raleigh, on the other hand, is having the best offensive season of his career so far, leading MLB with 31 home runs and leading the American League with 66 runs batted in. He has an OPS of 1.042, which is the second-most in MLB and would be the highest in the NL.

He has five home runs in his last five games, and has at least nine home runs and more than one stolen base in each of the last three calendar months.