Breaking: Astros Star Proves Doubters Wrong With Excellent Second Season And…

An up and down season for the Houston Astros led to just two awards, a Silver Slugger for Jose Altuve and a Gold Glove for Alex Bregman. However, Houston did have some great performers in 2024 despite some struggles, and one of their younger players was recognized for his season. MLB.com released their “All-Awardless” team, and taking the catcher spot was the Astros’ Yainer DIaz.

Diaz took over the role as the starting catcher in his first full season and provided everything the Astros could have asked for. Defensively, he was in the 75 percentile in blocks above average and in the 76 in caught stealing above average, according to Baseball Savant.

There is still work to be done, particularly in the framing department, but also plenty of time to improve and he wasn’t a liability behind the plate.

Most of his production and value came from the plate, something most teams could desperaretly use. A solid defensive catcher who can hit better than league average is what every team is looking for, as they are rare.

In 148 games, Diaz smacked 16 home runs, drove in 84 and hit 29 doubles. Amongst catchers, he was near the top in most categories.

His 3.1 fWAR was fourth among all catchers and his 117 wRC+ was tied for second best, tied with Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners.

Despite some of his production falling off from 2023 in terms of home runs, there were some encouraging improvements in other areas of his game at the plate.

The catcher raised his walk rate by a full percentage and dropped his strikeout rate 2.3 percent, meaning that he is adjusting well to Major League pitching. His hard-hit percentage jumped from the 65th percentile in 2023 all the way up to the 85th percentile, a huge jump showing that he may be seeing tha ball better.

All in all, it was an encouraging second year for the young catcher. He clearly looks to be a big part of Houston’s future as a reliable bat behind the plate. Although the Astros are going through a bit of a rebuild, they have one of the most important positions locked in Diaz.

Despite it not being an actual reward, it is still somewhat of an honor for Diaz to be recognized for what he’s done, as the best catcher in baseball to not win an award. The future is bright for the young catcher.