Andrew Knizner

Knizner played more than expected last season as the Yadier Molina retirement tour was interrupted by a long IL stint for a sore knee. To say Knizner took advantage is a backhanded compliment considering his wRC+ was 79, albeit higher than the prior year's 50 mark. His 21% contact rate isn't the issue; he just doesn't hit the ball with much authority. There was a time the Cardinals hoped Knizner's strong contact skills would support a developing hit tool but signing Willson Contreras suggests they've changed their mind. Knizner is earmarked to back up Willson Contreras, but his hold on the job is tenuous as Knizner is a subpar defender and Jose Herrera looms. If Knizner is on top of your queue, you need a longer queue.

There have been a few catchers of the future in St. Louis throughout Yadier Molina's 30s, and Knizner might be the one in the right place at the right time when the veteran finally leaves town. He made the expanded Opening Day roster as a third catcher but received very few opportunities throughout the season, coming to the plate just 17 times, a sample small enough that analyzing his .250/.235/.313 slash line would be a waste of time. Knizner's minor-league numbers and prospect reports are worth most of the attention if the Cardinals don't bring in anyone to start ahead of him over the winter. He's considered an offense-first backstop, which is what you'd want for fantasy purposes but which means his shaky glove puts a lot of pressure on his bat if he's to remain in the lineup. His 99 wRC+ at the Triple-A level in 2019 hardly suggests he's about to tear up the league, but he could still be a useful option.

Knizner got his first taste of the majors in 2019, appearing in 18 games with the Cardinals. He didn't do much during his time in the big leagues, hitting .226 in 58 plate appearances. It would be rash to rush to judgment based on the limited sample size as Knizner has demonstrated a much more impressive hitting acumen in the minors. He hit a solid .276 in 66 games with Triple-A Memphis in 2019 after batting well above .300 across two levels over the previous two seasons. While Knizner's 24.1 K% in the majors last season took a toll on his batting average, his strikeout rate has never exceeded 13.2% in any minor-league campaign, thus it's fair to expect less whiffs from Knizner as he adjusts to major-league pitching. Knizner has been tapped as the successor to Yadier Molina in St. Louis, and that transition should accelerate in 2020 if Knizner is able to hold down a full-season backup gig.

With Carson Kelly shipped to Arizona in the Paul Goldschmidt trade, Knizner now lines up as Yadier Molina's backup and heir apparent behind the plate in St. Louis. With above-average batting lines at every stop of his three-year professional career, he offers enough offensive value to mostly offset his relatively poor defense. He hit .313/.365/.434 (119 wRC+) in 77 games for Double-A Springfield last year and followed that up with a similar .315/.383/.407 line (114 wRC+) in 17 games with Triple-A Memphis. Despite that short amount of time in Triple-A, Knizner will have a good shot to break camp on the 25-man roster. The 36-year-old Molina has received at least 500 plate appearances in nine of the last 10 years and was an All-Star yet again last season, but he's bound to break down at some point.