Red Sox: Sandy Leon undervalued in preseason rankings

Several prominent sites have Boston Red Sox catcher Sandy leon ranked outside the top 10 at his position despite finishing among the best in 2016.

Boston Red Sox catcher Sandy Leon must feel a bit like Rodney Dangerfield – the guy gets no respect.

The 27-year old was one of the best Cinderella stories from last season, seemingly coming out of nowhere to establish himself as a key member of a division winning Red Sox team.

Prior to last year Leon had served as a backup catcher that could provide quality defense behind the plate, but struggled to reach the Mendoza Line with his bat. When Boston’s depth at the position was tested last season they turned to Leon, who answered the challenge by shattering his career-high numbers in virtually every category.

Despite that he finished among the elite at his position last year, Leon still has his fair share of doubters.

Last month, ESPN’s Buster Olney released his list of the top 10 catchers in baseball. Leon didn’t make the cut, receiving a mere blurb in the Honorable Mentions section that focused primarily on how stunned elevators were by his emergence.

Olney isn’t alone in his skepticism that Leon can repeat this performance. MLB Network’s Jim Duquette revealed his own list on Thursday, with Leon again noticeably absent.

If you’re playing Fantasy Baseball this year, don’t count on drafting Leon unless you are in a very deep league. At least according to CBS Sports, who ranked Leon 20th among catchers.