Salvador Perez is having an historic season. He now has 46 home runs, a new single season record for catchers. The record had stood for 51 years, since a 22-year-old Johnny Bench hit 45 in 1970.
Meanwhile, J.T. Realmuto is in the first season of a five-year, $115.5 million contract, and has had, according to some at least, a disappointing season.
Let’s compare Perez’s and Realmuto’s stat lines at the plate:
Perez.......... 642 PA, 46 HR, 117 RBI, .275/.315/.541 (.855 OPS, 126 wRC+)
Realmuto... 520 PA, 16 HR, 72 RBI, .270/.352/.447 (.799 OPS, 113 wRC+)
The huge home run difference belies the fact that the two lines are more similar than different overall.