Casey Opitz

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #242 prospect in 2021 draft
  A 27th-round pick of the Indians in 2017 coming out of high school, Opitz has played nearly 150 games for Arkansas, although thanks to the coronavirus eligibility rules, he could return for another year in 2022. Opitz does everything scouts want to see behind the plate. He’s an excellent catch-and-throw catcher with arguably the best arm in the draft class. Opitz regularly records plus-plus pop times. He has thrown out 43% of basestealers for his career, and his presence has largely led some teams to shut down their basestealing when he’s at work. He works well with pitchers and shows excellent ability to block balls in the dirt. So why has a catcher with above-average defense and a plus-plus arm struggled to gain traction with scouts? It’s the bat. Opitz projects as a well below-average hitter with bottom-of-the-scale power. He has hit five home runs in over 500 career plate appearances. His 2021 season (.259/.370/.351) tracks right in line with his .253/.365/.344 career line at Arkansas. Opitz understands the strike zone and draws walks, but he struggles to catch up to velocity. A team picking Opitz knows it will be getting a backstop who can improve a pitching staff, but to even be an MLB backup he’ll need to significantly improve as a hitter.
• Ranked #100 prospect in 2020 draft
  Casey Opitz has the best, most accurate arm among catchers in this year’s class and one of the best scouts have seen in years. His release is quick, but even more than the plus-plus pop times, what impresses evaluators is his ability to consistently put the ball right where infielders want, almost making their tag for them. He threw out 54 percent of basestealers as a freshman, 48 percent as a sophomore and 40 percent (4 of 10) as a junior. He has consistently handled quality arms and works well with pitchers. Defensively, he has all the tools to be a solid big leaguer, but his bat will likely keep him from being more than a solid backup. After weighing only 175 pounds earlier in his college career, Opitz bulked up to 200 pounds this year. It has helped his strength and durability, but Opitz still faces plenty of offensive questions. Opitz did show significant improvement in his 16 games this season with a more aggressive approach before the season shut down. His .302/.361/.509 stat line in 2020 was a vast improvement after he failed to hit better than .240 and never topped a .311 slugging percentage in his first two years at Arkansas. But Opitz still doesn’t show average raw power in batting practice and scouts see him as a likely backup eventually because of his light bat. A full season may have given Opitz a chance to show his offensive improvements were more than just a hot start, but for now his glove should be enough to entice a pro team to take him in the third or fourth round.
• Ranked #305 prospect in 2017 draft
  The Opitz family has produced two minor leaguers already in Jake, a Cubs 12th-round pick in 2008, and Shane, who opened 2017 playing Triple-A in the Blue Jays system. Casey is in the same line as his brothers, an athlete capable of playing in the middle of the diamond. While he has quick feet, a good transfer and above-average arm strength that can produce sub-2.0 second pop times, at 5-foot-11, 170 pounds he may be too small to stick at catcher long-term. He should have the footwork and ability to be an asset defensively at second base. Offensively, Opitz switch-hits and is much more advanced from the left side, where he makes consistent line-drive contact. He'll have to get stronger to show much power. An Arkansas commit, he was expected to go to college.