10. Josh Bard San Diego Padres

The fact that he could not catch Tim Wakefield’s knuckle ball earned Bard a ticket out of Boston on May 1. Knuckle balls aside, Bard is a solid defensive catcher, but it was his offense that surprised many in 2006. The 28-year-old batted .338-9-40 in 231 with the Padres last season (.391-5-15 in his first 19 games with San Diego) and hit about as well at Petco Park (.315-5-21) as he did away (.353-4-19). Prior to last season, Bard’s career high in HR was 8 and he had posted a career major league batting average of .240 in 513 AB spread over four seasons.

11. Miguel Montero Arizona Diamondbacks

Viewed by many as one of Arizona’s top five prospects, the 23-year-old is a solid all-around catching prospect. Last season Montero hit .286-17-75 with 66K/53BB in 117 games combined between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Tucson. He will battle Chris Snyder for the starting job, but expect Montero to get the majority of the playing time unless he has a rough spring. The talented youngster could prove to be quite a bargain on draft day should he in fact open the season with a starting gig in hitter-friendly Chase Field.

12. Brian Schneider Washington Nationals

The first year of his four-year, $16 million contract did not go as well as planned (.256-4-55 with .649 OPS in 124 games), but the Nationals and Schneider hope that better days are ahead. This is a guy who averaged .262-11-46 in the two years previous to last so he is capable of having some value as a fantasy catcher.