Inside Texas Rangers catcher Jonah Heim’s breakout all-star season

Jonah Heim tried not to let his excitement get the best of him.

He’s a humble guy who talks about team success first. But after being told he’d been selected as the American League’s starting catcher in the 2023 MLB all-star game, Heim couldn’t help but show a wide smile. After a deep breath, though, Heim was back to his usual stoic demeanor.

“It’s exciting, I don’t think it’s truly set in yet,” Heim said last week. “Once we get to Seattle it’ll all come together. But we still got some baseball to play. So we’ll focus on that and then enjoy it when we get there.”

That’s all Heim needed for his breakout 2023 season. Time to breathe.

In his first season with the Texas Rangers in 2021, he was a backup catcher who would typically have two or three days off between starts. With former silver slugger Mitch Garver joining Texas in 2022, Heim’s role would’ve remained, if not for Garver tearing a tendon in his right elbow — forcing Heim to catch 127 games last season.

In the first half of 2022, Heim — known as a defense-first catcher — put up the best hitting numbers of his career. Fatigue eventually caught up to him in August and September, which resulted in a two-month offensive slump that no other Texas starter went through worse.

“Learning from experience was the biggest thing for me,” Heim said. “To know what a full 162 (game season) takes on your body and mental stability, I’ve learned from that. I had a really good offseason.”

As baseball becomes evermore analytical, switch-hitting is a dying fad. Some have stopped, instead focusing on mastering one swing, such as Baltimore Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins, who became an all-star in 2021 after solely hitting left-handed.

In 2022, Heim was much worse against right-handed pitchers, could have looked at what other players around the league have done and dropped switch-hitting. Rather, he said he saw switch-hitting as a way to find more time in the lineup and has drastically improved every offensive stat after working harder in the offseason.

After the offseason, Heim leads all American League catchers in batting average, extra-base hits and Wins Above Replacement at the halfway point in 2023. Going from the worst hitter on the Rangers in the last half of the 2022 season to one of the best so far this season has made it easier for Heim to stay productive in a lineup with four other all-stars.

“The quality of my work has increased and so has my confidence,” Heim said. “Everyday when you show up, get in a good routine and you have Bruce Bochy putting you out there in the six-hole every day, it makes it easier to be confident to do whatever I can to help the team win... Succeeding is always going to feel good. It makes me feel like I belong here. We’re here for a reason, but we have to put up the numbers to prove it. It helps build confidence.”

Defense is still something Heim prioritizes and excels at, though. For Dane Dunning, who’s been battery-mates with Heim for three seasons now, he noticed Heim’s natural feel for pitch calling and preparation before each start.

“He puts in his work every day,” Dunning said. “He studies his hitters and plans. He has a really good knowledge of pitch sequencing and what to do in certain situations. He’s taken strides ever since taking over that starting catching role here. He’s very humble. He goes out and does his work everyday. He has a presence about him when you’re on the mound, and you know that the pitches he calls are going to be good. Even if you might not agree with it, he makes you feel confident in that pitch.

“He’s really quick to recognize things. He sees things pitch by pitch, how hitters are approaching things swing by swing and is able to attack that. Before the games, he spends time looking at stats, videos. He makes plans but isn’t afraid to throw away a plan.”

For pitchers Heim hasn’t known for his entire big league career, his teammates — such as Rangers’ ace Nathan Eovaldi — compliment the catchers’ ability to get to know pitchers as people and players, which affects the results on the field. In 2023, when Heim catches, the Rangers’ ERA is 3.65. When any other Texas catcher is behind the plate, the team ERA is 4.74.

“At the beginning of the season I was with Sandy (Leon) and Garver a lot more,” said Eovaldi, who is Heim’s All-Star Game teammate in Seattle. “I pitched to Jonah for the first game of spring training and that was it. Once we started catching during the season, it felt like we’d been working together all year. He’s been doing an outstanding job.”

When Heim found out he was going to be an all-star, he was not only happy for himself, but also his team. He was traded to Texas in 2021 as the team began rebuilding. After enduring two seasons with 102 and 94 losses, the Rangers are leading the AL West and could make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Sure, Texas has other All-stars such as shortstop Corey Seager, second baseman Marcus Semien and outfielder Adolis Garica who are paid millions and sell the most jerseys. But the success could also be pointed to originating from all-around players such as Heim, who’s emerged as one of the top catchers in the league after years of simply needing to figure out the big leagues.

“It doesn’t seem like he has any weaknesses,” said Rangers pitcher Jon Gray. “I’m not sure how you would even pitch to him. He makes guys pay.

“Looking back on it, I don’t really shake him very much. I think only a couple of times. We’re on the same page together. He’s got a really good mind for calling the game.”