Article: Carlos Narvaez Should Be The Red Sox's Starting Catcher For The Foreseeable Future

[Alex Mayes]

I believe I can say with a decent amount of confidence that when the Red Sox traded for Carlos Narvaez, there was little reason to suspect he would make an impact on the big league club. The team had just recently traded top catching prospect Kyle Teel in a blockbuster deal for Garrett Crochet. Connor Wong was supposed to have his breakout season, and the team just needed someone who could fill in as a big-league backup catcher. 

Then Wong broke a bone in his pinky on a catcher’s interference call, and Narvaez was thrust into the starting job. He took the reins and hasn’t looked back since. It’s my belief that someone should never lose their position due to injury, and I don’t think that the Red Sox have done that to Wong. He was having a down season before the injury and has continued to underperform offensively, even if his defense has picked up a bit.

At one point, Wong inspired a bit of confidence when he would walk up to the plate. Now though? You anticipate an out, and usually an unproductive one at that. The flip side is that when Narvaez steps into the box, you believe he can accomplish something. He seems to have a knack for big home runs, and at least has more competitive at-bats than non-competitive ones. 

Offensively, there’s still something to be desired with Narvaez. He’s currently slashing .280/.346/.466. Those aren’t bad numbers at all, but you’d like to see a bit more power for a guy who could be peppering the Green Monster with a pull-heavy swing. Where he shines, though, is behind the plate. Just look at the catching section of his Baseball Savant page; it’s on fire.

The fact that his Caught Stealing Above Average is red hot while his pop time is just so-so is beyond impressive. You trust him to throw out base runners when they attempt to steal, or at least be close on the play. This begs the question, though: Is Carlos Narvaez the future starting catcher for the Boston Red Sox, or is he a stop-gap fill-in while the front office continues to look for another option?

I think Narvaez has the tools to be a long-term starting catcher in Boston. He’s 26, so he fits with the younger core as catchers seem to age differently than other position players, and he seems to be coming into his own offensively. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him take another step forward this season and really take full control of the starting catcher position. The trade for Carlos Narvaez may be the sneakiest, best move of the offseason for Craig Breslow, and it hopefully means the Red Sox have the position locked up for years to come.

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[mvp 78]

It was obvious from the very first regular season game he was behind the plate. He's just more calm back there and if Wong's bat isn't well above average Wong's not a viable starter.