Kleyver Salazar Proved to Red Sox This Year That He's More Than Franklin Primera's Understudy

[Nick John]

It went mostly unnoticed, but the Boston Red Sox spent the past year overhauling their catching pipeline throughout the entire organization. Before the season began, Craig Breslow traded for catchers Luke Heyman, Ronny Hernandez, Nate Baez, and Adonys Guzman, along with signing catchers Jason Delay and Matt Thaiss to minor-league contracts. Then, during the season, the team made a huge splash by trading for Adley Rutschman.

With all those catching transactions, it would be easy to overlook the catchers already in the system. Two of them broke onto the scene in 2026, but one of them was overshadowed by the other. After a 2025 campaign that saw Kleyver Salazar hit .215/.327/.276 with nine doubles, four home runs, 36 RBIs and 82 strikeouts in 99 games, it'd be easy to dismiss the backstop as nothing more than potential minor-league depth.

However, Salazar broke out in a big way in Salem, putting himself firmly on the prospect radar.

In 95 games. the backstop hit .293/.403/.479 with 25 doubles, one triple, 12 home runs and 69 RBIs. Salazar also managed to cut back on his strikeouts, lowering the number to 68 while walking 60 times. He was just as impressive with runners in scoring position, coming through often as he went 31-for-95 (.326 batting average) with seven home runs and 56 RBIs.

The right-handed hitter’s improvement could be seen through his approach at the plate; in 2025, Salazar struggled to make contact with pitches in the zone, as he did so on just 79.7% of such pitches that he swung at. That number improved slightly to 80.04% in 2026, but it was how he hit the ball that mattered most—he started to pull the ball in the air more (17.8% pull air percentage in 2025, up to 23.1% in 2026). Salazar also showed a great understanding of the strike zone, walking 14.6% of the time and limiting his chase rate to 25.2%.

Originally viewed as a defensive catcher with questionable offensive ability due to an inability to make consistent contact, Salazar changed the narrative around his potential thanks to a strong 2026. There’s no denying that you would like to see some more bat-to-ball skills from him, but at just 20 years old, you’ll take it, especially since he put up a wRC+ of 132 while playing in a home park that is incredibly friendly to pitchers. Carilion Clinic Field is tough on hitters, their tall outfield walls causing a lot of hitters to miss out on what should be home runs and at times even doubles. Salazar still provided double digits for both offensive categories, leading to some speculation of how he will do in a more hospitable environment like Fluor Field in Greenville.

Defensively, Salazar made 55 appearances at catcher and finished the season with a .983 fielding percentage. He allowed just 18 passed balls but will need to improve his ability to hold runners; he allowed 107 stolen bases, only throwing out 31 would-be base stealers, good for a 22% caught stealing rate. With Salazar, you hope to see that number increase even if just slightly considering his value mainly came from his defense prior to 2026.  

Despite the breakout season, it went mostly under the radar due to Franklin Primera bursting onto the scene. Salazar’s 2026 season shouldn’t be forgotten however, as he has emerged as an excellent secondary prospect who could one day overtake Primera or be used as an intriguing trade piece.

In other words, the Red Sox now have another catching prospect that could develop into something special. While nothing is certain in baseball, if the organization is to see its farm system improve after several depleting trades from Craig Breslow, then the continued development of a player like Salazar is necessary.

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