Revisiting The Christian Vazquez Trade Two Years Later

When Christian Vázquez was dealt from the fading Red Sox to the contending Astros in August 2022, the veteran catcher told journalists, “It’s a business.”

Yes, it was—and good business at that. The Astros went on to win the World Series, and the Red Sox acquired Enmanuel Valdéz and Wilyer Abreu. 

The deal occurred on the first day of August, and at the time, it supposedly signaled that the Red Sox would sell at the deadline, but the acquisition of Eric Hosmer later that month put the Sox in trade deadline purgatory. 

At the time of the trade, Vazquez was hitting .282 in 84 games behind the plate. For the rest of the season, Sox catchers hit .284, ranking second in the major leagues. Vazquez, whose contract ended after 2022, would hit .250 in 35 games after the trade.

The Astros won the World Series that year with Vazquez as the DH in the deciding game six. The Red Sox finished last in the AL East, a distant 21 games behind the Yankees. 

Vazquez is now a Minnesota Twin, and the Red Sox have been mainly operating under the power of Connor Wong, with appearances from Reese McGuire and Danny Jansen (acquired from the Blue Jays this year). The Sox also have Kyle Teel waiting in the wings as baseball's #2 catching prospect. MLB.com projects Teel to join the Sox in 2025, though his initial struggles in Worcester suggest he won’t start the year with the club. Wong will be in his last year of pre-arbitration this offseason. Danny Jansen will be an unrestricted free agent this winter.

The success from the catcher position after Vazquez's departure helped validate the trade, no matter who the Red Sox got back. So, from a team standpoint, keeping an aging catcher in a losing season is not good business. Yet the return has been excellent. In two years defined by the Red Sox's mediocre play, Valdez has been a necessary asset, and Abreu has surprised.

As a role-player in the 2023 season, Valdez hit .266 as a plug-and-play for an injured Trevor Story. The power was practically non-existent, but it was a serviceable season for a team that finished 78-84 in the second straight year. 

This year, the Valdez train lost steam. Valdez has started more games for the Sox than last year, but a dismal .223 batting average has had the 25-year-old bounce between Triple-A Worcester and the big leagues twice this season. With the return of Story imminent, Marcelo Mayer in the minors, and the relative success of Romy González, Valdez’s role is fading.

The acquisition of Abreu defines the trade. Abreu would receive Rookie of the Year votes if the season ended today. For a player traded for a half-year rental, the return on investment for the Red Sox is already astronomical. 

So what of the future? The trade of Vazquez suggests the Red Sox intended to move on from him after the season anyway. The decision seems logical for an aging catcher, especially if the Sox believed in other younger members of the organization like Wong. Vazquez hit .223 in 2023 and is currently hitting .232. 

The Astros seem to have found their catcher of the future without signing Vazquez in free agency. Yainer Diaz has recently been flirting with a .300 batting average and batting in the middle of a talented Astros lineup. 

As for the Red Sox, Abreu has two more years of pre-arbitration. If he hits like he has this year, it’s almost impossible to imagine that the Red Sox won’t pursue a long-term contract once he reaches free agency.

So who won? The Astros won the World Series. Vazquez's advantage in the lineup instead of Martín Maldonado is undeniable (he did DH in some games). Even better, they now have a talented young catcher hitting third. That’s success. 

The Red Sox have struggled, but not because of the catching position. Although the defense from catchers this year has been lackluster, it has not been unmanageable. The play from Abreu is excellent, and the Sox seemingly have the catcher position addressed with Wong and, eventually, Teel, who recently received praise from Veteran Rich Hill. “His excitement, his rawness, and what I mean by that is his ability to look at the game and see it for what it is,” Hill said, “it’s not really clouded yet, so there’s a lot of great room to be able to lay down the proper foundation.” 

It reads as a success story for a team that should have been locked in on rebuilding in 2022.

Only time will tell if Abreu is an All-Star or a one-year wonder, yet two years later, the trading business is proving successful for both clubs.