Might Boston Red Sox face issues if rookie catcher keeps playing this much?
SEATTLE — The catcher position has been a strength for the Red Sox in 2025 with Carlos Narváez turning into one of the best players at his position out of nowhere.
The 26-year-old entered this season with just six major league games on his resume. He's second among Red Sox players in fWAR (2.5) behind only Garrett Crochet (2.7).
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But might the rookie wear down if he keeps playing at his current rate, potentially turning the catcher position from a strength into an issue during the second half?
Narváez has already caught 471 ⅓ innings — just 94 innings shy of his career season-high in pro ball. He caught 565 ⅓ innings between Double A and Triple A in 2023.
How might the Red Sox handle his workload as the season progresses?
" Keep playing," manager Alex Cora said. 'I mean, you have a 3 WAR or whatever that is. So we have to play.'
Cora acknowledged catcher is more physically demanding than other positions.
'It's very hard,' Cora said. 'But what are we gonna do?'
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Cora said what the Red Sox can do is listen to feedback from the medical staff and strength and conditioning department. He also said the Red Sox need to rely on Narváez to be honest about how he feels physically.
'I think this week, it works for him,' Cora said.
Narváez was not in the starting lineup for the Red Sox' 3-1 win over the Mariners on Wednesday. Boston has Thursday off and so that will allow Narváez to receive back-to-back days off. Cora said his starting catcher also likely will sit one of the three games in San Francisco over the weekend.
'At one point you have to play,' Cora said. 'That's how it works. And he's been very productive. He's one of the best defensive catchers in the big leagues. Offensively, he's been one of our best hitters, so we have to play him.'
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Narváez, who has been batting cleanup, ranks in the 95th percentile or higher in blocks above average, caught stealing above average and framing.
Connor Wong, meanwhile, has given the Red Sox almost nothing offensively as the backup catcher. He's just 10-for-65 (.154) with a .257 on-base percentage, .154 slugging percentage and .411 OPS in 27 games. He has yet to record an RBI.
It will be important for Wong to give the Red Sox more production going forward, especially as Narváez's innings behind the plate continue to pile up. Wong simply might need to catch more during the second half — or the Red Sox might need to look to add a backup catcher at the trade deadline.
'The production offensively, we see it, but I think the at-bats have been a lot better the last 10 days,' Cora said about Wong. 'Behind the plate his production has been better than last year.'
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Wong has been much better with both blocking and framing this season. He's in the 79th percentile in framing and 76th percentile in blocks above average.
'That was something that we worked so hard in the offseason to accomplish and he's doing that,' Cora said. 'All depends on how we see it, right? He's not playing every day, so maintain the defensive part of it, call a good game. Whatever you can contribute offensively, do it. ... It's hard to go 4-for-4 in this league when you're playing every day. Imagine not playing every day. So whatever you can do to contribute offensively, we'll take it.'
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