Carlos Narváez has been a godsend for the Boston Red Sox behind the plate this season. The rookie backstop has become one of the most productive catchers in the American League in 2025 worth 3.0 WAR, slashing .269/.342/.435 with eight home runs and 31 RBI in his first full Major League campaign.
Beyond Narváez, though, the Red Sox's catching depth looks pretty bleak. Backup Connor Wong is slashing .149/.235/.149 with a negative-0.6 WAR and hardly looks fit to assume the starting catcher role in the event that Narváez falters or suffers an injury that keeps him out for an extended period of time.
If the Red Sox do look to bring in some catching depth at this month's trade deadline, Chris Cotillo of MassLive suggested a reunion with an old friend – 2018 World Series champion Christian Vázquez – that could actually make a lot of sense for all parties involved.
Red Sox Rumors: Reunion with 2018 World Series champ floated for trade deadline
After a brief pit stop with the Houston Astros, Vázquez has settled into a backup role behind Ryan Jeffers with the Minnesota Twins. Offensively, he isn't much much of an upgrade over Wong – slashing .170/.241/.252 in 2025 – but he is still an above-average defensive catcher who would be an improvement behind Narváez.
Vázquez, a ninth-round draft pick by the Red Sox in 2008, spent parts of eight Major League seasons in Boston. He is currently in the third and final season of his contract in Minnesota, making $10 million annually, and Cotillo noted that the Twins could be open to trading the 34-year-old in a salary dump.
To be clear, Vászquez is a shell of the player he was when he left the Red Sox at the trade deadline in 2022, but this iteration of the team wouldn't necessarily need him to be in peak offensive form. He would bring veteran experience and leadership behind a young catcher in Narváez – not to mention a familiarity with the Red Sox organization – that would provide a sense of stability both in the clubhouse and behind the plate.
With that in mind, if the Red Sox feel any sense of urgency to shore up their catching depth before the deadline, they would be wise to give Minnesota a call.
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