The Boston Red Sox may have missed the boat on a Wilyer Abreu extension, but that doesn't mean Boston needs to avoid the extension business entirely in 2026. Catcher Carlos Narváez, now in his second season as the club's starter, comes to mind as a player the Red Sox might want to consider locking up for the long haul.
It certainly helps that Narváez has expressed on multiple occasions a firm desire to retire in Boston, most recently when he appeared on WEEI's "Play Tessie" podcast. Narváez reiterated that he loves playing at Fenway Park and that he doesn't see himself with another franchise in the future.
Narváez is definitely a fan-favorite in Red Sox Nation, too. Then again, just because a player wants to stick around long-term, and just because the team's fan base loves that player, doesn't mean the organization should always pull the trigger on an extension. There have to be real baseball reasons to offer a long-term deal. Those are potentially in play for Narváez, as well.
The Red Sox should consider extending Carlos Narváez, who loves playing in Boston
Carlos Narváez on wanting to be in Boston forever:
— Play Tessie (@PlayTessie) April 10, 2026
“Other teams hate to play in Fenway… When you’re doing bad you gotta find a way to get back on track. But it’s different when you win in Boston… I just don’t see myself in another place to be honest, but that’s in the future.” pic.twitter.com/ZXt5ufp740
The 27-year-old Narváez hasn't shown to be an elite bat, but his numbers in his first full MLB season in 2025 (.241/.306/.419/.725 with 15 homers) exceeded expectations. Plus, Narváez is an excellent defensive catcher.
If Boston is indeed considering Narvi for an extension, the front office is likely waiting to see more from him offensively. His ceiling as a hitter is still hard to decipher, and he's begun 2026 ice-cold at the plate (.409 OPS, no extra-base hits). The swing is there, and Narváez certainly isn't afraid of the big moment, either. The Red Sox might simply feel that they haven't seen enough of Narváez yet. The Boston Herald's Gabrielle Starr reported this past February that Boston hadn't yet approached Narváez about an extension.
Narváez flew under the radar when he was traded to the Red Sox on December 11, 2024. That had a lot to do with the fact that Garrett Crochet was traded to Boston on the exact same day. Furthermore, the player whom Narváez was traded for — Elmer Rodríguez — has excelled in the New York Yankees' farm system, leaving most people as yet undecided about which team won the trade. We won't know for a few years.
It's worth noting that, by extending Narváez, the Red Sox might establish some continuity at the position that they've lacked since the days of Jason Varitek. Since Varitek's 2009 season with Boston, the Red Sox have only had two instances of a catcher starting more than 100 games at the position in consecutive seasons — Jarrod Saltalamacchia did it three seasons in a row (2011-13), and Connor Wong did it two seasons in a row (2023-24). That's it.
In fact, outside of Saltalamacchia and Wong, the post-Varitek Red Sox have only had three other seasons of a catcher starting 100-plus games, period: Christian Vázquez (2019, 2021) and Narváez (2025).
Could Narváez be the modern Varitek for the Red Sox? 'Tek was a career .256/.341/.435/.776 hitter who gave you 10 to 20 homers per year. That sounds like a similar or even lesser profile compared to what Narváez is capable of. But it's still early. Time will tell if Narv can be even half as durable as Varitek was, or if he ends up in Boston long-term, for that matter.
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