Red Sox acquire new catcher in rare trade with Yankees

Hours after executing their biggest trade of the offseason, the Red Sox made a deal with their biggest rival to help address a different area of need.

The Red Sox announced Wednesday night that they’ve acquired catcher Carlos Narvaez from the New York Yankees in exchange for pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz and international bonus pool space.

To clear space on the 40-man roster the club also designated infielder Enmanuel Valdez for assignment.

Narvaez made his MLB debut this past summer and has only appeared in six big league games. The 26-year-old went 3 for 13 (.231) in the majors, and he also batted .254 with 11 home runs and 58 RBI in 96 games at Triple-A. Though the right-handed hitter strikes out a lot, he also walks at a respectable rate, posting 56 walks and a .370 on-base percentage in Triple-A. He’s also regarded as a solid defensive player.

While not as impactful an addition as Garrett Crochet earlier in the day, Narvaez does help address Boston’s catching depth, which was borderline non-existent even before top prospect Kyle Teel was traded to help land the Chicago White Sox ace. Connor Wong was previously the only catcher on the Red Sox 40-man roster, and now Narvaez projects as the clear No. 2 on the depth chart.

That could still change if the Red Sox bring in another, more experienced backstop, in which case Narvaez could start the season at Triple-A.

Rodriguez-Cruz, the pitching prospect dealt to land the catcher, was Boston’s fourth-round draft pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. The 21-year-old right-hander posted a 2.91 ERA with 102 strikeouts over 89.2 innings in 2024, spending the first half at Low-A Salem before earning a July promotion to High-A Greenville.