The Boston Red Sox are reportedly interested in upgrading their catching position by pursuing J.T. Realmuto, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Jen McCaffrey. Although catcher is not considered the team’s top priority, a boost in offense is needed.
Carlos Narváez, 27, is slated to be the starter, while Connor Wong is currently positioned as a backup. Realmuto, at 35, would likely not replace the starter but instead offer an upgrade over Wong in a complementary or shared role.
To understand the potential impact of this move, consider Realmuto’s performance last season: he slashed.257/.315/.384 with 12 home runs, 57 runs, 52 RBIs, a.700 OPS, and a 94 wRC+ in 550 plate appearances. He’s been an extremely durable catcher over his 12-year career, playing in at least 125 games in nine of those seasons. He posted a 2.1 fWAR, and defensively, he ranked in the 99th percentile in pop time (1.86 seconds), according to Baseball Savant.
By contrast, Connor Wong had a challenging season offensively, appearing in 63 games and recording 188 plate appearances. He slashed.190/.262/.238 with 16 runs, no home runs, and seven RBIs. The 29-year-old’s.500 OPS, 39 wRC+, and -0.7 fWAR were below Realmuto’s outputs.
The Red Sox recently signed Wong to a one-year, $1.375 million contract. He currently projects as the backup to Narváez, but has one minor league option left and two more seasons of team control. This flexibility allows the Red Sox to either send Wong to Triple-A Worcester if a new catching option joins the roster, or trade him to a team looking for a backup catcher.
Realmuto brings extensive experience that could benefit the Red Sox. If acquired, he could fill a backup or platoon role, while also potentially serving as a clubhouse leader and strong pitch caller for the team’s young pitching core, led by 2025 AL Cy Young Award runner-up Garrett Crochet and recent trade acquisition Sonny Gray. The primary starters—Crochet, Brayan Bello, and Connelly Early—are all under 27 and could benefit from Realmuto’s leadership.
Overall, it’s still early in the free agency period, when names often get thrown as nothing more than rumor-mill fodder. However, if this acquisition becomes a reality, the Red Sox would get a massive boost to their offense and run-prevention groups.