Carlos

Narváez

Narváez’s one out was a 100-mph drive to center, and his second hit left his bat at 110.3 mph, which would have been the fourth hardest-hit ball of his career. Narváez dealt with knee problems and faded after a strong first half last year, which caused the Red Sox to flirt with bringing in a quality alternative at catcher over the winter. That hasn’t happened, though, and Narváez has a chance to be useful in two-catcher leagues.

Once again, Roman Anthony is in the leadoff spot, he’s just serving as the designated hitter while Jarren Duran patrols the outfield. The only difference between Sunday’s lineup and what the team had been expected to use on Opening Day is Isiah Kiner-Falefa is in there at second base while Marcelo Mayer is riding the pine. He really will need to earn his spot this spring. Here’s the full lineup for Sunday: Roman Anthony (DH), Trevor Story (SS), Jarren Duran (LF), Willson Contreras (1B), Wilyer Abreu (RF), Caleb Durbin (3B), Ceddanne Rafaela (CF), Carlos Narvaez (C), Isiah Kiner-Falefa (2B).

Narváez was battling the injury for most of the second half of the season but continued to play through it. That, combined with this being his first MLB season, led to a significant drop-off in production in the second half, where Narváez hit .187/.233/.387 with seven home runs and 19 RBI in 161 plate appearances. When evaluating him for next year, it’s probably more beneficial to consider his first half, where he hit .273/.347/.439 with eight home runs in 285 plate appearances. That will keep him as a solid option in two-catcher formats.

There was some thought that the Red Sox would have Connor Wong start behind the plate with Brayan Bello on the mound, but Boston instead will roll out the same lineup as they did in Game 1. That full lineup: Rob Refsnyder DH, Trevor Story SS, Alex Bregman 3B, Romy Gonzalez 1B, Narváez C, Nate Eaton RF, Jarren Duran LF, Ceddanne Rafaela CF, and Eric Sogard 2B.

The 26-year-old backstop capped off a six-run uprising in the first inning with a 403-foot (105.7 mph EV) solo shot off of Will Warren. It would be his only hit in three at-bats on the night, but it would go a long way toward helping the Red Sox secure a victory. For the season, he’s now hitting .249/.319/.430 with 14 homers, 45 RBI and one stolen base over 412 plate appearances on the season.

Narváez has been pretty quiet offensively while dealing with knee soreness for much of the second half, but he had multiple extra-base hits tonight for the first time since July 23. Even if he doesn’t hit much the rest of the way, it’s still been a very successful rookie season for the 26-year-old, and he’ll surely remain a regular in 2026.

Narváez put the Red Sox on the board with a solo homer off Johan Oviedo to lead off the third inning. He later drew a walk in the fifth. The 26-year-old backstop is up to 12 homers, 46 runs scored, and 40 RBI while slashing .244/.316/.414 across 375 plate appearances.

Narváez led off the third inning with a base hit and scored Boston’s first run of the game. He then took Shawn Dubin deep for a three-run homer in the sixth. The 26-year-old backstop is hitting .250/.320/.418 with ten homers, 43 runs scored, and 36 RBI across 339 plate appearances.

Narváez was held out of the lineup the previous four games due to soreness in his knee, though he came off the bench to catch the final two innings on Sunday. He’ll bat ninth against Astros’ right-hander Cristian Javier on Monday evening in Houston.

Narváez was out of the starting lineup for a fourth straight game with knee soreness, but he was feeling well enough to allow the Red Sox to pinch-hit for Connor Wong in the seventh. We’ll have to wait and see if he’s in the starting lineup Monday against the Astros.