Latest news with #ConnorWong
CBS News
4 days ago
- Sport
- CBS News
Carlos Narvaez considered bunting before hitting key homer for Red Sox in win over Yankees
Red Sox catcher Carlos Narvaez made his return to Yankee Stadium over the weekend, and had one of the biggest swings for Boston in Sunday night's 11-7 victory in the Bronx. It was a swing that almost didn't happen. Narvaez went yard in the top of the sixth, smacking a three-run shot off Yankees starter Carlos Rodon to put the Red Sox ahead, 5-3. It was part of a five-run inning for Boston, and the Red Sox ended up taking two out of three from the first-place Yankees in the weekend set. It was a special moment for Narvaez, who spent nearly a decade as a Yankees prospect before he was acquired by the Red Sox over the offseason. Boston swung a trade for Narvaez shortly after prospect Kyle Teel was dealt away in the package for ace Garrett Crochet, though his acquisition didn't garner much attention at the time. Narvaez has been great for Boston since he arrived. He won a spot on the Opening Day roster as the backup backstop to Connor Wong, and took over as Boston's everyday catcher when Wong was lost to a finger injury in April. The 26-year-old has been one of the bright spots on a disappointing Red Sox team so far. He's become Boston's everyday cleanup hitter and through 50 games, Narvaez is now slashing .282/.361/.459 with six homers, 12 doubles, 22 RBI, and 28 runs scored. But his big swing Sunday night almost didn't happen for a couple of reasons. First up, Boston manager Alex Cora nearly sat Narvaez for the series finale after he caught the first two games. He was 0-for-6 with three walks in the first two games, so Cora considered giving him a rest. Instead, he let Narvaez play and it paid off in a big way. "He put together some good at-bats, went the other way, worked the count and he pulled it in the air and that was a huge one for us," Cora said of Narvaez's homer. Second, Narvaez considered bunting when he initially stepped to the dish. Rafael Devers and Rob Refsnyder were on base with no outs, and Narvaez thought about moving them over with a bunt. He even discussed the approach with third-base coach Kyle Hudson before his at-bat. "I was like, 'OK, I'm just going to be aggressive.' And then that happened," Narvaez explained. "I found myself in a two-strike approach, just put the ball in play. I'm happy I found some barrel and then we came back and won the game." Falling behind in the count was the best thing that could have happened to Narvaez, whose homer went 372 feet to left field and sparked the Boston comeback. For the former Yankees prospect, going yard against his old team -- and having the blast play a big part in the victory -- made for an evening he won't soon forget. "Something special, but more because we found a way to get back in the game," said Narvaez. "The homer was huge for us."
CBS News
06-06-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Carlos Narvaez ready to see the other side of Red Sox-Yankees rivalry
Carlos Narvaez has been one of the few bright spots with the Boston Red Sox this season, emerging as the team's everyday catcher and current cleanup hitter. This weekend, he'll get his first taste of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry from the Boston side of things. He knows plenty about one of the best rivalries in sports, but his previous perspective is much different than the one the 26-year-old currently holds. Before arriving in Boston over the winter, Narvaez spent nine years in the Yankees organization after signing with New York as an international free agent in 2015. He made his Major League debut with the Yankees 11 months ago, and though he only played in six games in the big leagues, he was around the team during its run to the World Series. This weekend, he'll see many of his former teammates and friends when they step to the plate against Boston in the Bronx. "It's going to be a lot of emotions, of course," Narvaez told WBZ-TV's Joe Weil. "Last year when I made my debut, I never expected being traded. ... I'm super proud being able to wear both uniforms." That the Red Sox got such a key contributor on the 2025 squad from the hated Yankees is an added bonus. The backstop was acquired last December for pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, and made Boston's Opening Day roster as Connor Wong's backup. Narvaez took over behind the plate on a fulltime basis when Wong fractured his pinkie in early April, and has been great for Boston since. Through 47 games, Narvaez is slashing .288/.356/.456 with an .812 OPS to go along with five home runs, a dozen doubles, 19 RBI, and 24 runs scored. He's also displayed some excellent defense behind the plate. Narvaez said he remembers everything about his MLB debut at Yankee Stadium last year. He was told to grab a bat in the bottom of the ninth with New York trailing the Tampa Bay Rays, 9-1. With the count at 2-2 against Kevin Kelly, Narvaez ripped a single to right field. "It was a big day for me, like it is for every guy," recalled Narvaez. "I got goosebumps. ... That was cool after nine years in the minors, I got to make my debut at Yankee Stadium." Despite his short stint in the Majors last year, Narvaez said he learned a lot in 2024. He continued to clean up his game and develop in Winter Ball, and he's now using everything he learned last season in his first year with Boston. "I'm happy because [last year's work is] paying off right now," he said. "But at the same time we have to, as a group, find a way to win games."
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Some Things I Think I Think: Exactly one month in, Red Sox are a disappointment
*The 2025 MLB season is exactly a month old Sunday, and while that's too soon to make any overarching conclusions about how this season is going to turn out, it's not too soon to say that the Red Sox are, to date, a disappointment. After Saturday's doubleheader, they sit a game above .500. No one expected them to run away from the rest of the division in the first four weeks. But neither did anybody think they would be this stuck in the mud, either. Advertisement Some issues are familiar, like the leaky infield defense. Some are somewhat surprising, like the inconsistent starting pitching. And then there are failings that make little sense, like the team's perpetual struggles with runners in scoring position, with the team buried in the bottom third in that category. They can't very well use injuries as an excuse, given that they've been remarkably healthy when it comes to position players (only Connor Wong has missed significant time and he's due back any day). Meanwhile, the Orioles pitching staff resembles a MASH unit and the Yankees have lost their best starter for the year and their DH for half the season. And while it's true that the Sox began the year with half of their rotation on the IL, Richard Fitts and Hunter Dobbins have performed well as occasional spot starters. The two biggest offseason acquisitions — Garrett Crochet and Alex Bregman — have been every bit as good as advertized. The other newcomers — Walker Buehler and Aroldis Chapman — have been generally quality additions. Rookie Kristian Campbell has exceeded all expectations. Still, something is off. Advertisement Five full months remain on the schedule, and there's more than enough time to turn things around. It's not as if the Red Sox have buried themselves in the AL East. But the Red Sox shouldn't wait too much longer. And you have to wonder if soon, there might be the temptation to promote Roman Anthony and/or Marcelo Mayer to jumpstart a team that can't seem to get going. *In retrospect, the Patriots saw free agency — with one notable exception — as a way to address their defensive shortcomings and the draft as a means to improve their offensive holes. *We shouldn't take pleasure in someone else's discomfort, but let's face it: Shedeur Sanders brought a lot of this upon himself, with some help from his overbearing father, of course. Advertisement It will be a while until we know whether team after team erred in passing up on him. But this much we already know: his bravado was, at the very least off-putting, right down to constructing his own set — decorated in dollar signs — in his home to conduct TV interviews. And warning teams that he would change their culture, before taking a snap as a pro, was likely pretty off-putting to teams. Whatever the reasoning, we can toss out racism as a factor. Discrimination, sadly, exists in every walk of life, but this isn't an example. Sanders fell victim to a lack of humility, as much as anything else. Also: calm down, Mel Kiper Jr. *The Bruins owe Joe Sacco an apology. Their insistence, in their season-ending press conference, that he's still in the mix to be hired as the team's coach was disingenuous at best. If the Bruins wanted to remove the interim tag, they could have already done so. Pretending that he's still in consideration to be their next coach is beneath them, and Sacco deserves better. Advertisement *I suppose it doesn't matter in the long run, but the Celtics' inability to sweep teams they obviously outclass continues. A team that played nearly .750 ball during the regular season has no business losing games to one that struggled to finish at .500. Given the health issues that surround their roster, every extra game the Celts have to play could come back to bite them as the playoffs wind along. *Earl Weaver, who constantly preached the importance of 'pitching and three-run homers,' would love the 2025 Red Sox. Or half-love them, anyway. The Red Sox already have 10 three-run homers after hitting 19 all of last season. Meanwhile, if it's grand slams you're looking for, find another team. The Sox haven't had a bases-loaded homer since Aug. 19, 2023 when the Sultan of Swat, Luis Urias, hit one in Yankee Stadium. Advertisement *I'm not sure that Cam Neely's insistence on relitigating the disastrous Bruins' 2015 first-round draft decisions was his best decision. *It's kind of funny, when you think about it, that The Who (temporarily) fired drummer Zak Starkey for being too loud and out of control. Isn't this the same band who once employed Keith Moon in that same seat? *The decision to play Kristian Campbell in the outfield mystifies me, especially since it seems driven by making sure David Hamilton gets more reps at second. Hamilton is a fine baserunner and an elite defender, but he also has a career OPS+ of 77. A start every once in a while to give Campbell a breather makes sense, but moving him to another position to accommodate Hamilton seems more than a little strange. *There are few things more awkward (or unnecessary) than having Jonathan Kraft annually poses for pictures with the Patriots' first-round pick. Advertisement *Call it MLB's bad luck: Paul Skenes looks to be a generational talent, but he happens to pitch for a non-competitive, small-market team, reducing his visibility. It's not like the Pittsburgh Pirates are going to show up on the Game of the Week much, or ESPN's Sunday Night Basebal. *Once again, for the people in the back: Despite what's being said by Bruins executives, it's hardly a given that once a team falls out of the playoff structure, it can easily get back in the following season. Try telling that to fans of the Detroit Red Wings (nine straight seasons out of the postseason) and Chicago Blackhawks (eight years and counting). *RIP to former ESPN play-by-play man Mike Patrick, whose no-nonsense, down-the-middle calls of NFL and college football games now, sadly, seem like from another era. Patrick, at a time when ESPN was establishing itself, was a rarity in that he didn't make the broadcast about himself. More Red Sox coverage Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
27-03-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Happy Opening Day! Here's your Red Sox-Rangers preview.
The new addition will get the ball as Boston's Opening Day starter as the season begins in Arlington, Texas, with a 4:05 p.m. EDT first pitch. Crochet is excited for a new beginning with a hopeful contender after pitching for the lowly White Sox last season. He went 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA and 209 strikeouts in 32 starts. The 25-year-old lefty dominated this spring, striking out 30 with a 0.57 ERA in 15 ⅔ innings. But he made an all-around first impression. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'It's special stuff,' catcher Connor Wong said. 'Being on the other side, you knew he just had very nasty (stuff), but he takes a lot of time working on it and preparing and he has a really good idea of what he wants to do.' Advertisement The Rangers, who won the 2023 World Series but were barely competitive last season, hope their young arms can step up while a few pitchers are on the injured list. Here's your preview. Lineups RED SOX (0-0): TBA Pitching: LHP Garrett Crochet RANGERS (0-0): TBA Pitching: RHP Nathan Eovaldi Time: 4:05 p.m. TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Red Sox vs. Eovaldi: Wilyer Abreu 1-2, Alex Bregman 4-15, Triston Casas 0-2, Rafael Devers 2-8, Jarren Duran 2-3, David Hamilton 1-4, Ceddanne Rafaela 0-2, Rob Refsnyder 0-3, Trevor Story 1-3, Connor Wong 3-7 Rangers vs. Crochet: Jake Burger 1-3, Adolis García 2-4, Jonah Heim 0-4, Kyle Higashioka 0-2, Wyatt Langford 0-1, Marcus Semien 1-2, Josh Smith 1-2 Stat of the day: Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer — now a Toronto Blue Jay — were limited to just 12 combined starts for Texas last season. Notes: The Corey Seager-led offense that helped Texas win in 2023 was nowhere to be found last season. Seager was active most of the spring following sports hernia surgery last September but missed Monday's exhibition game with 'a little tightness' in his calf, according to manager Bruce Bochy. 'We'll make sure we take care of him before we open up here,' Bochy said. ... The addition of designated hitter Joc Pederson provides some pop. ... Cody Bradford and Jon Gray are missing from the starting rotation to begin the season. Eovaldi is healthy, but beyond Tyler Mahle on Friday, the rotation carries some uncertainty. Former Vanderbilt stars Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker will fill the last two spots. The duo has considerable upside but only a combined nine major league starts on their resume. 'I love the talent we have. There are going to be some bumps in the road with young pitchers, I get that. They've got to go through that at the big league level,' Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young said. 'We've got to balance those things with veteran players who know how to take the ball and go out and compete.' Advertisement Katie McInerney can be reached at
