The Crimson Sox are exhibiting curiosity in free agent catcher J.T. Realmuto, per a report from Ken Rosenthal and Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic, although they be aware that there’s nonetheless an expectation Realmuto will re-sign with the Phillies.
Realmuto has been the most effective catchers of current historical past, if not the perfect. He has been a mainstay within the huge leagues for over a decade now. From 2015 to 2025, he appeared in at the least 125 video games in all however one full season. The one exception was 2024, when a knee damage restricted him to 99 contests. For that 11-year span, he led the majors amongst major catchers with 1,362 video games performed and 36.7 wins above alternative, in response to FanGraphs.
The query now’s what he might be sooner or later. He’ll flip 35 years outdated in March. In 2025, he slashed .257/.315/.384. That resulted in a 94 wRC+, indicating he was 6% beneath league common. That’s nonetheless satisfactory for a catcher however it was the primary time Realmuto completed beneath the century mark since 2015. His glovework additionally appears to have tailed off a bit, per retailers like FanGraphs, Statcast and Baseball Prospectus. He can nonetheless throw out tried base stealers and is respectable by way of blocking however all retailers agree his framing has been subpar for the previous three seasons.
Flaws apart, Realmuto continues to be the highest free agent catcher this winter. MLBTR predicted him to land a two-year, $30MM deal, although a three-year isn’t completely out of the query. Different in the marketplace embrace Victor Caratini and Danny Jansen. The Rangers lately added Jonah Heim to the pile once they non-tendered him final week.
Many within the baseball world count on Realmuto to finish up again in Philadelphia. He has been with the Phillies since 2019 and has already re-signed with them as a free agent as soon as. As talked about within the report from The Athletic, his household owns a house in Clearwater, Florida, the spring coaching house of the Phillies. Whereas Realmuto is a free agent, the Phils at the moment have Rafael Marchán and Garrett Stubbs as their high catchers. They must do one thing to enhance their catching corps. Nevertheless, the Phils have a bunch of different priorities this winter. Additionally they wish to re-sign Kyle Schwarber and remake their outfield.
For the Crimson Sox, there’s little hurt in checking in to see if there’s an opportunity they will pry Realmuto away, as their catching group might be strengthened. Carlos Narváez had a pleasant rookie season in 2025 however he’s nonetheless pretty inexperienced and trailed off because the season went alongside. He hit .241/.306/.419 for a 97 wRC+ for the entire yr however simply .187/.233/.387 for a 64 wRC+ within the second half. Connor Wong appeared to take a step ahead in 2024 however then hit simply .190/.262/.238 in 2025.
Each of these catchers are nonetheless optionable, so it’s potential for the Sox to signal Realmuto and bump one all the way down to Triple-A as depth. Realmuto’s right-handed bat would match properly on a lineup that leans left-handed proper now, although Narváez and Wong are additionally righties. It’s additionally potential the Sox could be drawn to Realmuto as a veteran clubhouse chief for a staff that skews younger and inexperienced.
The Sox should stability that pursuit with different priorities. One huge goal for them this winter was to bolster the rotation and so they acquired Sonny Grey from the Cardinals earlier right now. They’ll most likely search for extra pitching and will attempt to re-sign Alex Bregman.
RosterResource initiatives the Sox for a $177MM payroll and $223MM aggressive stability tax determine. Final yr, these numbers completed at $207MM and $245MM. That would give them one thing like $20-3oMM to play with if they’re prepared to spend equally in 2026, although it’s potential their playoff berth in 2025 prompts them to push issues up increased.
Their means to pursue a notable catching improve will depend upon what they must spend and the way issues proceed with their different targets. Even when they will’t pluck Realmuto from Philadelphia, maybe they are going to flip to among the different accessible backstops.
Photograph courtesy of Kyle Ross, Imagn Photos
