Chicago White Sox: Omar Narvaez Must be Starting Catcher
The Chicago White Sox must let 25-year-old Omar Narvaez become a full-time starting catcher.
It is no longer a secret. The Chicago White Sox are in a clear rebuilding situation. Rick Hahn and company did a nice job of landing impact future pieces in exchange for Chris Sale and Adam Eaton over the offseason, signaling the much-needed rebuild.
Guys like Yoan Moncada, Lucas Giolito and Michael Kopech are undoubtedly going to help this team in the long-term, but they are not going to do much for the White Sox in 2017. Wins do not matter for the White Sox this season because they know that they are going to be few and far between. The most important part of the 2017 season for the Chicago White Sox is player progression.
Being in the lineup on a daily basis is the best way for players to improve. When the opportunity arises, the White Sox must give players who could have long-term value a chance to compete. Let’s look at the catcher position for an obvious example.
On one hand, the White Sox have veteran Geovany Soto, who is a perfectly respectable .246/.331/.435 career hitter. Soto has had a solid career as a major league backstop, showing above average defensive skills, good plate discipline and some raw power. However, at 34-years-old, Soto is not going to be relevant when the White Sox are good again.
Instead of wasting valuable starts on the aging Soto, the Chicago White Sox should get a good long look at Omar Narvaez in 2017. Narvaez made his big league debut with the White Sox last season, hitting .267/.350/.337 in 117 plate appearances.
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What immediately stood out in Narvaez’ time in the big leagues was his plate discipline. He walked 14 times and was also struck out 14 times. A one-to-one walk-to-strikeout ratio is incredibly impressive. We are obviously talking about an extremely small sample size, but plate discipline is a skill that is easy to spot in even small doses.
A guy with a good eye is going to work a good at-bat a majority of the time no matter what. Luck is always going to play a role, but Narvaez is the kind of player who will put himself in a good position to be productive at the plate.
With little power and average at best defensive skills, Narvaez is a bit of a one-trick pony. His plate discipline is his only major strength as a big league player. That being said, it is a great skill to have. If he can just find some power and be an average big league defensive catcher, Narvaez is going to be an extremely valuable big league catcher.
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At only 25-years-old, Narvaez at least has a chance to become a useful player down the line. The same cannot be said for Soto. If nothing else, the White Sox should see what they have in their young catcher, giving him a full-time opportunity to prove himself in the big leagues.