Omar Narvaez

Narvaez remained the Brewers' primary catcher in 2021 after a disappointing first season in Milwaukee during the shortened 2020 campaign. Though his results didn't return to the peak level of 2018 and 2019, several of his key metrics rebounded enough to allow for reasonable fantasy production. Narvaez's flyball rate returned to above 40% and his strikeout rate fell back below 20%, with a corresponding return in home runs (11) and batting average (.266). While those things alone are enough to provide fantasy value at catcher, Narvaez was also a rarity in that he consistently held a premium spot in the Brewers' lineup. Of his 123 games, Narvaez hit between second and fifth on 86 occasions. As a result, he ranked ninth among catchers in runs scored and 14th in RBI. Needless to say the results aren't spectacular, but Narvaez reassured fantasy managers that he is capable of reasonable production given the position.

Narvaez was a painful reminder for Milwaukee and many fantasy managers that regression is real. Milwaukee acquired the catcher from Seattle in a trade to replace the loss of Yasmani Grandal in free agency. Narvaez was coming off a big offensive year in Seattle, but the advanced stats showed he was well out in front of his skis and the performance would be very tough to repeat in 2020. The Brewers did not have many choices to add a serviceable veteran catcher to replace Grandal, so they took the risk and it failed spectacularly. Narvaez looked overmatched most of the short season, and while he could still earn his walks, he struck out at an alarmingly high rate, and just about every offensive measure had him in the both 10th percentile of the league. Surprisingly, his defense was much better than in previous seasons. Don't let recency bias settle in, but a rebound to 2018 is more realistic than a repeat of 2019.

Traded last offseason in exchange for Alex Colome, Narvaez went on to achieve a ninth-place finish among fantasy catchers. His .278 BA ranked second behind only Wilson Ramos at the position (min. 250 PA), while his 119 wRC+ ranked fifth. Taking advantage of the livelier ball, Narvaez more than doubled his previous career high of nine homers set the previous season. He did most of his damage off the bat against righties, though he got on base at a great clip against southpaws (.379). The Statcast numbers look troubling at a glance, but Narvaez is a medium-hit, all-fields, line-drive machine with a high BA floor relative to the position. While Narvaez's defense and framing leave quite a bit to be desired and could affect his playing time following a December trade to Milwaukee, he was still plenty valuable in real life despite those deficiencies and the park upgrade keeps him very much in the C1 mix.

Narvaez was a diamond in the rough at a wasteland position. Over the final four months of 2018, Narvaez hit .315/.401/.502 with nine home runs in 203 at-bats. He sacrificed some contact for the uptick in power, but that's OK when the landing is a 20.2% K-rate. Narvaez walked at an 11.8% clip, and when it was all said and done, he had a 122 wRC+, which ranked fifth among catchers with 200 plate appearances, behind Wilson Ramos, J.T. Realmuto, Yasmani Grandal and Francisco Cervelli. The hard-hit rate won't wow anyone, but Narvaez had a 29.0% line-drive rate, which would seem to give him a nice batting-average floor. Batting average floor is perhaps the best thing a catcher can provide fantasy owners; many catchers, especially the cheap ones, actively hurt you by draining batting average. With the move from Chicago to Seattle in late November, Narvaez downgraded parks but went from a 50-50 timeshare to a primary role.

Coming off a serviceable major-league debut in 2016, Narvaez was slotted in as the White Sox's Opening Day catcher. Eventually, Narvaez found himself in a three-headed timeshare behind the plate with veterans Geovany Soto and Kevan Smith. After Soto went down with an injury in early May, Narvaez and Smith split the catching duties the rest of the way, each finishing the season with 73 starts to their name. In his sophomore season, Narvaez posted a league-average 100 wRC+ on a .277/.373/.340 slash line while also playing solid defense. His already low power numbers did take a hit, but he was able to increase his batting average by 10 points while continuing to walk at an excellent 12.9 percent clip. The 25-year-old will likely see fewer opportunities with Welington Castillo signing with the White Sox, and his lack of power greatly limits his fantasy appeal to begin with.

Narvaez hadn't played an inning above High-A in his career prior to 2016, but he made a much bigger impact than expected. He began the campaign with Double-A Birmingham, but he only played 13 games there before he was promoted to Triple-A Charlotte. Although his results were modest at best (.245 batting average, 11 RBI, 14 runs), injuries in Chicago helped the backstop get the call to the big leagues, where he fared surprisingly well. His .267 batting average in 101 at-bats was more than serviceable considering the circumstances, and he impressed many with his plate discipline by posting a strong 14:14 K:BB ratio over that span. He certainly doesn't have the prospect shine that newly drafted Zack Collins has, but at just 24 years old, Narvaez has some room to grow over the years as he continues to face upper-level pitching. He should compete for the starting gig out of spring training if he can maintain this strong showing at the plate.