Luis Aparicio, Dave Concepción, and Omar Vizquel were once the inspiration for a country that used to produce many infielders for MLB teams—a country that recently had 15 Venezuelan catchers simultaneously on active rosters.
Even Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora was surprised when he learned about that. He has witnessed the unexpected development of Carlos Narváez, who has become the starting catcher for the Boston Red Sox and turned himself into one of the best catchers in baseball.
«I was surprised when you said 15 catchers,» said manager Alex Cora at a press conference last week. «Very surprised. Back home, we developed catchers. We had Benito Santiago, Javy López, Sandy Alomar, the Molinas, and Yadier. In Venezuela, sports are cyclical. They have some good ones. Narvi is still learning—he’s having a good season. At some point, he’s going to struggle—hopefully not—but he’s going to learn from it. He’s a very good player.»
There was a rare coincidence in MLB, as reported by SportsVenezuela.com: 15 Venezuelan catchers were on active rosters at the same time until a few days ago, when the Chicago Cubs optioned Moises Ballesteros shortly after his MLB debut.
Still, 14 of them remain in the big leagues.
MLB clubs have spent nearly $30 million in signing bonuses on top Venezuelan amateur catchers over the past three years, with almost 20 young Venezuelan catchers receiving bonuses exceeding $1 million during that span.
«Venezuela was known for producing shortstops for many years,» an international scout said via text message. «But those players were typically great defenders who developed their offense over time. If they didn’t hit, it wasn’t a big deal back then. Now, you need to be a good hitter to compete at the MLB level.»
As a matter of fact, there are currently 14 catchers in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects ranking. Four of them were born in Venezuela, with the San Diego Padres’ Ethan Salas leading the group.
«Venezuelan baseball academies are making huge investments in developing catchers,» the scout added. «If a young player is athletic and shows offensive potential, they prefer to move him behind the plate rather than keep him at shortstop. If an agent has a good player who can hit and has soft hands, he’s usually moved to the catcher position, where they learn and often turn into great catchers.»
Baseball academies in Venezuela are prioritizing catchers
Salvador Pérez won five Gold Glove Awards between 2013 and 2018, and he seems to have inspired many young kids in Venezuela who now dream of following in his footsteps.
Before the Kansas City Royals captain, Henry Blanco also served as a role model for many aspiring players.
«Ramón Hernández, Yorvit Torrealba, and Blanco did a very good job,» said Mets catcher Francisco Álvarez to El Emergente during a recent trip to Boston. «Salvy was the one who definitely opened the way for us with his fantastic career. But when I was child, I was a big fan of Henry Blanco. He was called ‘El Capitán’ in Caracas. I always watched him behind the plate.»
Henry Blanco played 16 years in the Major Leagues and is arguably one of the top catchers in Venezuelan baseball history. He also played for Leones del Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League, where he served as team captain until 2008.
He is probably the biggest inspiration for all 14 Venezuelan catchers currently in MLB, as Carlos Narváez acknowledged a few days ago.
«They inspired us,» Luis Torrens added. «There are a lot of kids in Venezuela who want to be like Salvy.»
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«Henry helped me a lot with my leadership and the mental part of the game,» Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez told El Emergente earlier in May when asked about Blanco’s impact on him. «He taught me how to handle every situation.»
