Mickey Gasper earning more catching time after hot Red Sox return

Mickey Gasper has done more than fill a roster spot since Boston brought him back from Triple-A Worcester. He has hit his way into a bigger role, and Chad Tracy is starting to trust him behind the plate as well, which turns a temporary call-up into something much more useful.

Boston recalled Gasper on May 7 after placing Roman Anthony on the 10-day injured list retroactive to May 5 with a right wrist sprain. The move opened the door for a 30-year-old switch-hitting catcher and first baseman from Merrimack, New Hampshire, who was claimed off waivers from the Washington Nationals on February 4. Gasper arrived with some big-league history already on his résumé, having played 45 games for the Minnesota Twins in 2025.

What has changed since he returned is the way Boston is using him. ESPN listed Gasper at .324 during this stretch, and MassLive noted he was up to .412, going 7-for-17, after his first few games back. That kind of production is hard to ignore on a Red Sox club that has spent much of the season searching for more runs and more lineup flexibility.

The catching usage matters just as much as the batting line. Gasper made his third start behind the plate this season on May 27, then was set for his fourth on May 28 against Braves right-hander Spencer Strider as Tracy tried to squeeze out offense. That is the real sign Boston is not treating him like a one-dimensional bench bat. Instead, the Red Sox are testing whether his bat can stay in the lineup while his glove handles a bigger share of the workload.

That is a notable shift for a player whose 2025 Twins usage was spread across four spots: 12 starts at catcher, eight at designated hitter, two at first base and two at second base. Boston appears to be leaning into that versatility rather than hiding it. MLB.com’s player page had already shown he could catch in the majors, and now the Red Sox are giving him a more meaningful chance to do it.

The timing also fits Tracy’s own path. He took over as interim manager on April 26 after Boston fired Alex Cora and five other coaches following a 10-17 start, then immediately reshaped the staff with Worcester voices like hitting coach Collin Hetzler and José David Flores. Tracy knows Gasper from his four-plus seasons managing Worcester, where he entered 2026 with a 323-295 record. That familiarity is now paying off in the majors, where Gasper is looking less like a stopgap and more like a legitimate piece.