Red Sox AA team Portland Sea Dogs Season Wrap-Up
Aug 7, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of a baseball and glove prior to a game between the Kansas City Royals and the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
The Red Sox upper minor leagues team suffered through a down year much like the big league club. Pawtucket had a down season in which they won just 59 and lost 83, a drop of 20 wins from the previous year. Portland met the same fate with their lackluster season of 53-89, after an outstanding 2014 campaign in which they won 88 games. The advancement of the big league club’s current players left the team with less talent which accounts for the disappointing 2015 results.
Let’s take a look at some of the more prominent players for this year’s Sea Dogs.
Oct 23, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; A general view of the press box before game one of the MLB baseball World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Hitters
Marco Hernandez put together an outstanding season for the Sea Dogs. Hernandez was acquired from the Chicago Cubs as compensation for when the Cubs hired Theo Epstein away from the Red Sox to be their President of Baseball Operations in 2012. The Dominican shortstop batted .326/.349/.482 with five homers and 31 RBI in 69 games for the Sea Dogs. In July, he was promoted to Pawtucket where he batted .271/.300/.409 in 46 games. With Bogaerts seemingly the Red Sox shortstop for years to come, he may have to switch positions to get major league experience in Boston.
Sam Travis is one step behind Hernandez. The Indiana University product was drafted in the second round of the 2014 draft by the Red Sox. One could consider him the best first base prospect in the Red Sox system. Travis started the year at High-A Salem where he slashed .313/378/.467 in 67 games there with five homers and 40 RBI. In late June, he was promoted to Portland where he continued to hit, posting a .300/.384.436 slash line with four homers and 38 RBI. The six foot, 195 pound Travis has a bit of speed as well, swiping 19 bases between the two levels of the minors. His lack of power may impede his progress, but that didn’t hurt Travis Shaw who has found his power stroke at the major league level (nine homers) after only five homers at Pawtucket this season.
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Manuel Margot is the most highly touted prospect of this group perhaps because he doesn’t turn 21 years old until September 28 of this year. Margot followed a similar path to Travis’ this year, starting the year at Salem and advancing to Portland, in the same week in June. Margot’s OPS was .741 in Salem then rose slightly to .745 in Portland. The young Dominican center fielder stole 39 bases this season, split almost evenly between the two levels (20 in Salem, 19 in Portland). Margot ended the season in spectacular fashion batting .441 with two doubles, three homers and 12 RBI to win player of the week honors in the Eastern League. His cycle in that week was the first in the history of Hadlock Field where the Sea Dogs play their home games. If Margot continues such hitting he could be at Fenway before the end of next season.
Mar 7, 2015; Sarasota, FL, USA; A general view of Ed Smith Stadium where the Baltimore Orioles play during a spring training baseball game against the Boston Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Pitchers
William Cuevas is a name Red Sox fans should know. The slightly built (six feet tall, 160 pounds) right handed pitching Venezuelan was 8-5 for Portland with a 3.40 ERA over 95.1 innings and 19 starts. This earned him a promotion to AAA Pawtucket where he performed even better, going 3-2 with a 2.63 ERA and just a .195 batting average against (29 hits allowed in 41 innings). While his three walks allowed per nine innings is a bit troubling, Cuevas success after his promotion is encouraging for the Red Sox when figuring out how their 2016 pitching staff turned out. Certainly they will be going after an ace, but with Cuevas in the wings, he could provide some depth when a fill-in is needed.
Robby Scott had an outstanding season at Portland in 2015, posting a 2.06 ERA in 43.2 innings and a .195 batting average against. Things were looking up for the lefthanded Florida State University product when he was promoted to Pawtucket for good in late July after bouncing between the teams throughout the season. After initially performing well, after the July promotion Scott had a terrible slump allowing 17 earned runs in nine innings over four appearances. Considering Scott ended the year with a 7.67 ERA in 31.2 innings at AAA, it is a mystery what his future might be in the Red Sox organization.
Aaron Wilkerson is attempting to become another Independent League success story. You will hear more about him on this site in the near future as he will be profiled more in depth as one of the Red Sox players going to this year’s Arizona Fall League. The six foot three inch righty made seven starts in Portland. Over 40.2 innings, he allowed just 28 hits and a 2.66 ERA.
Apr 13, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Baseball fans make their way along Yawkey Way before opening ceremonies at Fenway Park for the Boston Red Sox home opener against the Washington Nationals. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Disappointments
While this article has focused on players who had success for Portland this season, a losing season such as theirs was a result of some players that didn’t perform up to expectations. Here are a few of those youngsters who will hope to bounce back in 2016.
After a stellar performance in 2014 after his arrival in Portland late in the season (1.19 ERA over 37.2 innings), the Red Sox had reason to expect Justin Haley would continue to advance in the Red Sox system. The 2015 season was a difficult one for the six foot five inch righty as he struggled to a 5-16 record and 5.15 ERA in 27 starts for Portland. He could keep the ball in the ballpark, allowing just seven homers in 129 innings, but his .289 batting average against shows he was not fooling many hitters this season. The former Red Sox sixth round pick in 2012 hopefully can bounce back next season which promises to be a good one for Portland as stellar young talent gets to Portland on the way to the majors.
Luis Diaz was another Red Sox right handed starter who took a step back this season. After a 1.96 ERA over 101 innings in A ball in 2013, Diaz earned a promotion to Portland where he posted a 3.72 ERA over 77.1 innings in 2014. The 2015 season was a tough one for the 23 year old Venezuelan who posted similar numbers to Haley’s, 2-10 record and a 5.47 ERA. Diaz struck out just 86 in 136.2 innings. The Red Sox certainly hope for a better season next year for the right hander.
While not having as poor a season as the previous two players mentioned, Carlos Asuaje‘s 2015 disappointment perhaps tempered the Red Sox high hopes for the Venezuelan third baseman. 2014 was a spectacular one for Asuaje, posting a .927 OPS with 65 extra base hits and 101 RBI in 129 games in A ball last season. A promotion to Portland for the 2015 season has not proved to be the meteoric rise the Red Sox likely hoped for. Asuaje posted just a .708 OPS driving in 61 runs in 130 games for the Sea Dogs. The 2011 11th round pick will need to adjust to AA pitching better next year if he hopes to advance to Fenway in his career.
Looking Ahead
While the Red Sox cannot be happy with the team records from the top two levels of their farm system, the performance of their young players this season shows that the minors develop young players that can contribute, and even excel at the major league level. This year may have been a bad one for the Portland Sea Dogs, but the players at the lower levels will be coming next year some time, so this is definitely a temporary situation. The Portland Sea Dogs will be a force next year. Count on it.