Red Sox Prospect Watch: Spring Training is in Full Swing
Certain Boston Red Sox players have left for the World Baseball Classic, opening up the doors for prospects to get their chance to make a mark.
Due to the World Baseball Classic, some members of the Boston Red Sox have left camp to represent their countries. Xander Bogaerts has joined the Netherlands team, while both Fernando Abad and Eduardo Rodriguez are trying to win it all for their homeland.
Due to their absence, there is now more playing time for younger players that could benefit from MLB-caliber experience. There are certain players, like Sam Travis, who have already been crushing the ball this spring. The counter to that is certain players like Brian Johnson who have continued to under-perform.
All of these statistics have to be taken with a grain of salt. For most pitchers, Spring Training is a place where they are able to work on pitches they might not have full control of. Also, they might be trying to refine a current pitch they have, or starting a new pitch sequence with their catcher. And the same argument for pitchers can carry over for position players. Most of these guys are not seeing the best types of pitches, or a pitch sequence that is very easy to predict.
With that being said, Spring Training is somewhere that a young player can start getting into a rhythm that can carry over into the regular season. The number one young player that Boston would like to carry his hot start is also the number one prospect in baseball: Andrew Benintendi.
Andrew Benintendi
The last month or so of the 2016 Red Sox season was more or less a big disappointment. The team limped into the playoffs after a hot July and August. With their first playoff birth since they won the World Series in 2013, it ended almost as quick as it started. The Cleveland Indians swept the Sox in 3 games, and it was borderline embarrassing.
But, one of the very few bright spots of those couple weeks were the debut and emergence of Andrew Benintendi. Now that he has spent a small amount of time in the big leagues, 2017 is his first full season in the majors. And if the Grapefruit League is any indication of how he will perform this year, Boston might have the best outfield in baseball.
Benintendi has been absolutely spraying the ball, hitting .444 in six games so far. Add in the fact he has hit two long-balls and four home runs, and you can see Benintendi has the ability to hit the ball all over the field.
Currently, Benintendi is projected to hit roughly .285 with roughly 11 home runs and 60 RBI’s. Personally, I think that is a very fair projection. Benintendi should be hitting in the two spot of the lineup, and that is not very conducive to driving in a lot of runs. But, with Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia probably sandwiching him in the lineup, it is going to be hard to not go after Benintendi. If anything, he will get better pitches to hit than either of the guys next to him.
While Benintendi is losing his prospect status within the first two weeks of this season, he is still considered a prospect under the current rules of MLB. And for a fleeting moment, the Red Sox are very happy they have the best prospect in baseball.
With Bogaerts leaving for the World Baseball Classic, some new players are going to be called upon in order to fill his spot. Two of the position-player prospects on the 40-man roster are Marco Hernandez and Deven Marrero.
Marco Hernandez is a very intriguing player. He is someone who could play all infield positions expect for first base, and could be an emergency corner outfielder. While he is someone with the ability to play multiple positions, the Red Sox already have Brock Holt. Even so, Dave Dombrowski could value the versatility of someone like Hernandez.
Hernandez has had a very productive spring, hitting .389 with a double and a triple. And while the spring is a small sample size, Hernandez has the 5th most at-bats for the Red Sox. Hernandez has hit mostly singles in his time in the Grapefruit League, but that is expected. Marco has never been known for his power. If Hernandez can keep the singles and occasional extra-base hits coming, he should find his way to Boston at some point this year.
If you think that Marco Hernandez is having a good spring, Marrero is having an even better one. Marrero will probably never be a starter for Boston, as Bogaerts and Pedroia both factor into the present and future. Still, seeing the production that he has had this spring, it is a giant step in the right direction.
Marrero is hitting .429 with 3 doubles. Also, only Hanley Ramirez has more at-bats on the team than Marrero. While Marrero is essentially a shoe-in to start the season in Pawtucket, he does have an outside shot to make the team if an injury was to occur. And even if those scenarios don’t happen, he could be increasing his value to another organization.
Pitchers
What a wild week it has been in Boston in terms of pitchers. Roughly a week ago today, the news came that David Price needed an MRI on his elbow. Which we all know is the precursor to Tommy John surgery. This was escalated when Price took a flight to Indianapolis to meet with Dr. James Andrews, who is basically Mr. Tommy John at this point.
Surprisingly, he didn’t need surgery. Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe sent out one tweet that made Red Sox Nation step off the ledge:
Breaking: No surgery for #RedSox LHP David Price. Rest and medication. Farrell calls it best case scenario. 7-10 days off for him.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) March 3, 2017
Now it is more probable than not that Price will not start the season on the Red Sox roster. That opens up another roster spot for a pitcher, and two guys who could get that spot are Brian Johnson and Robby Scott.
Boy, would I love to go back to the days where Brian Johnson was thought of as being a great pitching prospect. But that was 3 years ago, and he has been on a downward spiral ever since. Currently, Johnson has a 5.79 ERA, and an alarming 1:1 strikeout to walk ratio. But, Johnson might be a candidate for a spot start here and there this upcoming season.
Robby Scott is more intriguing. Scott made his MLB debut last September, and had a small amount of success. He has continued it in Fort Myers, as he has pitched four shutout innings this spring. With Carson Smith still not back from his Tommy John surgery in June, Scott might be able to take one of those bullpen spots to start the year.
Also, Tyler Thornburg has struggled mightily this spring. I’m not saying that Thornburg is going to struggle when the season starts, but this could open up Scott to pitch in more high-leverage situations. If Scott can prove himself in Boston again this year, it could be another weapon that would bolster Boston’s bullpen.
Non-Roster Invitees
The best part of Spring Training is seeing the young players who are still not MLB-ready, but can gain valuable experience. Sam Travis is trying to prove that while he is very young, he also is ready to start his major league career. Travis is hitting .313 in the Spring, with a great .875 slugging percentage. That slugging percentage is good enough to be 3rd best on the team. Travis has gotten 5 hits, and those 5 hits have all been for extra bases.
Travis shares the team lead in home runs, and it is not surprising to see at all. Also, he was projected to hit roughly 25 home runs last year in Pawtucket before he torn his ACL in May. His other two hits? Two doubles, both which were absolutely crushed. One of his doubles in featured below.
While Mitch Moreland and Hanley will more than likely play first base for all of 2017, it is pretty much assumed that Travis will be the everyday first baseman for 2018 and going forward. Also, there is a chance that Travis can play in Boston this year if the circumstances are right. If Pablo Sandoval either gets injured, or plays like he did in 2015, Travis could play third base this year. Whenever he comes up, he will provide a lot of power to the lineup.
Speaking of third base, it has been somewhat of a tough position to fill in Boston. Whether it was the over-hyped Will Middlebrooks, the disappointing Pablo Sandoval, or the recently traded Travis Shaw. This position has been a pitfall of the Boston Red Sox. But, the third baseman of the future is only a couple years away. Rafael Devers, the best prospect in the system come May, has struggled this spring.
Next: Sandoval quietly having a great spring
Devers is currently hitting .091, as he has gotten 1 hit in 11 at-bats. Clearly, that is not great. But, Devers is only 20 years old, and is slated to spend most of the season in Portland. He is probably not going to be ready until 2018, and will not play everyday for 2 years. Even so, he has great power all over the field, and can make some great plays at third.