Pawtucket Red Sox
Just 45 miles from Fenway lies McCoy Stadium. This is the closest full-season affiliate for the Red Sox (Lowell is closer to Boston, but play short-season). While Double-A usually is filled with the most talent, Pawtucket has some good players who are knocking on the door.
The third best prospect in the system, Sam Travis, is playing everyday at first base in Pawtucket. He showed some flashes of greatness in Spring Training by hitting a couple of home runs. Now, Travis is not going to be taking Mitch Moreland‘s job anytime soon. He tore his ACL less than a full year ago.
Last night, Travis was involved in yet another injury scare. He collided with Blake Swihart in foul ground, and had to be removed from the game. You can see the collision below.
Now while that collision didn’t look that serious, it is not something Red Sox fans want to see. Travis is poised to be the everyday first baseman in 2018, and the last thing anyone wants to see is another injury sideline this future player.
Speaking of injuries, another prospect was injured this week in Pawtucket. Brian Johnson, the No. 11 prospect in the system, was hit with a comeback line drive in his first start of the year. Johnson, who has been plagued by injuries since the middle of 2015, has had some very bad luck over the last 20 or so months. With that being said, this injury was not serious, and Johnson will make his next scheduled start.
If David Price is out for a considerable amount of time, and there is another injury to the rotation, Johnson is something that could be called up to make a spot start. Hopefully he can pitch well, if given the opportunity, and try to get some of the expectations of his career back to what it was 2 years ago.