Red Sox prospects of the past and where they have landed

The Boston Red Sox farm system has produced successes and failures. This is a look at those I once thought would shine.

Prospect rankings are like astrology in that they are fun to read, but don’t take them seriously.  Maybe I should qualify that a bit?  The top ten or even top five prospects in a system invariably surface to play in the majors and most will have a degree of success that can range from a Mookie Betts possible superstar to the forgettable. Now a new crop has been drafted and signed by the Boston Red Sox.

I will now venture into the forgettable department with a bit of personal notation attached. This will be some in the Red Sox system who even had the cherished number one position in the prospect rankings. Each player made a positive impression upon me as I saw them either in Boston or at Pawtucket.  One was acquired by trade and easily vaulted to the upper level in the Red Sox rankings.

Others were traded away as the Red Sox either gave up or saw an opportunity that they could not let pass.  The opportunity part we have seen of late with the flurry of prospects sent elsewhere for established players.

Daniel Bard

Right-hander Daniel Bard could throw about as hard as anyone and I pictured him as the Red Sox closer for possibly well into the second decade of the 21^st century. As the Red Sox years slipped by, so did Bard’s fastball velocity from 97.8 MPH in 2010 to 93.4 in 2013. In 2012 the future issue was clear with a 6.5 BB/9 against a 5.8 K/9.

Bard had a brief winter league season in Puerto Rico with a three-game stint and an 189.00 ERA. Nine walks and eight runs in 0.1 innings. The next season at Hickory in the South Atlantic League Bard lowered his ERA to 175.00.

Bard started 2017 with Double-A Springfield – a Cardinals minor league team.  Bard “found” his control with just 19 walks in 8.2 innings pitched (sarcasm meter off). The Cards have released him, but the New York Mets have signed him. Good luck.

Garin Cecchini

Garin Cecchini showed some hitting potential with a brief 31 at-bat visit to the Red Sox in 2014. The average in that small sample was .253, but the swing was nice.  I actually had visions of Alex Gordon when I saw the left-handed hitting Cecchini at Boston and Pawtucket. That never materialized.

Cecchini moved around for Boston as they attempted to open up a position other than third base. Versatility often translates into opportunity, but that has not worked well for Cecchini who has played third, first base and the outfield. . Cecchini is now with the Royals Triple-A team in Omaha playing third base.

At 26-years-old Cecchini still has an opportunity to make it back, but based on what has transpired the last three seasons that is doubtful.

Ryan Lavarnway

A right-handed power hitter at Fenway Park – the dream of all Red Sox fans and it would most certainly become true with Ryan Lavarnway. Split between Pawtucket and Portland in 2011 Lavarnway hammer 32 home runs and was just 23-year-old.

Lavarnway was – as a bonus – a catcher, but could play first and DH. Lavarnway got a taste of the majors in 2011 with Boston and hit .231 with a pair of home runs.  The sample was small, but the promise was there. As the sample got larger the promise got smaller and Lavarnway faded from the picture.

Baltimore, Atlanta, Toronto and now Oakland all have had Lavarnway hopes.  This season he is at Nashville in the Pacific Coast League hitting in the .270 range.

Ryan Kalish

I saw Ryan Kalish at Pawtucket and was impressed with his glovework and speed.  A left-handed hitter with some nice line drive power. At 22-years-old Kalish got the call to Boston in 2010 and did a creditable job.  His final average was .252 in 53 games.

Kalish gave a glimpse of his speed during that introductory season with 10 steals in 11 attempts. Tack on four home runs and 24 RBI and left field would be his in 2011. I saw Kalish and thought of him as a Trot Nixon clone – a real dirt dog.

A bad shoulder in 2011 started the potential downfall and his stats just started to deteriorate. Toronto invited Kalish to camp in 2014 only to be released. The Cubs signed Kalish twice and he played for Chicago in 2014 and 2016 hitting .250 in 64 games.

A first round selection for the Red Sox in the 2010 draft Anthony Ranaudo made it to Boston in 2014 for seven starts. The results were not a disaster and some promise was there with a 4-3 record and 4.81 ERA. That was an illusion.

I had seen the 6’7” Ranaudo in several starts in Pawtucket in 2014 when he finished 14-4. His size, sinking fastball, and secondary pitches reminded me of a long ago Red Sox pitcher – Don Schwall. Both had questionable control, but a deadly sinker.

The Red Sox traded Ranaudo to Texas for Robbie Ross and now Big Anthony is playing in the Korean League.

Allen Webster

Sometimes a player is traded from another organization to become a top of the line prospect and that is right-hander Allen Webster. Webster could really throw hard, but a career 4.9 BB/9 shows the problem.

Once Webster found the plate consistently he would be a solid middle of the rotation hurler – at least that was my perception. The problem was an old story and that is not finding the plate. Henry Owens is the current farm system example of this. One issue in Webster’s 30.1 innings pitched in 2013 was seven home runs allowed.

The Red Sox hung on to the right-handed Webster for the 2014 season it hopes he might put it all together. After 11 starts and a 5.03 ERA that was certainly questionable. Then came a 4.3 BB/9 and although a slight improvement the decision was made.

Next: Red Sox sign Tanner Houck

Boston gave up on Webster and it was off to Arizona and then to Korean and now back to the States where he toils for the Rangers Triple-A affiliate in the PCL. So far the results do not impress.