Red Sox Prospect Watch: Two call-ups could create system changes

Deiner Lopez made his season debut this week. The 24-year-old shortstop started the year with a three-game hitting streak. Through four games the switch-hitter’s batting .250 with a double and an RBI. He’s already scored three times and stolen one base as well. Although he’s not on the top-30 prospect list, Lopez is exciting in all facets of the game and should be watched closely.

Tate Matheny is scorching-hot at the moment. The outfielder is riding a five-game hitting streak. In the last four, he’s had at least two hits (three of the games he’s driven in two runs as well). His last game may have been the best of his season. The 24-year-old went 4-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. He also scored two runs and stole two bases as well.

On the year, Matheny has a .287/.376/.381 slash line with 11 doubles and three triples. He’s driven in 24 runs and scored 28 more while stealing five bases.

Jantzen Witte is also having a fantastic time in Double-A. The 28-year-old struggled to open the year in Triple-A but has loved Portland. With the Sea Dogs, he’s mashing to the tune of a .367/.427/.644 clip in 23 games. He’s hit 10 doubles and five home runs while driving in 27 runs. Again, that’s in just 23 games.

Josh Ockimey‘s strong season is continuing as well. The first baseman holds a .272/.380/.470 slash line on the year. Over 43 games he’s hit seven home runs and driven in 27 runs. There’s a reason the 22-year-old is Boston’s 11th ranked prospect. The raw-power potential is showing out so far in 2018.

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Jhon Nunez is building towards his third straight solid season in the minors. The 23-year-old catcher has a .264 average in Double-A after posting a .286 average over 13 Triple-A games this year. He’s part of the reason Red Sox fans shouldn’t take that “zero organizational depth” stuff serious when people talk about the position. Sure, at the moment he’s not MLB-ready, but Nunez is a solid prospect at the position.

Danny Mars hit home run number one of the season over the last week. He also had two separate games with three runs scored in that span. The .230 average is slowly improving. Meanwhile, he still holds the team lead in steals (5) and is quickly making up ground in runs scored with 26.

Kyle Hart‘s ERA is now down to 3.02. The 25-year-old has turned out five straight incredibly strong performances. He went at least five innings in all five and allowed two earned runs in just one of them. Every other start saw Hart go six-or-more innings and allow one earned run. His stock hasn’t just risen over the last month – it’s sky-rocketed.

Teddy Stankiewicz actually raised his ERA this week. It went from 4.99 to 5.43. That’s due to one outing that saw Stankiewicz allow seven earned runs over five innings. He made another start this week, however, and gave up just two earned runs (on three hits) over six innings.

Mike Shawaryn lowered his ERA once again though. The number nine prospect in the organization now has a 3.67 ERA on the season. Most impressively in his last start, the right-hander struck out seven in six two-run innings, while walking none. Unsurprisingly, when Shawaryn keeps the walks down, he tends to be lights-out.