Red Sox Prospect Watch: Victor Acosta promoted to Advanced-A
By Hunter Noll
The Boston Red Sox got plenty of strong performances this week in the minors. Victor Acosta’s promotion to Advanced-A headlines this week’s Prospect Watch.
The Major League roster for the Boston Red Sox doesn’t feature much in the prospect department at the moment.
Bobby Poyner was with the team for a little, but didn’t make an appearance before being sent back down to the minors.
Tzu-Wei Lin was just sent down to the minors on Tuesday when the Red Sox brought Drew Pomeranz back into the mix. Lin saw very little time, but did manage to snap an 0-for-26 streak in the Majors while up.
Ryan Brasier was also called up recently. While he’s not exactly a prospect (30 years old), his 16 career innings pitched in the Majors gives him some kind of unknown-territory status. The reliever looks to stick around for the long run, as he’s thrown seven scoreless innings to this point.
Blake Swihart is far from a prospect at this point either. He appears to be getting actual semi-consistent playing time again though. At 26, there’s still plenty of time for the catcher to grow. Remember, Jason Varitek didn’t become the Red Sox full-time catcher until he was 27.
Swihart is clearly much more comfortable at the plate, as he’s riding a seven-game hitting-streak that’s risen his average from .165 to .214. The switch-hitter also blasted home run number one of the year on Tuesday.
As Boston gets healthier, the number of prospects getting a chance in the Majors will continue to decrease. However, September is approaching, and with it comes the expanded rosters.